Congrats on the new ride. Newb here with a '13 LX. I've had it a little over 2 years. It just hit 93k miles and it's amazingly comfortable and capable and solid. I traded a '16 Land Cruiser for it because the LC's suspension was way too soft for me and the transmission couldn't figure out the right gear to save its life. To me, the 6sp transmission in the LX feels much more responsive. The LX is our Colorado highway cruiser, my tow vehicle and also does daily driver duties when the weather sucks or when it's blocking the cars in the garage and I'm too lazy to move it. I've owned many vehicles (over 40) and this one is definitely one of the best. I suspect you will enjoy your LX for many years and then someone else will and then someone else will... ?
Tex's 2019 LX 570
- Thread starter Tex68w
- Start date
Tex68w
Beach Bum
So far it has been amazing. I know the first year of the 8-speed transmission (2016) they had issues but there was a TSB/Recall for it and everyone that had it done said that it completely altered the way that it drove. Did you have it updated on yours before you traded it for the '13? I picked this one up as a gift to the lady friend as it's all she's ever asked for in the last 4+ years. I told her it had to stick around for at least four years before I'd let her move on and if at that point she wanted something new I'd likely keep it for myself and get silly with it at that point. For now it won't get many more mods as it drives nearly perfect the way that it is.
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CSG
Explorer
As an LX owner going on 10 years, when the time comes to replace mine (although it could outlive me), it would be another LX. I HATE the current front end styling of them compared to the LC but I like everything else about them. Maybe they'll tone down that front end again like they were earlier in the 200 series.
Glad to hear they improved the transmission cuz I really like the interior of the newer LXs. I'll just have to avoid looking at the front grill.
?
I wasn't aware of the TSB, so didn't get it done. Wouldn't have made me keep it though bc of the suspension on the LC.
Tex68w
Beach Bum
Tex68w
Beach Bum
Believe it or not, the LX and LC don't have a light in the cargo area, the only lights on the lift gate shine out rearward which does absolutely nothing to illuminate the cargo hold or even the ground back of the vehicle for that matter. The common upgrade is to install one of the National Luna LED bars but it requires you to mount/screw it to the interior plastics and tap into wiring inside of the lift gate itself. It's hard to understand how an $88K SUV doesn't have a cargo light but it be lol.
Recently an Aussie on IH8mud offered up a plug-n-play alternative for a cargo light. I received the light in seven days from Western Australia, that's better than most vendors here in the states lol. It requires that your lift gate have the powered open/close option which would be standard on a 2018+ LC or a late model LX. You simply pop out the access panel from the inside of the lift gate, unplug the lift gate open/close wiring, plug the light into the factory connection and the original harness into the split plug on the light. Tuck away the excess harness and pop the new panel with the light and manual override on/off switch back into the lift gate and boom you're done. It took me less than a minute to install.
The light comes on automatically when the lift gate is opened and will time out at 15 minutes if left open. It will turn off automatically upon closing it as well. You can turn the light off via the power button above it. The power button is illuminated in a blue back-light when depressed to turn the light off, the power button will not be illuminated when left in the auto on/off mode and the lift gate remains closed. I was pleased to find that the light will not turn on when one of the other doors is opened, this is nice and keeps it from blinding you should you access the the vehicle from one of the rear doors. The light contains three 3watt LED's for a total of 9watts, it is extremely bright and has a 50,000 hour life cycle. It is mounted to a Toyota OEM panel as well so it matches the rear lift gate interior plastics perfectly.
I couldn't be more pleased with this product and I never thought I would be this excited about such a simple upgrade, that said, we take for granted how useful something like this is and how often one actually uses it.
Day
Night
Lift gate shut and in auto on/off mode to show that it doesn't turn one with the other doors open nor does the power button sit illuminated when not in use.
Recently an Aussie on IH8mud offered up a plug-n-play alternative for a cargo light. I received the light in seven days from Western Australia, that's better than most vendors here in the states lol. It requires that your lift gate have the powered open/close option which would be standard on a 2018+ LC or a late model LX. You simply pop out the access panel from the inside of the lift gate, unplug the lift gate open/close wiring, plug the light into the factory connection and the original harness into the split plug on the light. Tuck away the excess harness and pop the new panel with the light and manual override on/off switch back into the lift gate and boom you're done. It took me less than a minute to install.
The light comes on automatically when the lift gate is opened and will time out at 15 minutes if left open. It will turn off automatically upon closing it as well. You can turn the light off via the power button above it. The power button is illuminated in a blue back-light when depressed to turn the light off, the power button will not be illuminated when left in the auto on/off mode and the lift gate remains closed. I was pleased to find that the light will not turn on when one of the other doors is opened, this is nice and keeps it from blinding you should you access the the vehicle from one of the rear doors. The light contains three 3watt LED's for a total of 9watts, it is extremely bright and has a 50,000 hour life cycle. It is mounted to a Toyota OEM panel as well so it matches the rear lift gate interior plastics perfectly.
I couldn't be more pleased with this product and I never thought I would be this excited about such a simple upgrade, that said, we take for granted how useful something like this is and how often one actually uses it.
Day
Night
Lift gate shut and in auto on/off mode to show that it doesn't turn one with the other doors open nor does the power button sit illuminated when not in use.
Tex68w
Beach Bum
A little over one month of ownership now and we have just a hair over 900 miles on it. I have yet to get it on the beach or off-road in general for that matter, but I couldn't be more pleased with how it performs around town and on the highway. Other than the low hanging grill and lack of cup holders in the front seats, we don't have any complaints. With the 275/60's (33's) we have been seeing 15.5mpg's with mixed driving and around 17mpg average when on the highway. I have yet to get it out on the highway at 60-65mph on a normal day without the normal screaming headwinds to see if she'll still push north of 18mpg's.
No plans for future mods at this point, but I am eagerly watching and waiting for bumper options and a true full replacement flat rack to work with the built in factory side rails. We have a set of Slee sliders on order but I am not expecting those to be ready anytime in 2019 lol.
No plans for future mods at this point, but I am eagerly watching and waiting for bumper options and a true full replacement flat rack to work with the built in factory side rails. We have a set of Slee sliders on order but I am not expecting those to be ready anytime in 2019 lol.
Tex68w
Beach Bum
Great idea for that era of rack, but with the 2016+ aluminum side rails, I'd have to come up with some sort of bracket to raise the cross bar up high enough to to clear the roof.
Tex68w
Beach Bum
No new updates to the LX, but we are still enjoying its quiet comfort and class. It appears at this point in time that we will likely keep the LX stock for now and enjoy it as is. The misses really likes how it looks and handles at the moment and since I bought it for her I will keep it the way she wants it to be for her daily commute. I will have to put my time and effort into mods on the other toys instead now.
Tex68w
Beach Bum
I haven't but we like how it sits now so I doubt that'll happen.
CSG
Explorer
I know lots of guys like to do all sorts of mods to make their LC/LX more capable but in the almost 10 years I've owned mine, all I did was have the stock running boards removed and upgraded to KO2s when the BO AT tires wore out. I don't run trails but I've driven on some pretty challenging back country roads (which we have a lot of in Idaho) and the one thing I've felt about this vehicle in the years I've owned it is: no drama. My rig as far more capable in stock form than I am. Plus, by keeping it free of bolt on, look cool accessories, I get in the 15-16 MPG range on regular. You don't need many mods on an LC/LX out of necessity unless you're primarily and offroader running trails (IMO).
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