Hey Folks
This is the start to what will eventually become GX 460 Build Thread, but before I get into the technical details and build photos, I'll capture a few thoughts here (mostly for my own sake as one day I'll look back on this forum)...
I started "overloading" about 2-years back, almost without intention. I needed a truck to haul my mountain bike and purchased a 2019 Chevy Colorado ZR2. Being someone that loved camping, those trips with the truck and mountain bike soon turned into longer and longer trips, with overnights, newly scouted routes, etc. It wasn't long before I was eyeing aftermarket accessories to take the truck to more remote places, simply to get out of the hustle and bustle of daily life. A year or so later the truck had a roof top tent, on-board air, lights, fuel, etc. Yet, with all of those accessories, I was always longing for something - I had always felt like I was on the "wrong" platform. See, I never really intended to do the car - travel - camp thing with the Chevy, but it just so happened that the ZR2 could do most of those things, and it did them all pretty well. But I was always eyeing the Toyota & Lexus stuff not only for their world-class reliability and build quality but their large aftermarket support. Anytime I wanted to do something to the Chevy, there was one or two companies that offered a solution. Now, being a mechanical engineer by trade, I can figure most things out, but am mostly limited in what I can do in my small (SoCal) workspace.
So, fast forward about a year to a recent trip to the Sierra's with some college friends. Enter the 2007 Lexus GX 470. I had always known about the Lexus lineup and their capabilities, but until this recent trip, I wasn't sure what that really meant. Well in my mind, this is what I saw in my buddy's truck: an older vehicle that I could feel confident in understanding, I wouldn't need to worry about modifying a brand new vehicle, the Lexus had. better ground clearance and angles, and the Lexus was about half the cost (fully built) of my 2019 pickup, and it would likely outlast it with just some simple maintenance.
After driving the GX 470 through parts of Sequia and the surrounding wilderness areas and after many conversations relating the GX 460 to the GX 470 to Land Cruisers to 4Runners, I was nearly convinced on trading the truck in for a GX 460. And with the used car market offering just a few grand less than what I paid for MSRP on my truck, it was a simple decision.
Enter the 2013 GX 460.
I found my GX in Knight's Armor Pearl in New Mexico from an online cragislist ad. The ad linked me to a dealer site, where I saw the truck had 123k on the odometer, the vehicle was owned by a single individual Texas, and it had maintenance records every 5k through the Lexus Dealership. I was a bit nervous to buy the car sight-unseen, but I couldn't afford any more vacation time to get myself out to New Mexico for an on-site look. I asked the dealer to send some underbody photos, which I shopped around with friends and colleagues. The general consensus was it was worth the risk, so there I was - the cash left my bank account and I was left with an estimated delivery date, for what I would hope be my next, Overland Rig - the "Fresh Air Ah" Build.
- Ferreira
This is the start to what will eventually become GX 460 Build Thread, but before I get into the technical details and build photos, I'll capture a few thoughts here (mostly for my own sake as one day I'll look back on this forum)...
I started "overloading" about 2-years back, almost without intention. I needed a truck to haul my mountain bike and purchased a 2019 Chevy Colorado ZR2. Being someone that loved camping, those trips with the truck and mountain bike soon turned into longer and longer trips, with overnights, newly scouted routes, etc. It wasn't long before I was eyeing aftermarket accessories to take the truck to more remote places, simply to get out of the hustle and bustle of daily life. A year or so later the truck had a roof top tent, on-board air, lights, fuel, etc. Yet, with all of those accessories, I was always longing for something - I had always felt like I was on the "wrong" platform. See, I never really intended to do the car - travel - camp thing with the Chevy, but it just so happened that the ZR2 could do most of those things, and it did them all pretty well. But I was always eyeing the Toyota & Lexus stuff not only for their world-class reliability and build quality but their large aftermarket support. Anytime I wanted to do something to the Chevy, there was one or two companies that offered a solution. Now, being a mechanical engineer by trade, I can figure most things out, but am mostly limited in what I can do in my small (SoCal) workspace.
So, fast forward about a year to a recent trip to the Sierra's with some college friends. Enter the 2007 Lexus GX 470. I had always known about the Lexus lineup and their capabilities, but until this recent trip, I wasn't sure what that really meant. Well in my mind, this is what I saw in my buddy's truck: an older vehicle that I could feel confident in understanding, I wouldn't need to worry about modifying a brand new vehicle, the Lexus had. better ground clearance and angles, and the Lexus was about half the cost (fully built) of my 2019 pickup, and it would likely outlast it with just some simple maintenance.
After driving the GX 470 through parts of Sequia and the surrounding wilderness areas and after many conversations relating the GX 460 to the GX 470 to Land Cruisers to 4Runners, I was nearly convinced on trading the truck in for a GX 460. And with the used car market offering just a few grand less than what I paid for MSRP on my truck, it was a simple decision.
Enter the 2013 GX 460.
I found my GX in Knight's Armor Pearl in New Mexico from an online cragislist ad. The ad linked me to a dealer site, where I saw the truck had 123k on the odometer, the vehicle was owned by a single individual Texas, and it had maintenance records every 5k through the Lexus Dealership. I was a bit nervous to buy the car sight-unseen, but I couldn't afford any more vacation time to get myself out to New Mexico for an on-site look. I asked the dealer to send some underbody photos, which I shopped around with friends and colleagues. The general consensus was it was worth the risk, so there I was - the cash left my bank account and I was left with an estimated delivery date, for what I would hope be my next, Overland Rig - the "Fresh Air Ah" Build.
- Ferreira
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