2018 Lexus GX

In an industry where most car manufacturers have abandoned truck-based SUVs in favour of crossovers that drive more like cars, Lexus maintains there's a market for not one truckish luxury SUV, but two, the full-size LX and this mid-size model called the GX.

The GX shares its dirty bits with the Toyota Land Cruiser Prado, a body-on-frame four-wheeler that company sells in other markets. For the longest time, the GX was the least expensive way to get seven seats in a Lexus model, though that will change in 2018 when the brand (finally) adds a third row option to its RX crossover.

Its Land Cruiser underpinnings make the GX legitimately rugged and competent off-road, but we wonder how many buyers actually take advantage of that. On the road, the GX is reminiscent of the Toyota 4Runner with its comfortable ride and relaxed handling: The soft suspension allows a lot of body roll in corners and hard braking causes the body to pitch forward. That's the result of a chassis designed to allow the kind of suspension articulation necessary when tackling challenging trails.

Under the hood is a 4.6L V8 engine that lends the vehicle its GX 460 name as well as 301 hp and 329 lb-ft of torque. It comes connected to a six-speed automatic transmission and a full-time four-wheel drive system with low-range gearing.

That Lexus still makes the GX puzzles us considering it faces so little direct competition: You might cross-shop it with a Land Rover Discovery, but there's really not much else out there that combines a seven-passenger interior with true off-road credentials.

The GX comes in a single trim equipped with power tilt and telescoping steering column, heated and ventilated 10-way power front seats, heated second-row seats, tri-zone automatic climate control, heated wood and leather-wrapped steering wheel, LED headlamps, rain-sensing wipers, 17-speaker Mark Levinson audio system, hard-disk based navigation, Bluetooth, USB ports, and Siri Eyes-Free for control of Apple iPhones. Blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, are also standard.

A technology package adds pre-collision and driver monitoring systems, lane departure alert, radar cruise control and 360-degree exterior camera.

An executive package builds on that with the addition of front console cool box, rear-seat entertainment system, four-wheel crawl control, multi-terrain select, transmission cooler and fuel tank protector plates.