Lexus GX vs Toyota LandCruiser 300

The badge assumption is wrong here. The LandCruiser 300 both undercuts and out-prices the Lexus GX, because its ladder is longer. The 300's GX grade opens at $107,315 driveaway in New South Wales, some $23,271 below the cheapest Lexus GX at $130,586, while the Sahara ZX tops the diesel range at $158,566, about $14,649 above the dearest Lexus GX at $143,917. Every Lexus GX therefore costs more than a 300 GXL and less than a 300 Sahara. Both sides are quoted on the same private driveaway basis, current as of mid-2026. Read it as a choice between a mid-range LandCruiser and a Lexus, not as a budget question.

The LandCruiser 300 wins decisively, and the gap comes from both ends. Toyota fits a 110-litre tank and claims 8.9L/100km on the ADR combined cycle. Lexus fits an 80-litre tank and claims 12.3L/100km. The tank is 27 per cent smaller and the engine drinks 38 per cent more, so on ADR figures the Toyota covers roughly 1,200km between fills against about 650km for the Lexus GX. For a remote-area tourer that is the difference between planning around towns and planning around fuel. Diesel availability across regional Australia widens it again. The Lexus GX asks for 95-octane premium and offers no hybrid in the Australian range.

The peak rating ties at 3,500kg braked and 750kg unbraked, so the decision sits in the detail. Every LandCruiser 300 grade holds the full 3,500kg. The Lexus GX Luxury and Overtrail match it, but the Sports Luxury drops to 3,130kg unless it is optioned with the Enhancement Pack, which means the dearest Lexus tows less than the cheapest Toyota. The larger point is payload headroom. The Toyota's 3,280kg gross vehicle mass sits above the Lexus GX's 3,110 to 3,175kg, so it keeps more room for people and gear before it hits its legal limit while towing, and Toyota publishes a 6,750kg gross combination mass and 350kg tow-ball limit to plan a loaded rig against. The LandCruiser 300 takes it.

The LandCruiser 300 holds five ANCAP stars from a 2022 test, current to December 2028, with 89 per cent for adult occupant protection. The Lexus GX has never been tested and carries no rating, and the five stars of the Prado it shares a platform with do not transfer. But read ANCAP's fine print. The result applies to all 300 Series variants except the GR Sport, which Toyota has never submitted, so the entry GX grade is rated and the $157,781 GR Sport is not. Both cars fit AEB, lane keep assist and blind-spot monitoring as standard. If a rating is a fleet or household requirement, that narrows the field.

Both ranges offer seven seats, which the spec tables obscure. The Lexus GX seats seven in Luxury and Sports Luxury, and five in the Overtrail, which gives up its third row for off-road hardware. The LandCruiser 300 seats seven in GXL, VX and Sahara, and five in the GX grade, the GR Sport and the Sahara ZX. The pattern is the same on both sides: the more serious the off-road intent, the fewer the seats. The Lexus GX's third row reads as occasional-use in AU road tests. Read the 300 as the pick if you want more seven-seat grades, the Lexus if the cabin around those seats is the point.

The published geometry favours the Toyota throughout. The LandCruiser 300 clears 245mm against the Lexus GX's 220mm, approaches at 31 degrees against 26 to 27, and departs at 25 degrees against 22 to 23. Both run full-time four-wheel drive with a low-range transfer case. The GR Sport is the only 300 grade with front and rear differential locks, so that advantage belongs to one grade rather than the whole range. The Lexus GX's counter is the Overtrail, which trades its third row for 18-inch all-terrain tyres and the suspension hardware AU launch reviews rated the best-riding and most capable setup in the range. Neither maker publishes a wading depth. On clearance and angles, the LandCruiser 300 takes it.

The Lexus GX runs a twin-turbo petrol V6 making 260kW and 650Nm. Across AU road tests it is the car's least disputed strength: smooth, strong and well matched to its 10-speed automatic. The LandCruiser 300 runs a 3.3-litre twin-turbo diesel V6 making 227kW and 700Nm, an engine the same road tests now rate above the V8 it replaced. The Lexus wins power, the Toyota wins torque, and the 110-litre tank against 80 decides it for anyone covering distance. Read the Lexus GX as the pick if refinement is the purchase. Read the LandCruiser 300 as the pick if range, torque and diesel availability are.

On the Lexus side, the Luxury. It seats seven, holds the full 3,500kg braked rating and runs the range's only engine, for the least money at $130,586 driveaway as of mid-2026. The Overtrail is the move if you leave the bitumen often and can spare the third row. On the Toyota side, the GXL at $120,415 driveaway is the cheapest seven-seater and shares its driveline and tow ratings with grades nearly $40,000 dearer, so the money above it buys equipment rather than capability. The 300's GX grade suits fleet and hard touring. The GR Sport exists for its diff locks, and for buyers willing to forgo an ANCAP rating to get them.