Lexus GX vs Toyota Prado

They are siblings, not merely rivals. Both use Toyota's TNGA-F body-on-frame platform, the same structure beneath the LandCruiser 300, and the dimensions give it away: an identical 2,850mm wheelbase, an identical 1,980mm width, and ground clearance of 220mm against 221mm. They even share defects. A recall notice dated 3 June 2026 covered 2,593 Lexus GX and UX vehicles over instrument-cluster software that could fail to display warnings such as low oil pressure, and Drive reported an identical recall for 13,042 Toyota Prados. Where they diverge is the engine, the cabin and the price. Read the GX as the Prado's underpinnings in a dinner jacket.

Mostly the powertrain and the interior. The GX brings a 3.4-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 with 260kW and 650Nm against the Prado's 150kW and 500Nm diesel four, a 14-inch screen against 12.3 inches, and a cargo bay unencumbered by the Prado's under-floor battery. What it does not buy is capability. The wheelbase is identical, ground clearance is within a millimetre, the braked tow rating tops out at the same 3,500kg, and the Prado actually approaches a climb at a steeper angle. Read the premium as payment for refinement and presence. Read the Prado as the same engineering with the money left in your pocket.

The Prado, and the margin is wide. Its 2.8-litre diesel is rated at 7.6L/100km on the official combined cycle against the GX's 12.3L/100km for the petrol V6, a difference of 4.7L every hundred kilometres. The Prado also carries a 110-litre dual tank against the GX's 80 litres, so it travels considerably further between fills as well as costing less to fill. Both cars are backed by a five-year warranty. The GX includes three years of Lexus Encore roadside assistance; Toyota sells roadside cover separately as an annual product. The Prado takes it on fuel, and nothing about the GX's V6 argues otherwise.

Both are rated to 3,500kg braked and 750kg unbraked, so the headline is a dead heat. The detail favours the Prado. Every Prado grade holds the full 3,500kg, while the GX Sports Luxury drops to 3,130kg on its larger wheels and only the Luxury and Overtrail keep the maximum. More usefully, Toyota publishes a 6,600kg gross combination mass and a 580kg payload, so you can work out what you can legally carry with a van on the ball. Lexus publishes neither figure for the GX, so a GX buyer has to read the compliance plate. Read the Prado as the tow pick if you are near the limit.

The GX carries no ANCAP rating because it has not been tested, which is a different thing from failing. It does not inherit the Prado's result either, since ratings do not transfer between models even on a shared platform. The Prado holds five stars from 2024 testing, current to December 2031 and applying to every variant, scoring 85 per cent adult occupant, 89 per cent child occupant, 84 per cent vulnerable road user and 82 per cent safety assist. Both cars carry nine airbags and the same core assist suite including AEB, adaptive cruise control and lane keep assist. Read the Prado as the pick if a current rating is a hard requirement.

The Prado, on the figures each maker publishes. It approaches at 31 to 32 degrees depending on grade against the GX's 26 to 27, and Toyota publishes a 700mm wading depth where Lexus publishes no wading figure for the GX at all. The GX answers on departure at 22 to 23 degrees against the Prado's 17, and ground clearance is effectively identical at 220mm against 221mm. Both are full-time four-wheel drives on the same ladder frame, so the underlying hardware is closer than the price gap implies. The Prado's Altitude adds a swaybar disconnect that no GX grade offers. Read the Prado as the sharper tool for a steep nose-in climb.

Only if the engine and the interior are what you are missing. The GX will not out-tow your Prado, out-climb it or carry more people; the wheelbase, the width, the clearance and the 3,500kg ceiling are all the same or in the Prado's favour. What changes is how it does the job: 260kW and 650Nm against 150kW and 500Nm, a 14-inch screen, a plusher cabin, and a boot without the battery hump under the floor. The cost is roughly $51,000 up front and 4.7L/100km every hundred kilometres after. Read the trade-up as a refinement purchase, not a capability one.

The Prado, and the margin widens once there's a van on the ball. Both cars are rated to 3,500kg braked, so the ceiling is identical. Toyota then publishes a 6,600kg gross combination mass and a 580kg payload, which is what you need to work out how much gear and how many people you can legally carry alongside the van. Lexus publishes neither for the GX, so you're reading a compliance plate instead of a brochure. The Prado also uses 7.6L/100km against 12.3 and carries 110 litres against 80, a real difference between fuel stops on a long haul. Every Prado grade tows the full 3,500kg; the GX flagship doesn't. The Prado takes it.

If you came from a Defender or a LandCruiser 300 and refinement is the brief, the GX is the one that won't feel like a step backwards. The twin-turbo V6 is the most charismatic engine either car offers, the cabin sits a clear rung above, and the load bay isn't built around a battery. You're paying about $51,000 over the Prado for it, plus 4.7L/100km, and accepting a car with no ANCAP rating. The GX is the pick if the cabin is where you spend your time. The Prado is the pick if the tracks are.