Ladies/Gents,

The car I was supposed to pick up this Saturday, the owner decided to bail on me. So no LR3 for me at all. That said, my search continues and before I ask what I want to ask here, let me explain the background story.
My winter car for the past 10 years pretty much was a BMW X3 2.5 that I got from BMW as a CPO, still under BMW's warranty. Other than some normal issues here and there, the car, under my ownership, always performed well and was very well maintained. At one stage under my ownership, my wife that made me lease a small SUV for her that HAD to be manual (her words) decided the brand new 2015 VW Tiguan I got her was not really what she wanted and a BMW X1 came home (her car). Now having 2 winter cars (the damn Tiguan and the BMW), I started driving the Tiguan (as it was a lease) and the X3 she decided to sell to one of her workers (she owns a car detailing company). So far so good. I knew the guy so had zero issues with her selling the X3 (after all I got it for her in the first place). Problem was a year later the guy tells her his girlfriend got pregnant so he decided to simply return the X3 to her and here we go, X3 was not back to me as the Tiguan lease was coming up.
Problem is, the guy did ZERO maintenance and after I got it back, it had a transmission issue (he never serviced the transmission, no flushing, NADA). I was faced with two options: keep the X3 and throw a transmission on it (even though in manual it would drive just fine) or sell it and get something. As I had the car for 10 years I was kind of ready to try something new to me and I started looking at something.
And here is the moment I ask you guys not to ban me from the LR forums.
I was looking for a Lexus LX 470. Yes, the Land Cruiser 100 in fancy dressing. Was damn decided on getting one.
So one day my older son comes home with his new winter beater: a Discovery 2 he bought from an old guy that maintained the damn thing like it was the last car on earth. It was like new. He showed it to me and I am like, "huummm these Land Rovers do look ok" LOL. So I start looking for a mint Disco 2 but like his and for what he paid for it, impossible find. He probably bought the last mint condition Disco 2 for under USD 2200 in the world.
I then started looking at LR3s, based on what the told me. That is when I found a nice one, agreed to buy it and was going to pick it up this Saturday and all fell through.

Now with no car, I did find some other pretty good LR3s but Jesus Lord I also found some nice LX 470. That leads me to the question I want to ask you guys and I hope you will give me an honest, unbiased answer.
What to you think the LR3s are better than the LX 470? And where do you think the LX 470 is a better car than the LR3?
In other words I want to hear from you guys (many I bet do have experience with both) on your view regarding both. I know if I ask you which one you would buy, all of you would say the LR3 as this is after all a Land Rover forum. But it would be great to have your honest view on this as I have never owned a LR or a Lexus. Now if you ask me a thing about Porsches, BMWs and damn Lamborghinis, well that is another story...

Cheers!

CR

 

Hi. I think I can be honest.

The LR3 is very purpose-built, in my opinion. It isn't even an "SUV" or a "4WD SUV." It's a 4x4...meaning it's built with off-roading in mind. It can do long road trips, too. It works just fine as a daily driver....but everything about it is designed with wheelin' in mind first. I don't know if I can say that about the LX. I do think the LX would make a fine overlander, and it's gonna be plenty reliable. I really liked the LX470, until I drove my sister's...it just felt, well...SOFT. That engine felt gutless, the suspension felt squishy, the steering gave little feedback. From then on, I just kinda hated it.

Question for you: have you driven both? If not, you should.

Are you going to off-road this vehicle? If not, the LX may work for you. If you are, the LR3 is gonna be better even though the LX could be adequate, too. I'm not knocking it.

I honestly think that just about anyone who drives an LR3 for a week or two, would never want to be without it again. I have had an '05 since new. I love it; it's my baby. My wife would drive it if she had to, back in the day....I have bigger tires on it usually and extra weight from skid plates and sliders and she never got used to the weight and the fact that it feels like a tank. Fast forward to spring 2019, I picked up an '06 HSE for $4700. At first she was like "I don't know, it's so heavy" and all this....after a week or so, I couldn't pry the keys out of her hands! She's like "okay, I kinda love it....." She chooses this LR3 with 205,000 miles over our 3rd car which was technically "hers," a 2014 Infiniti Q50S !!!! Ridiculous.

The LR3 has so much character....it just sort of gets into ya.

 

What year of lexus? Would I buy a 2020 lx that is pretty much the same one they sold in 2009? No... Would I consider a 2009 now.... sure if I was looking for a used vehicle. Well maintained ones are bringing a premium used though. What are you using it for? Do youbdrive a little or a lot? Etc?

If both were in great condition I would take the rover, with absolutely no thought. It rides better, tows better, offroads better, road trips better, has more gadgets and is just nicer... maintenance and repairs will be more expensive on some pieces... a lot of which the lx doesnt even have. the lexus is really a toyota with better leather. It is much more crude, louder, gutless but still poor fuel mileage... they are built tough and crude and it shows when you drive it. The only thing they have going for them is perceived reliability.... that's the trade off. More stuff and nicer = more stuff that "could" break.

 

Ok let me explain. The plan is indeed to use the car off road. Not off road madness but as my son got the Disco 2, we are indeed planning to do some trips into more remote locations. Throwing a roof tent, etc. Spending the weekend somewhere remote. I would say nothing crazy that would require something with 40" wheels and a trailer with spare parts.
For the winter it would also be a daily driver as all the other cars I store them and do not drive during winter. The LR3/LX 470 may see some occasional city driving outside of winter, yes but I do not expect much. Unless it is that damn good to the point I do not want to drive anything else.
What I am looking at: 2007 LR3 HSE 7 seats, complete. 99000 miles, seems well maintained. Would know more once I go see the car on Saturday. 2000 LX 470 170000 miles. Also seems to be in nice shape with minor little things. Maintenance like timing belts is unknown. So I would have to throw some money on it to make sure it is 100%. Need to check it in person as well. Price wise, they are pretty much equal.

Does it give you guys a better perspective on what I am after and a good comparison between the two cars I am looking at?

Cheers.

CR

 

Very good points and great explanation. Nope, I have never driven a Lexus or an LR3. Only LR that I drove was the Disco 2 my son bought. And yes, it feels like a tank that could be used in a Zombie apocalypse.

CR

 

Guessing spending somewhere between 5 and 7k?

If the LR3 is road worthy and ready it would be my choice of both in similar condition.

with 13 and 20 years age... either could be a cream puff or basket case depending on the owners.

 

Well I am in Canada. Smaller (much smaller) market what reduces the supply, driving prices up. So we are in the 9K range here for these vehicles. Even though I could get them for less in the US now with the COVID, importing would be a pain (I did import cars from the US many times and the process is simple but now with COVID, no go). Both cars seem to be in great shape, do run perfectly (according to the sellers) and so on. As I said I will be able to check both by Saturday/Sunday and then come up to a final decision.
But any feedback from LR3 owners is certainly appreciated!

CR

 

That does indeed give me more perspective....thank you.

Get the LR3. All day....don't even go look at the LX. The fact that you are doing some off-roading and that it's a 2007 HSE with under 100k. That's a sweet spot. There will be some work to do if not done yet (plugs, tranny fluid, stuff like that). Make sure to replace the bleeder valve. The LR3 will run forever if you take good care of it.

Also...the driving experience in an LR3 is night 'n day different than a Discovery. It's not even a comparison worth making. Different engine, transmission, suspension, wheel base. Oh...and the LR3 is WAYYYY better.

I'm not biased though. I only have two of 'em.

 

Or don't get the LR3. Here's why. They're designed for off-road but they're excellent on-road cruisers. Very quiet. The 4.4V8 is superb and easy to work on with very few issues. But the V8 is quite slow; it has little pick up although it cruises very quietly with 75MPG being around 2000RPM it still manages a 15ish MPG. They're hard on their suspension at almost 3 metric tons, and if your 100K vehicle hasn't been looked after you can plan on replacing upper and lower control arms, ARB bushes, etc. The transmission is great but it probably needs a fluid change. And same for the diffs, brake fluid, etc. No idea what a Land Cruiser needs, but it's probably the same to a point. The LR3s two serpentine belts would be due a change also if not already done. Not a hard job were it not for the need to remove the bastard radiator fan.

LR3s are quite quirky. They're ridiculously sensitive to weak batteries and even non-OEM brake light bulbs can lead to a hissy fit. The boot opening mechanisms are prone to failure. The brake pedal switch can cause the vehicle to lose its mind. They don't really like after-market parts that much and LR parts can be expensive (but in my view are worth it).

You'll read about the air suspension. It's one of the very best things about these cars but it can be a bear if yours has a problem. Again, working on it isn't that difficult, but finding the fault can be. So you'd need to take a long, hard look at the air suspension.

The sunroofs and windscreen cowl leak a lot. Not hard to fix but if certain electrical components have had a soaking then you can be in for a fight to sort it out. The leaks are fixable, but there can be quite a bit of damage caused by existing problems. You'd certainly want to check the drains and carpets for dampness.

I've had a lot of these vehicles. I love them, but you need to come into LR ownership with your eyes open. It's a hobby more than any other vehicle, I'd suggest. Be prepared to be pleasantly surprised every time it starts (well, almost, although I have felt like that at times). But once it does start, there's a danger you'll find you can't be without it, so may face withdrawal problems down-stream.

Having bought the thing your immediate next purchase should be a GAP IID tool, so that'll set you back another $500, but you'd be mad to own a LR3 or 4 without one.

 

Great info! Thanks for the reply. I will definitely go check the LR3 and probably end up buying it. Regarding expensive parts and being picky with anything else, well, I have two BMWs E38 V12. No better way to learn about expensive parts, crazy engineering and quirks. If you can keep that car running and running well with no faults, you can keep anything that has an engine running. I think I will feel just at home with the LR3 then.

Cheers guys and really great content on this thread with honest and unbiased feedback.

CR