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stouffvilk suntribune thursday april 15 2004 9 more gx 470 page 101 an advertising section of the economist sun thursday april 15 2004 abovethe rear is accessed by the cargo door that opens to the right to reveal the third row seats here shown tucked up against the cargo area sides leftlexus has introduced the gx470 suv slated midway between the rx 330 and lx 470 but it is anything but midsize being able to carry eight by jim robinson road worthy two years ago lexus had a hard time making the business case that it needed the gx 470 luxury suv in canada how things have changed in just 24 months luxury sedan sales have taken off bringing suvs right along with them suddenly everybody wants them and every manufacturer is selling seemingly all they can make and this includes all the premium luxury brands from mercedes- benz to cadillac to even porsche on sale in the us since 2002 lexus canada sees the gx 470 as a slamdunk neatly filling a hole between the rx 330 arguably the gold standard in midsize lux ury suvs- and the big highly prized and highlypriced lx470 lexus sees gx 470 as a perfect fit for those who find the rx 330 too small and the lx 470 which has a kind of dated look that traces its lineage back at last three decades to the toyota land cruiser the gx 470 is a full eightseater but it is trimmer in size with the bonus of fitting into any garage a touch and go thing with the lx 470 y the gx 470 is in fact a new body on full frame based on the prada platform sold in a number of markets worldwide while body on frame may sound a bit yestertech modern cadcam engineeringrhakes the gx470s response a revelation thanks to its rigidity and an even more supple inde pendent suspension which makes for a very untruck like ride at highway speeds power is the 47litre dohc v8 toyotalexus uses in all its big truck appli cations in the gx 470 it produces 235 hp and 320 ftlb of torque 80 per cent of which is available at just 1000 rprri it also allows for a towing capacity of 6500 lb 2948 kg the only transmission is a five- speed automatic with shift logic that not only picks the right gear based on load but also controls engine braking on decelerar tion the heart of the driveline system is a centre torsen torsion sensing differen tial that splits power 40 per cent front 60 per cent rear under normal conditions if slippage is detected the ratio can change up to 52 per cent front but during steering changes that shifts to 2971 per cent frontrear to track more smoothly through curves there is also a switch on the drive- line centre console that locks the torsen 5050 for deep snow mud or serious off- roading and the gx470 is equipped for the most primitive conditions with dac downhill assist control and hac hillstart assist control that ensures the truck does not roll back when climbingr dac is real wizard stuff when you press the dac button on the driveline tunnel a computer measures the steepness of the decline vehicle speed and yaw irate to keep the truck going downhill on an even keel between 57 kmh it just seems unnatural to take your foot off the gas and brake and trust all to a computer and a set of sensors on a nothing more than a rocky footpath but ive tested dac fitted to a toyota 4runner coming down a rock road hacked out the side of a bc mountain and believe me it works i mentioned the great highway ride ear lier on this is due to what lexus calls adaptive variable suspension that is con trolled by yet another driveline tunnel switch that has 16 settings ranging from comfort to sport believe it or not the system continuously adjusts all four shock absorbers individually based on driving condition wheel speed engine revs steer ing wheel deflection brake usage and yaw at adjustment speeds of 25 milliseconds and the last i promise of the driveline tunnel switches is for adaptive height control that is air based and can raise the body 40 mm at speeds below 30 kmh to increase clearance for ramps it can also be lowed 20 mm for easier cargo loading or attaching a trailer the interior leaves nothing out from the 14speaker mark leyinson audiophile sound system to the rich wood trim to the leather that has the feeling like linen denoting its high quality its all standard see gx 470 page 10 tib car dealer in markham s rz s s r v rtrsrt 2004 purchaseprice ch lease for 31 481 ri qdlp tr poao udu isscditb i takeyovr pick 20031 2004 escape xls 2003 f150 2004 f150 42v yrelsqiad seating mffirtswafcwsp prhiacy glass power absamwc06nenlertahienl vcp system power loclcstwnbowsmimxs drkiere seetpowped andirora 3wr0v aes reverse sensing mlflsflb- advance wmmmslb stk4fr0154 hh rontwhedttveaol v8 arfo trarsrisson ac lototekeytessrj entry amiwcasssco s9t4es0118 purchaseprice ijeasefob f wmmi 48 mth 4x4 supercrew fx4 xlt supercab 4x2 xlt muse mce 31498 take your pick 2004 f150 4x4 supercab xlt loaded with fx4 package black with gray fraptains chair 46lv8 auto ac pwpl pm limited slip axle trailer tow speed control flit and more stfc ip3fs0578 hrcittsephce tmiiimmk r 54l 300 hp brrttedsfipaxtepowef pedals o lease for w p kkksj trailer low reverse sensing system power ii sip rear deftoster i 00k 24 l7wheets46lv8 yjrv foronly oa00per m mth w mth puuf fc 21 main street unionville kennedy road 1 block north of hwy 407 i at cash priceslease payments are plus freight taxes tconco and foes oac al factory to dealer credits and rebates appted and are not combinablo with i leases al leasos are based on 299500 down payment with 20000 kms allowed per year excess kms charged at oeeltm iockm windstar i markham economist sun readers choice awards tied