This is our '04 Lexus GX470...
This is our '04 Lexus GX470 as delivered, all ready to go to the ski resort. Little does it know, its fate will be tougher than some little ol' snowstorm.
Project TraiLex, Part 1
Project TraiLex, Part 2
Project TraiLex, Part 3
Project TraiLex, Part 4
OK, we've heard you. And we've read all the hate mail and heard all the jokes. The Lexus GX470 has won our Four Wheeler of the Year award two years in a row. We know all you readers out there think we've gone soft and can't tell a capable trail-mobile from a Lazy Boy recliner any more. Well, we're here to prove we still know potential when we drive it. So here is the plan: We're going to take our brand-new '04 Lexus GX470 over California's infamous Rubicon Trail, in front of our Four Wheeler TV cameras, for the whole world to see. We'll also be following our TraiLex's adventures in the pages of Four Wheeler, starting with this article.
First off, let's get one issue out in the open and be done with it. There are damn few, if any, new SUVs on the market today that are capable of traversing a trail the caliber of the Rubicon in bone-stock condition without considerable body and/or mechanical damage. The Lexus is no exception. So, like most 'wheelers, we plan some mods to help it out. No, we're not jacking it up and rolling a '70s-era live-axle truck chassis under it. It will remain a Lexus through and through.
Project TraiLex poses in the...
Project TraiLex poses in the same spot where, a month before, it looked like every other mallwagon. All the plastic body cladding has been removed and the lower body panels have been sprayed with Diamond Linings bedliner in a dark gray that accents the Lexus silver. The suspension has been lifted 3 inches and considerable trimming has been done to the front and rear fenders.
We are doing the same modifications to TraiLex that most any 'wheeling enthusiast would perform to his or her new rig before subjecting it to tough trails. Our mechanical modifications will be limited to the usual stuff: a mild lift, which we fabricated ourselves, bigger wheels and tires (33s from Pro Comp wrapped around Trailready beadlock aluminum wheels), an axle-ratio change from 3.73s to 4.88s (for the tire size and crawlablilty) and ARB Air Lockers front and rear.
The biggest changes will come through body protection. Again, we're fabricating our own, as there isn't much demand for Lexus armor at the local 4x4 emporium. We're the first to admit the Lexus has more than its share of useless, low-hanging body parts that may fend off bumps at the mall, but have no business on a 4x4. We don't design 'em, but we do look under them. We can tell a capable chassis when we see one, even if it's hidden behind plastic. The Lexus is stout underneath, and we plan to expose it and let the world know it can 'wheel.
Check out the photos and captions of what we've done so far. By the time you read this, some of you may have seen TraiLex running around Moab during Easter Jeep Safari. The Rubicon trip will take place sometime this summer and will air on Four Wheeler TV sometime after that.
 This was our first removal,...  This was our first removal, and the one we enjoyed the most. Why, we must ask again, do they put running boards on 4x4s? |  Anybody need some plastic?...  Anybody need some plastic? This is a shot of all the rubber-baby-buggy-bumper cladding we removed from TraiLex. Most of it came off with a good yank, or a yank plus removal of a couple of 10mm bolts. Note how the remaining body already looks more like that of a trailmobile. |  With the plastic out of the...  With the plastic out of the way, there was still a lot of trimming to do to clean up the fenders and create tire clearance. All those holes were for holding the plastic fender lips. They were covered with masking tape and then sprayed over with bedliner--an easy way to get rid of several hundred unwanted holes. |