Recent content by RickBullotta

I gotta say, I'm really liking the LR (not RR - different beast). 515 horsepower with no turbo lag is very smile inducing. And amazingly, I got about 70 miles more out of the tank than I ever got with my GX. Different vehicle altogether of course. I also like the CarPlay integration much...

Until you want to go real highway speeds...I ended up getting the supercharged V8. My primary need is on-road performance and handling, but knowing that I can go off road or deal with weather as needed. I'll be mounting up snow tires in the winter.

Want better sound? Wait for the replacement amps to come out for the ML system. It's a turd at high volumes and at low volumes until then.

Sold

It's strong enough but with the toppers there wouldn't be enough room. There are better solutions for a sleep platform though. I wouldn't recommend this system for that.

The Defender V8 checks all the boxes for me - fast, handles well, excellent brakes. Durability we shall see! Cheers.

For me the main issues that caused me to sell the Lexus were the clunky transmission, poor handling (lots of understeer and body roll), the small fuel tank and the sound system issues. Some of those aren't fixable. And Lexus didn't seem to be in any hurry to fix the things they could...

They’ve made great strides in quality over the past couple years. And certainly Lexus is going the other direction. I’m hopeful!

Should be no issues at all with newer builds. My 2025 had no hood issues at all.

FYI, here's what replaced the GX 550. 2025 Defender 110 V8. This thing is a beast, in a good way. Great engine note, tons of power, flatter handling, almost the same fuel economy but a larger tank, a smoother ride even with 22's (IRS vs solid rear I suppose), and a great interior. The sound...

Yup. I was able to do a TCM reset myself on my F-150, but not on my GX. That always helped...for a while. I guess my point is that I've never needed to do a recalibration on any of the other vehicles I've owned.

TBH I think this is somewhat symptomatic of many 10 speed transmissions. I had it with my GX 550 and also my F-150 Powerboost. The 8 speed units I've had in my Porsche and my Land Rover have been smooth, without sacrificing performance. It seems like 10 speed transmissions are constantly...

Nice. The fact that it eventually got resolved for the TX is encouraging too.