{"id":527847,"date":"2010-04-14T18:58:57","date_gmt":"2010-04-14T22:58:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.caranddriver.com\/?p=18796"},"modified":"2010-04-14T18:58:57","modified_gmt":"2010-04-14T22:58:57","slug":"lexus-stops-sales-of-2010-gx460-after-consumer-reports-safety-warning-but-is-there-really-reason-to-panic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/527847","title":{"rendered":"Lexus Stops Sales of 2010 GX460 After Consumer Reports Safety Warning, But Is There Really Reason to Panic?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

With Toyota\u2019s unintended-acceleration woes<\/a> still a hot topic, the company received another blow yesterday when Consumer Reports<\/em><\/a> issued a \u201cDon\u2019t Buy: Safety Risk\u201d warning for the 2010 Lexus GX460<\/a>. After running the luxury SUV through one of its emergency-handling testing procedures, CR<\/em> found that the rear of the GX slid out much too far, nearly 90 degrees, before the electronic stability-control system brought the skid under control.<\/p>\n

Lexus yesterday responded by saying it was looking into the issue and then later in the day issued a stop-sale notice to its dealers, offering loaner cars to GX owners until the issue can be resolved. So while the rest of the media was whipping up its usual frenzy of drama and general fear, we gave CR<\/em> a call to find out more about this specific test and hear firsthand about the publication’s experience with the GX460.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/p>\n

We spoke with senior automotive engineer Jake Fisher and he explained that each vehicle CR <\/em>evaluates is put through a series of tests that include those with constant parameters, such as slaloms and acceleration runs, as well as others indicative of real-world responses\u2014CR<\/em> calls them \u201celicit reaction\u201d tests\u2014to a given scenario. The test that the GX460 failed was of the latter type. While the GX made it through CR<\/em>’s coned handling course (similar to our lane-change test) without incident, it failed one portion of a test where the testers attempted to emulate a driver who has entered a corner with too much speed.<\/p>\n

In this particular test, the GX was driven down a straightaway at 60\u201365 mph and steered into a decreasing-radius turn that the SUV could only safely negotiate at a maximum of 50 mph. CR<\/em>\u2019s testers then emulated various responses by either braking, turning abruptly, or lifting off of the throttle. The vehicle behaved normally and the stability control intervened satisfactorily in the first two cases, but not in the third. The last action caused the rear to lose traction as a result of forward weight transfer, inducing what is called \u201clift-throttle oversteer,\u201d one of the things stability control is intended to prevent. All four of CR<\/em>\u2019s test engineers were able to reproduce the response, concluding that the GX460\u2019s stability control allows the vehicle to get too far sideways before the stability control collects it, which could lead to all manner of bad things, such as a rollover if a wheel falls off the road or strikes a curb.<\/p>\n

Stability-control software programming could be the cause of (and therefore solution to) the issue, but it\u2019s entirely possible that the fix could require hardware changes. The same day CR<\/em> tested the GX, it also ran the 2010 Toyota 4Runner<\/a> through the same exercises. The 4Runner and GX share a platform as well as many components, but the 4Runner didn’t have the same issue with any portion of the test, safely understeering during the lift-throttle situation. The two big differences between the SUVs? Tire compound and rear suspension hardware. The GX460 is available with two different tires, one made form a harder compound than the 4Runner\u2019s rubber and one made from a softer compound than that found on the Toyota. If the GX in question was on the hardest possible compound, it\u2019s possible that lower levels of grip could be to blame; that tire may slide a bit more than the stability-control system is programmed to deal with. (We\u2019re checking back with CR<\/em> to determine the tires worn by their test vehicles.) It\u2019s also important to note that the 4Runner uses coil springs at all four corners while the GX460 is equipped with adaptive, adjustable air springs in the rear, which could account for a difference in transient response.<\/p>\n

But if you\u2019re one of the approximately 5000 owners of a new 2010 GX, do the results of CR<\/em>’s <\/em>test justify a major-league freak-out? Just like the unintended-acceleration fiasco, probably not. It\u2019s important to note a few things here. First, as reported by CR<\/em>, there have been no known rollover problems with the GX under normal conditions. Second, <\/em>Fisher told us that in the two other non-lift-throttle runs through the same test, the GX460’s stability control acted quickly and appropriately. Finally, while it\u2019s great that CR <\/em>has noted this issue with the GX\u2014and we certainly think the stability control should be more effective in preventing lift-throttle oversteer\u2014drivers of top-heavy SUVs, or any vehicle for that matter, are ultimately responsible for knowing the physical limitations of their vehicles and driving accordingly. No matter how familiar or unfamiliar a person is with a road or individual corner, it\u2019s on them if they\u2019re driving too fast for both the vehicle and conditions. So don\u2019t do that.<\/p>\n

Related posts:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. 2010 Lexus GX460 – First Drive Review<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. 2010 Lexus GX460 – Short Take Road Test<\/a><\/li>\n
  3. Toyota Announces Details and Pricing on Safety Connect, Lexus Enform Services<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    With Toyota\u2019s unintended-acceleration woes still a hot topic, the company received another blow yesterday when Consumer Reports issued a \u201cDon\u2019t Buy: Safety Risk\u201d warning for the 2010 Lexus GX460. After running the luxury SUV through one of its emergency-handling testing procedures, CR found that the rear of the GX slid out much too far, nearly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6408,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-527847","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-mobile","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527847","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6408"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=527847"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/527847\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=527847"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=527847"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=527847"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}