Lexus LX600 Overtrail offroad & tow test

On 20th August 1860, over 15,000 people watched nineteen men depart Melbourne for an expedition into the unexplored region of central Australia.  Their transport included twenty-three horses and twenty-six camels. 

Over the next several weeks the poorly-planned expedition ran into numerous difficulties, one of which was the reliance on horses for transport.  The animals were not suited to the harsh, arid Australian terrain, especially when carrying extremely heavy loads.  Instead, the expedition found itself relying on its camels – slower, not as beautiful or charismatic, but reliably dependable in harsh conditions.

Today, 165 years after Burke and Wills led their convoy into lands unknown, I’m driving what might be considered as a modern-day camel, at least by comparison to its thoroughbred peers in the same price bracket. It is  Lexus’ flagship 4×4, the Lexus LX600 Overtrail.  And as Lexus has done for many years, they haven taken a Toyota base, in this case the LC300, added more luxury features, changed the styling a little, replaced the engine with a powerful petrol motor, then charged a premium. 

The result is a car which is cost-comparable to the Audi Q7, BMW X7, Porsche Cayenne and Mercedes-Benz GLS, but offers none of their chic style, a fraction of their onroad driving dynamics and little in the way of integrated usability.  The Lexus doesn’t even look particularly expensive or refined, and people knowing base vehicle is a humble Toyota is an advantage for Lexus to play on Toyota’s reputation for 4x4s, but a negative as nobody wants to be reminded their expensive car is based on a cheaper model.

The LX range spans Luxury to Ultra Luxury, but it is the offroad-focused Overtrail model that I’m discussing here, and that’s around $200,000 driveaway.  So why would you drop that sort of money on Lexus when you could be parking one of Europe’s finest SUVs in your expansive driveway?

Camel-capability is the answer, but not just capability – reliable, dependable capability.  Let’s start with the ability to traverse rough-terrain.  The LX600 offers market-leading offroad electronics such a a brake traction control calibration and Crawl Control, but matched with dependable, proven old-school 4×4 systems such as a lockable centre differential for reliable traction, long-travel suspension so all four wheels remain firmly on the ground, low range gearing, and even front and rear axle locking differentials. The suspension is variable-height so can be raised for the tough stuff and lowered for road use.  Special mention needs to be made of the tyres which are tougher than the fragile high-speed tyres fitted to other luxury SUVs, high profile with thick sidewalls, and completed with a full-size spare.

All that offroad engineering means the LX600 Overtrail is a vehicle which will walk up obstacles its competitors simply cannot conquer, or only manage with an excess of momentum and potential for damage.  It is so good I would say it is one of the best offroaders on the market, standing fair comparison with the INEOS Grenadier, Jeep Wrangler, Nissan Patrol and Land Rover Defender – you can watch my comparison video with the comparable LC300 GR Sport for proof, and that doesn’t even have the Overtrail’s variable-height suspension. 

But you don’t need to go looking for hardcore offroading to appreciate the Lexus; the thing about capable 4x4s is that they make hard tracks medium, medium tracks easy, and easy tracks trivial.  And if you tow, then that’s doubly important. The Lexus can tow trailers with ease where other cars struggle with nothing on the back, it’s that good and I prove the point in this video.

But there is a caveat, and that is a strength which is also a weakness.  The Lexus 4X4 vehicles demand the driver understands features like locking differentials and gears, DAC and crawl control, which for an expert is exactly what’s needed, every possible tool you’ll need is available.  For a novice, it’s confusing and overwhelming, made worse by Lexus’s poor usability and ergonomic design – I don’t know if Lexus offer driver training, but they really should right after they hire designers who have a clue about control design as I’d suggest that every Overtrail is a rolling example of unlocked potential, and yes that’s a pun.  In contrast, Land Rover have worked for years to make their cars as easy to drive as possible, with automatic locking differentials in the centre and rear and a simple Terrain Response system to set the car up for any specific situation, and their cars are as capable as the Lexus, but easier to drive.  But I’m not saying Land Rover’s approach is right, as I criticise their lack of driver control, but regardless, Lexus has work to do.

Then we come to reliability.  What we’ve discussed so far is ability to cover rough terrain, not long-term dependability.  This is harder to assess on a roadtest, but the component most likely to fail on a car is the tyres, and the Overtrail tyres are much less likely to let you down than those fitted to peer vehicles.  You could also make a strong case for longer-term rough-area reliability thanks to the Landcruiser underpinnings, and if we say only Land Rover can match Overtrail for obstacle-traversal, when it comes to dependability I think everyone with any experience of long-term offroading would give the win to the Lexus.

But if you want to modify the LX600 for touring you’ll find it difficult. There are few modifications that will fit it, so if you wanted vehicle-specific accessories such as a bullbar with winch mount, long-range fuel tank, snorkel, dual battery system and so on then you are likely to be out of luck unless the LC300 versions fit, or can be made to fit.

Many LX owners will want to tow, and my test including pulling my 2300kg single-axle hybrid trailer.  As you’d expect given motor capable of 650Nm of torque and more importantly, 305kW of power through ten speeds, acceleration is never a problem and in fact you can comfortably keep up with traffic without ever flooring the accelerator.  Trailer control was good, provided the suspension was set to the stiffer Sport mode.  The LX’s all-wheel-drive system means you’ll always find grip, and the ability to select low range without locking the centre differential means that you can manouver the vehicle in tight, steep areas with minimal revs or fuss, and maximum control.  The variable-height suspension helps when connecting or disconnecting the trailer too. That’s the positives.

The negatives are mostly notable by their absence.  If I had been writing this review ten years ago then it would have been all praise, but in 2025 a good towing car should have electronic systems designed to help you tow and the Lexus offers nothing.  There is no tow/haul mode.  It is difficult and confusing to disable the park sensors – the car should detect a trailer and disable them.  There is no automated trailer reverse system, no option to reconfigure the blind-spot system for trailers, and no trailer light check feature nor towing checklist.  The reversing camera quality isn’t great by 2025 standards, and there is no easy way to remove the guide lines so you can see the ball.  On a $200,000 vehicle in 2025 designed for towing such omissions are now glaring.

As for the maximum towing capacity of 3500kg – I don’t recommend you try a trailer that heavy, but that’s advice consistent with every other vehicle in the same class. The reason is relative mass of towcar to trailer, and running out of margin on limits such as GVM, GCM and axle limits – see my Towing Calculator for details.  I would suggest 2800kg, maybe 3000kg would be a better maximum for this vehicle.

The LX600 Overtrail is also a petrol, reliant on 95RON fuel, and while it has a 110L fuel tank that can disappear at the rate of 25L per 100km when towing so don’t be expecting long distances between fills.  That’s a petrol problem, as diesels are more frugal, especially under load.  There is a diesel LX Overtrail, but then you lose that beautiful petrol motor.

I liked the LX600 Overtrail.  I appreciate the engineering, the understated capability, the quiet sense of dependability.  But I didn’t love it.  I kept thinking that for the money Lexus had too many practical misses, especially compared to my Ranger which is a great example of pragmatic usability.  But that’s just me.  If you’re looking at horses, I would suggest you at least consider a camel you might come to enjoy.

LX600 Overtrail Specifications

• Engine: V6 petrol 305kW, 650Nm (diesel option 227kW / 700Nm), 110L fuel tank
• Dimensions: 5100mm length, width 1990mm, height approx 1900mm, 5 seater
• Powertrain: all wheel drive, Torsen centre diff, 10-speed automatic
• Offroad systems: centre diff lock, front and rear axle lockers engaged rear-front only in low range, brake traction control, Crawl Control, variable-height suspension, low range, Multi-Height Select suspension, Multi Terrain Select adaptive terrain system
• Tyres: 265/70/18 all-terrains, full-size spare
• Weights: GVM 3280kg, max braked tow 3500kg, max TBM 350kg.  Refer video for full weight discussion.