Compare the2023 GMC AcadiaVS 2022 Lexus RX

Safety
Warranty
Engine
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Towing
Ergonomics
Economic Advantages

Safety

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The Acadia Denali’s optional pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The RX doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

For enhanced safety, the front shoulder belts of the GMC Acadia are height-adjustable, and the middle seat shoulder belts have child comfort guides to move the belt to properly fit children. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages children to buckle up. The Lexus RX has only front height-adjustable seat belts.

In the past twenty years hundreds of infants and young children have died after being left in vehicles, usually by accident. When turning the vehicle off, drivers of the Acadia are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The RX doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

The Acadia has a standard front seat center airbag, which deploys between the driver and front passenger, protecting them from injuries caused by striking each other in serious side impacts. The RX doesn’t offer front seat center airbags.

Both the Acadia and the RX have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does 35 MPH front crash tests on new vehicles. In this test, results indicate that the GMC Acadia is safer than the Lexus RX:

	Acadia	RX
OVERALL STARS	5 Stars	4 Stars
	Driver
STARS	5 Stars	3 Stars
Neck Injury Risk	21%	33.2%
Neck Stress	191 lbs.	412 lbs.
Neck Compression	29 lbs.	60 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	129/383 lbs.	433/719 lbs.
	Passenger
STARS	4 Stars	4 Stars
Chest Compression	.6 inches	.7 inches
Neck Stress	203 lbs.	267 lbs.
Leg Forces (l/r)	210/60 lbs.	403/457 lbs.

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the GMC Acadia is safer than the Lexus RX:

	Acadia	RX
	Into Pole
STARS	5 Stars	5 Stars
Spine Acceleration	36 G’s	44 G’s

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

Instrumented handling tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and analysis of its dimensions indicate that the Acadia is 1.3% to 1.5% less likely to roll over than the RX.

Warranty

There are almost 7 times as many GMC dealers as there are Lexus dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the Acadia’s warranty.

Engine

The Acadia’s optional 3.6 DOHC V6 produces 2 more horsepower (310 vs. 308) than the RX 450h’s standard 3.5 DOHC V6 hybrid.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the Acadia gets better mileage than the RX:

			MPG
Acadia
	FWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/29 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	22 city/27 hwy
RX
	FWD	3.5 DOHC V6	20 city/27 hwy
	AWD	3.5 DOHC V6	19 city/26 hwy

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the Acadia’s fuel efficiency. The RX doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

Regardless of its engine, the Acadia’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. Lexus only offers an automatic engine start/stop system on the RX 450h, and doesn’t offer a disable button.

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the GMC Acadia uses regular unleaded gasoline (premium recommended with the 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder engine for maximum performance). The RX 450h requires premium, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

The Acadia FWD’s standard fuel tank has 2.2 gallons more fuel capacity than the RX Hybrid’s standard fuel tank (19.4 vs. 17.2 gallons), for longer range between fill-ups. The Acadia AWD’s standard fuel tank has 2.5 gallons more fuel capacity than the RX’s standard fuel tank (21.7 vs. 19.2 gallons).

The Acadia has a standard cap-less fueling system. The fuel filler is automatically opened when the fuel nozzle is inserted and automatically closed when it’s removed. This eliminates the need to unscrew and replace the cap and it reduces fuel evaporation, which causes pollution. The RX doesn’t offer a cap-less fueling system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the GMC Acadia higher (6 to 7 out of 10) than the Lexus RX (5 to 7). This means the Acadia produces up to 8 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the RX every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the GMC Acadia, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only an eight-speed automatic is available for the RX.

Brakes and Stopping

The Acadia stops shorter than the RX:

	Acadia	RX
70 to 0 MPH	173 feet	178 feet	Car and Driver

Tires and Wheels

For better traction, the Acadia AT4’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the RX (255/65R17 vs. 235/65R18).

The GMC Acadia’s wheels have 6 lugs for longer wheel bearing life, less chance of rotor warping and greater strength. The Lexus RX only has 5 wheel lugs per wheel.

The Acadia has a standard easy tire fill system. When inflating the tires, the vehicle’s integrated tire pressure sensors keep track of the pressure as the tires fill and tell the driver when the tires are inflated to the proper pressure. The RX doesn’t offer vehicle monitored tire inflation.

Suspension and Handling

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Acadia’s wheelbase is 2.7 inches longer than on the RX (112.5 inches vs. 109.8 inches).

The Acadia Denali AWD handles at .85 G’s, while the RX 350 F Sport AWD pulls only .82 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The Acadia SLT AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the RX 450h (26.9 seconds @ .67 average G’s vs. 27.5 seconds @ .65 average G’s).

Chassis

The front grille of the Acadia FWD 4 cyl. uses electronically controlled shutters to close off airflow and reduce drag when less engine cooling is needed. This helps improve highway fuel economy. The RX doesn’t offer active grille shutters.

The Acadia uses computer-generated active noise cancellation to help remove annoying noise and vibration from the passenger compartment, especially at low frequencies. The RX doesn’t offer active noise cancellation.

Passenger Space

The Acadia offers optional seating for 7 passengers; the RX can only carry 5.

The Acadia has .6 inches more front headroom, 1.6 inches more front shoulder room, .5 inches more rear headroom, 1.7 inches more rear legroom and 1.1 inches more rear shoulder room than the RX.

Cargo Capacity

The Acadia’s cargo area provides more volume than the RX.

	Acadia	RX
Third Seat Folded	41.7 cubic feet	n/a
Third Seat Removed	n/a	16 cubic feet
Second Seat Folded	79 cubic feet	32.6 cubic feet

Towing

The Acadia’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the RX’s (1000 vs. 0 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Lexus RX is only 3500 pounds. The Acadia offers up to a 4000 lbs. towing capacity.

Ergonomics

In case you lock your keys in your vehicle, or don’t have them with you, you can let yourself in using the Acadia’s available exterior PIN entry system. The RX doesn’t offer an exterior PIN entry system.

Economic Advantages

Insurance will cost less for the Acadia owner. The Complete Car Cost Guide estimates that insurance for the Acadia will cost $15 to $4745 less than the RX over a five-year period.

According to The Car Book by Jack Gillis, the Acadia is less expensive to operate than the RX because typical repairs cost much less on the Acadia than the RX, including $683 less for a water pump, $80 less for a muffler, $362 less for a starter, $6 less for fuel injection, $862 less for a timing belt/chain and $1010 less for a power steering pump.