Compare the2024 Lexus TXVS 2024 Toyota Grand Highlander

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 TX are reminded to check the back seat if they opened the rear door before starting out. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer a back seat reminder.

Both the TX and the Grand Highlander have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front and rear 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, post-collision automatic braking systems, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, rear cross-path warning, driver alert monitors, available all wheel drive and around view monitors.

The TX comes with a full 4-year/50,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Grand Highlander’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 1 year or 14,000 miles sooner.

Lexus’ powertrain warranty covers the TX 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than Toyota covers the Grand Highlander. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 6 years or 70,000 miles. Coverage on the Grand Highlander ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The TX’s corrosion warranty is 1 year longer than the Grand Highlander’s (6 vs. 5 years).

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Lexus vehicles are better in initial quality than Toyota vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Lexus above average in initial quality. With 23 more problems per 100 vehicles, Toyota is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Lexus vehicles are more reliable than Toyota vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Lexus first in overall reliability. Toyota is ranked second.

The TX has more powerful engines than the Grand Highlander:

As tested in Motor Trend the TX 350 2.4 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Toyota Grand Highlander turbo 4 cyl.:

On the EPA test cycle the TX running its gasoline engine gets better mileage than the Grand Highlander:

The TX 550h+ CVT can travel with zero emissions for 33 miles. The Grand Highlander can’t move without running its internal combustion engine.

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the TX’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

For better stopping power the TX 500h/550h+’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Grand Highlander:

The TX’s standard front and rear disc brakes are vented to help dissipate heat for shorter stops with less fading. The rear discs on the Grand Highlander are solid, not vented.

The TX stops much shorter than the Grand Highlander:

The TX’s standard tires provide better handling because they have a lower 55 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Grand Highlander XLE’s 65 series tires. The TX’s optional tires have a lower 45 series profile than the Grand Highlander Limited/Platinum’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the TX has standard 20-inch wheels. Smaller 18-inch wheels are standard on the Grand Highlander XLE. The TX’s optional 22-inch wheels are larger than the 20-inch wheels on the Grand Highlander Limited/Platinum.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the TX is 2 inches wider in the front and 2.3 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Grand Highlander.

The TX 500h F Sport Performance Luxury 4dr Sport Utility handles at .85 G’s, while the Grand Highlander Platinum AWD pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The TX 500h F Sport Performance Premium 4dr Sport Utility executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.2 seconds quicker than the Grand Highlander XLE AWD (27.4 seconds @ .64 average G’s vs. 28.6 seconds @ .58 average G’s).

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

Pressing a switch automatically lowers or raises the TX Premium/Luxury’s third row seats, to make changing between cargo and passengers easier. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

While the Grand Highlander Hybrid can only tow 3500, any TX can tow a minimum of 5000 pounds.

The TX uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Grand Highlander uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Lexus service is better than Toyota. J.D. Power ranks Lexus first in service department satisfaction. With a 49% lower rating, Toyota is ranked 20th.

The TX Premium/Luxury’s standard easy entry system raises the steering wheel and glides the driver’s seat back when the door is unlocked or the ignition is switched off, making it easier for the driver to get in and out. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer an easy entry system.

The TX’s instruments include an oil pressure gauge and a temperature gauge - which could save your engine! Often ‘idiot lights’ don’t warn you until damage has been done. The Grand Highlander does not have an oil pressure gauge.

The TX’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Grand Highlander’s standard manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

In poor weather, headlights can lose their effectiveness as grime builds up on their lenses. This can reduce visibility without the driver realizing. The TX Luxury/F Sport has standard headlight washers to keep headlight output high. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer headlight washers.

The TX’s standard rear and side view mirrors have an automatic dimming feature. These mirrors can be set to automatically darken quickly when headlights shine on them, keeping following vehicles from blinding or distracting the driver. The Grand Highlander has an automatic rear view mirror, but its side mirrors don’t dim.

The TX Premium/Luxury/F Sport’s optional Advanced Park can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Park will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Grand Highlander doesn’t offer an automated parking system.