Lexus and Malbon’s One-Off GX550 Is the Ultimate Golf SUV
Lexus might want to get into the golf cart business.
The Japanese luxury marque has teamed up with Malbon Golf on a one-off GX550. The striking SUV has been outfitted with a bunch of fashion-forward golf accessories in an attempt to create the ultimate vehicle for a day out on the course.
Lexus’s Land Cruiser equivalent has plenty of style on its own, but Malbon—makers of this year’s most notorious golf vest—has helped take the vehicle to the next level. The 4×4’s boxy body has been covered in an emerald green body wrap with white graphics inspired by a topographical fairway map. It’s a design sure to appeal to anyone who is used to charting their way around the links. Highlighting the unique design is a gloss white roof and all-white 22-inch alloy wheels. There are plenty of Malbon logos on display, too, including on the grille and, most noticeably, on the disc covers positioned atop the rims. Rounding things out is a roof rack equipped with two Pelican BX140R cargo cases, as well as a Yakima Slim Shady roof-mounted awning should you need protection from the elements.
But it’s not just the exterior that separates the Malbon Edition from other GX550. The cabin has also been reimagined to make it even more golf-friendly. The base SUV has three rows of seating, giving it room for up to seven adults. Some of that room has been sacrificed so that the one-off only has room for a foursome. We imagine anyone lucky enough to snag a ride in the elegant off-roader won’t mind though. That’s because the second row now features two captain chairs. The third row, meanwhile, has been completely done away with and replaced custom pull-out storage box.
The rear storage area is the Malbon Edition feature most likely to make golfers green with envy. The box has room for everything a golfer could need while out on the course, including four golf bags, additional irons, balls, tees, shoes, and other accessories. On the off chance that isn’t enough, the exterior Pelican cases have room for woods and other long clubs.
Unfortunately, the GX550 is strictly a one-off. Lexus’s press release makes no mention of there even being a possibility of the vehicle going into production as a limit-run model. You will be able to see it in person, though. The SUV will make appearances at several events between now and the end of the golf season, including the Oregon Buckets Club Golf Tournament in early October, the Buckets Club Tournament in the middle of November, and, naturally, the Lexus Malbon Invitational in Miami in early December.
Authors
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Bryan Hood
Senior Staff Writer
Bryan Hood is a digital staff writer at Robb Report. Before joining the magazine, he worked for the New York Post, Artinfo and New York magazine, where he covered everything from celebrity gossip to…