Consumer Reports lifts 'Don't Buy' on Lexus SUV

Consumer Reports said Friday it is lifting its "Don't Buy" recommendation for the 2010 Lexus GX 460 sport utility vehicle that had failed an emergency handling test.

The magazine said its SUV test vehicle passed the test after a dealership updated software that runs its electronic stability control system.

Lexus group vice president Mark Templin said the automaker was pleased the magazine had lifted the designation. He said about 75 percent of GX 460 vehicles have received the software update.

Toyota Motor Corp. recalled about 10,000 of the SUVs in the United States in April after the magazine told readers not to buy them, and it also stopped selling them.

Consumer Reports said the rear of the GX 460 slid sideways when testers lifted their feet off the gas pedal during a high-speed turn and the rear wheels could slide into a curb or off the pavement, raising the risk of rolling over.

The electronic stability control took too long to react, the magazine's engineers said.

Consumer Reports said it was not aware of any injuries caused by the problem. It said in a statement it took its GX 460 test vehicle to a dealership for the software update, then returned to the test track: "This time, the ESC system intervened earlier, and its rear did not slide out in the liftoff oversteer test." - AP