2022 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid Still Won the Hearts of Owners Who Had Considered Lexus NX

While the two cars do have a day and night difference in looks and specs, both are great hybrid compacts with Toyota’s reliability standards.

Lexus and Toyota share a lot of similar things that we don’t now about. Most of the time it’s the things we don’t even see. Things like hybrid systems and engines. Although some of the early Lexus models inspired Toyota’s high end luxury lines like the older Crown and Toyota Celsior, almost 70% of a Lexus makeup are entirely made by Lexus.

In other words, while Ford shared everything with Lincoln, Lexus and Toyota have more of a, “you do you I do me” type situation. This type of relationship brings us cars that only share the good between each other like reliability and efficiency which Toyota is known for.

Given that, a lot of current owners of the RAV4 Hybrid did at one moment compare it to the Lexus NX350H which is Lexus’ hybrid compact SUV. Granted, the NX350H is about $10,000 more expensive than the RAV4 Hybrid but for the sake of relativity we will only compare the reasons other than price.

On Facebook’s Toyota RAV4 Hybrid group, Lakshay Grover asked, “Has anyone considered Lexus NX350H instead of RAV4? If so, besides being $10K more, any other reasons for yay or nay.” Now even though most Lexus owners are returning owners, some of them may have defected to Toyota because of reasons which make the RAV4 Hybrid seem more economical than the NX350H.

Stephen Li said, “if you are ok with grainy cameras and hard plastic everywhere then the RAV4 is a great car as a runabout. If you are looking for a more premium and refined car, then you pay an extra $10K. It’s true, the RAV4 Hybrid as a ton of plastic and the rear-view camera is very grainy. Sadly enough, we cannot blame this on the price of the car because brands like Hyundai and Kia who sell their compact SUVs for much less have 1080p quality rear view cameras.

I think the only reason why people went for the Lexus was because of price and comfort but if you really look at it the RAV4 Hybrid is the better deal. I say this because with a Lexus you get proper Lexus maintenance costs. I read a book where one businessman said that the worst decision anyone could ever make is buying a used luxury car. The used Lexus market is not as bad as the German sector but try selling your $60k Lexus in 20 years for even a quarter of that price. For Toyota, you wouldn’t have to worry about depreciation because of how durable they make them.

What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.

Harutiun Hareyan is reporting Toyota news at Torque News. His automotive interests and vast experience test-riding new cars give his stories a sense of authenticity and unique insights. Follow Harutiun on Twitter at @HareyanHarutiun and on YouTube at Toyota Time for daily Toyota news.