Originally Posted by JeffKeryk
Originally Posted by Virtus_Probi
I mentioned I had a RAV6...he said he hated them because he felt they drew sales away from the more expensive Lexus SUV models.
Absolutely. When I was looking, the higher end RAV4 hybrids were like $40K. Or more...
Why would anyone pay that when for a little more you are talking Lexus?
My memory is that the similar Lexus when I was trying to buy a 2006 RAV6 was the RX350, but Wiki tells me it wasn't being offered yet and the RX330 was still current...which makes no sense to me at all. Maybe I was shopping later in 2006 than I recall.
Anyway, my sometimes faulty brain thinks that the dealership was waiting me out to try to get me to buy a RX350 instead...the Lexus was heavier and therefore would be slower barring a much better tranny and was also reputed to have a very soft ride unless an expensive sports suspension option was purchased. Given that I wanted to zip around like a lunatic and that luxury means little to me beyond having heated leather seats, going Lexus had next to no appeal even ignoring the price difference...I ended up paying in the low 30s for the Toyota and I'm sure the Lexus would have been over 40.
My #2 option at the time was a Dodge Magnum V8 (the wimpy 340HP version), but despite the power I didn't find the car especially fun to drive...I test drove it more than once and always came away feeling like I must have done something wrong. Maybe I would have loved it if I had bought one...in contrast, I came away from the RAV6 test drive thinking I had finally found what I was looking for.