Jude’s a dental hygienist. She works hard. And when it came time for a new car, a Lexus salesman wowed her with the RX 350’s 360-degree camera. Jude is short enough that she’d been getting in and out of her old car to double-check parking jobs. So she bought the Lexus on the spot, putting $20,000 down and taking on a $770 monthly payment. Now she’s asking the internet if she was hasty.

“I have a $770 plus car payment because I wanted the brand new luxury Lexus RX 350, a big touchscreen, 360 camera, moonroof, auto start, ambient lighting, CarPlay, and more,” Jude said in her TikTok post. But was it worth it?

Torque News says no—she should have bought a Toyota

Denis Flierl of Torque News spotted Jude’s TikTok and made a simple argument: she could have saved thousands by getting a Toyota RAV4 instead. The 2024 Toyota RAV4 comes with an optional Panoramic View Monitor (Toyota’s version of a 360-degree camera), and a fully loaded RAV4 tops out around $40,000—$14,000 less than Jude’s Lexus RX 350 Premium. With the same $20,000 down, her monthly payment could have been just $378 instead of $770.

There’s also the fact that the RX 350 is, at its core, a dressed-up Toyota Highlander. Lexus and Toyota share a lot of technology, meaning you can often get the same features in a Toyota without the luxury price tag.

And there’s one more sting: premium gas. “It has to be premium only!” Jude said with a frown. That’s an extra cost she might not have considered when signing the papers.

But maybe she made a smart long-term choice

Flierl makes a solid argument, but is saving money always the best move? Not necessarily. If Jude plans to keep this car for 10–15 years, her decision could actually be a smart one.

According to iSeeCars, the Toyota Highlander Hybrid—a close relative to the Lexus RX—is one of the longest-lasting SUVs on the market, with a 25.9% chance of reaching 250,000 miles. The Lexus GX is also a standout, with 20.7% of them lasting that long.

Jude herself seems content: “Yes, if you can afford it, of course! I’m short, so I can’t see over the hood. With the 360-degree camera, I don’t need to get out of the car to see how close I am.”

In the end, it’s all about priorities. If Jude wanted maximum value, she could have gone with a RAV4. But if she plans to keep this Lexus for a decade or more, suddenly, that luxury price tag doesn’t seem so bad.