Thinking about pulling the trigger in Big D

[Hostage46]

This time last year the seach began on a whim. I was actually about to pull the trigger on an Acura TL, but just couldn't stomach the fuel cost, unleaded premium was north of $3.50 per gallon. I looked seriously at the Prius but even a test drive in one was a challenge. It took three weeks to find one to drive around the block with a completely clueless sales guy and it was an '04 loaner, really was put off by the process.

Instead I picked up a. '06 Civic Sedan EX with Nav. As a lifelong Honda owner, I felt more comfortable going with a car I knew, I was expecting 35 to 40 MPG, and I really liked the look of the car. It was almost as hard to find this deal, ended up going to Oklahoma to pick up my new car.

So it's been 6 months, I do like the Civic .... but. My commute is 45miles round trip, 50% of my 90 min drive is in bumper to bumper traffic. I keep track, I get 30MPG, the tank lasts one week. On the highway, I can get to 40, but this is an around the town rig.

So a buddy at work rolls up one day in his new hybrid Camry. He drives the same commute, lots of slow and go, he gets 50mpg.... I didn't believe it, then I drove his "luxury golf cart" and lo an behold, it was true.

I also need more storage room, I need a hatchback to haul junk with, the civic fold down seat isn't too bad, but the overall interior space is a bit small when I have passengers. Finally the gadget factor. I have XM and Nav in the civic, pretty cool, but I really don't need the nav on the local trips, it would be different if it gave me traffic updates. XM is like having cable TV in your car, 100 channels of too much stuff, and I tend to listen to NPR on the to and from work (now I guess that means I'm destined to drive a Prius <_< )

The true gadget I really want is the Blue Tooth, I spend lot's of time on the phone for business, it would be nice to leave the headset in my briefcase.

So I think I can sell the Civic for a decent price. It's only has 15K miles and is perfectly spotless, if I had it detailed and put it on a new car lot, you'd think it's brand new, they're hard to find so I think I can get blue book via a private sale.

I have two questions:
What package should I go for? This is a to and from work car. I need decent sound system, it would be nice to plug in the ipod, and I really need the BT. I'll leave the Nav and XM for now, aftermarket is easy enough. And while I was ticked off that I couldn't get leather in the Civic, I'm over it now .... and I guess I can get that after market.

Where do I get one? I'm all about internet buying, I really don't like going into a dealership for anything but a test drive and to pick it up. Can anyone recommend a good dealer in the DFW area? Heck I'll fly on Southwest for a decent deal like I did on the Civic, still saved about $1K.

Dan in Dallas .....

[Husker4theSpurs]

http://www.toyota.com/prius/options.html

Looks like Pkg #3 is the lowest pkg with Bluetooth ... no HID headlights.

Pkg #4 adds HID

Pkg #5 adds Nav

Pkg #6 adds Leather

I'm a newbie, but I think it's rare to find Pkg #3 and Pkg #4 out there ... Toyota likes to send them out with more things on them so you're obligated to spend more than you'd like to and get things you otherwise wouldn't ....

[Hostage46]

What is the diff between the standard and touring version other then wheel size? On the Toyota site I see package 1 then A and B .... Sigh.... such a newbie..

[Husker4theSpurs]

A little bit tighter suspension I believe ...

If you scroll down the link I posted, the Touring Pkgs are below the standard pkgs ...

[okiebutnotfrommuskogee]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hostage46 @ Apr 14 2007, 07:20 PM) [snapback]423406[/snapback]</div>

This time last year the seach began on a whim. I was actually about to pull the trigger on an Acura TL, but just couldn't stomach the fuel cost, unleaded premium was north of $3.50 per gallon. I looked seriously at the Prius but even a test drive in one was a challenge. It took three weeks to find one to drive around the block with a completely clueless sales guy and it was an '04 loaner, really was put off by the process.

Instead I picked up a. '06 Civic Sedan EX with Nav. As a lifelong Honda owner, I felt more comfortable going with a car I knew, I was expecting 35 to 40 MPG, and I really liked the look of the car. It was almost as hard to find this deal, ended up going to Oklahoma to pick up my new car.

So it's been 6 months, I do like the Civic .... but. My commute is 45miles round trip, 50% of my 90 min drive is in bumper to bumper traffic. I keep track, I get 30MPG, the tank lasts one week. On the highway, I can get to 40, but this is an around the town rig.

So a buddy at work rolls up one day in his new hybrid Camry. He drives the same commute, lots of slow and go, he gets 50mpg.... I didn't believe it, then I drove his "luxury golf cart" and lo an behold, it was true.

I also need more storage room, I need a hatchback to haul junk with, the civic fold down seat isn't too bad, but the overall interior space is a bit small when I have passengers. Finally the gadget factor. I have XM and Nav in the civic, pretty cool, but I really don't need the nav on the local trips, it would be different if it gave me traffic updates. XM is like having cable TV in your car, 100 channels of too much stuff, and I tend to listen to NPR on the to and from work (now I guess that means I'm destined to drive a Prius <_< )

The true gadget I really want is the Blue Tooth, I spend lot's of time on the phone for business, it would be nice to leave the headset in my briefcase.

So I think I can sell the Civic for a decent price. It's only has 15K miles and is perfectly spotless, if I had it detailed and put it on a new car lot, you'd think it's brand new, they're hard to find so I think I can get blue book via a private sale.

I have two questions:
What package should I go for? This is a to and from work car. I need decent sound system, it would be nice to plug in the ipod, and I really need the BT. I'll leave the Nav and XM for now, aftermarket is easy enough. And while I was ticked off that I couldn't get leather in the Civic, I'm over it now .... and I guess I can get that after market.

Where do I get one? I'm all about internet buying, I really don't like going into a dealership for anything but a test drive and to pick it up. Can anyone recommend a good dealer in the DFW area? Heck I'll fly on Southwest for a decent deal like I did on the Civic, still saved about $1K.

Dan in Dallas .....
[/b]

Dan,

If you want to fly to Tulsa, I suggest that you check Jim Norton Toyota. They have 21 Prius automobiles listed on their site today. We bought our 07 model from them a couple of months ago. It is the second car we have bought from them in the past two years. The salesman we bought both cars from is Rob Loethen. He is very knowledgeable and not at all "high pressure". You can check their inventory and contact them from their website. http://www.jimnortontoyota.com

Some of the cars have leather option. The one we got has cloth, we prefer that over leather.

Good Hunting,

Warren

[Tideland Prius]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hostage46 @ Apr 14 2007, 05:41 PM) [snapback]423414[/snapback]</div>

What is the diff between the standard and touring version other then wheel size? On the Toyota site I see package 1 then A and B .... Sigh.... such a newbie..
[/b]

Stiffer suspension and a longer rear spoiler (I believe HIDs are included in all Touring models?)


like Husker3theSpurs said, #3 is the package you want.


It has MP3/WMA capability, it has an AUX Input for your iPod/MP3 player, it has bluetooth and the JBL 9-speaker audio along with VSC, SKS and backup camera as the other major items.

[V8Cobrakid]

Go for the touring model. the 04 you drove has a shitty suspension. Sure.. it works. the 04 is like a corolla compared to the touring which i could describe as a Camry feel to the suspension.

At the same price you can pick up a Camry hybrid ( fully loaded prius - touring )

[mooney]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Husker4theSpurs @ Apr 14 2007, 08:29 PM) [snapback]423410[/snapback]</div>

http://www.toyota.com/prius/options.html

Looks like Pkg #3 is the lowest pkg with Bluetooth ... no HID headlights.

Pkg #4 adds HID

Pkg #5 adds Nav

Pkg #6 adds Leather

I'm a newbie, but I think it's rare to find Pkg #3 and Pkg #4 out there ... Toyota likes to send them out with more things on them so you're obligated to spend more than you'd like to and get things you otherwise wouldn't ....
[/b]

That's right, I just picked up the Package 3 Prius. I absolutely love the bluetooth integration. I now handle a fair amount of business calls from the car with ease. I was like Dan, the one extra I had to have was the bluetooth.

[Hostage46]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mooney @ Apr 14 2007, 08:29 PM) [snapback]423456[/snapback]</div>

That's right, I just picked up the Package 3 Prius. I absolutely love the bluetooth integration. I now handle a fair amount of business calls from the car with ease. I was like Dan, the one extra I had to have was the bluetooth.
[/b]

Thanks for the info folks .... I'll contact the guys in Tulsa ... these guys in OK have figured out how to make a living off the knucklehead dealers in the big city.... that said my buddy says he's friends with the GM at one of the local dealers in the DFW area.

So what should I expect to pay for a #3 touring or standard.

[cwerdna]

To the OP, I'm not sure it makes much economic sense to dump your (already pretty economical and very new) Civic and get a Prius. You should run the #s and see how much you can realistically get for either a trade in or private party sale and compare it to the gas savings. Don't forget to factor in the $787.50 tax credit, if you aren't subject to AMT. If you can get a Civic Hybrid cheap (even though I feel it's inferior in many ways), it might be a better deal, esp. since it still qualifies for a $2100 tax credit per http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/...157557,00.html.

FWIW, per http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/calculatorC...=1&id=21736, the old EPA ratings (I assume you have an automatic) on the 06 Civic were 30/40, 34 combined, and under the new method it's 26/36, 30 combined.

You can look up the value for the 07 Prius at http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/calculatorS...amp;model=Prius.

Since you had some mileage expectations, perhaps you don't know about the EPA test procedure. You can see a summary at http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/how_tested.shtml and http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/fe_test_schedules.shtml.

Without knowing too much about your commute and driving habits, I'd realistically expect somewhere between 40 mpg and 50 mpg, possibly into the mid to low 50s overall. Much beyond that IMHO is difficult unless you keep your speed down (below 70 mph) and your route is conducive to pulse and glide. The Prius' gas tank isn't very big either, BTW. Due to the "guess gauge", you should get gas ASAP when you are down to 1 pip, which means you'll likely put 9.xxx to maybe 11 gallons in at most.

Here's another FYI for you http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/cars/bu...s-206/index.htm.