Advise for NC, VA, MA Prospective Prius Buyers

egloryriver · 12-09-2007, 11:12 AM

Local dealers I visited wanted a few hundred over or MSRP and were not willing to negotiate, which I refuse to pay MSRP-- so after reading most of the postings and scanning on-line regarding buying experiences, I decided to try my hand at obtaining the best price for a 2008 Prius 1224 package (#3, NC)(#4, VA) on-line through the Internet Sales Dept. In a 250 mile radius, I emailed several dealerships and only received 4 replies back. One stated they only sell at MSRP and others were willing to negotiate below MSRP. If they had the color and option I wanted, I would have negotiated further. I was also willing to wait and was in no hurry to buy until I got the best deal below MSRP. These are the dealerships that replied back that were willing to negotiate:

Rick Hendrick Toyota (NC): (both replied back)(all sales final??)(fee ??)
sandy.nuss@hendrickauto.com and derrick.cassidy@hendrickauto.com

Rice Toyota (NC): (Processing Fee $369)(all sales final??)lindaygraham_ricetoyota@gs.reyrey.com

Haley Toyota of Richmond (VA): jingram@haleytoyota.dealerspace.com
(All Sales Final)(Processing Fee ??)

I ran across this in my search, but for me it would have cost more to go to Toyota of Greenfield (MA): (All Sales Final??) 12/05/07
http://www.toyotaofgreenfield.com/HomePage ALL NEW TOYOTA'S ARE SOLD AT $179 OVER INVOICE!* THIS IS NOT A MISPRINT.....CALL OUR INTERNET SALES MANAGER, SHARON HUNT AT 413-772-0231 X 19 TO SET UP AN APPOINTMENT FOR YOUR NEW TOYOTA!

I ended up purchasing my vehicle from: INTERNET SALES DEPT.
McGeorge Toyota (VA): Chris Weinberge 1-804-755-9233 mcgeorgetoyota3@leadcrm.com Processing fees ($195) (All Sales Final)
He was great to work with. He promptly answered every email and was willing to negotiate the best price BELOW MSRP. Another thing I liked about him is that he was knowledgeable, upfront and itemized the fees such as the processing fee, NC tax tag title fee right away. That was it--no hidden charges here, no bate & switch, what we agreed on in writing was exactly what was on the contract. They didn't even try to push you for any other added $$$ items or services (Only asked if I would be interested in a windshield protectant product--no pushing here). They matched the extended platinum warranty (7/100,000/$0) and the APR I was offered by Bank of America [I would only approve the deal if I was already approved for the loan--didn't want to have a call later to say, opps, they didn't approve you for the loan and request the return of the vehicle]. NOTE: if you buy out of state, bring your insurance coverage for the new vehicle with you. My overall buyer experience was excellent. I will now only deal with the Internet Dept. and I will definately only buy a vehicle from Chris Weinberg in the future. I am recommending him to my family,friends, and PriusChat family because he treated me right. I hope your buying experience with Chris will be great too.

I hope my search in buying a Prius helps you in finding yours at a great price too.

JimboK · 12-09-2007, 11:37 AM

Congrats, and glad it worked out for you. I also bought mine from McGeorge, though in person; I live in the Richmond area. Also a positive experience.

brick · 12-09-2007, 01:10 PM

I think the key is to find a dealer with a lot of inventory. It worked out pretty well for me last year and resulted in several grand saved.

Mawcawfee · 12-09-2007, 03:22 PM

Are you aware of them?
http://www.fitzmall.com/index.asp

It's a no haggle dealer. Every Prius in stock right now is $800 to $1,300 below MSRP. Their prices include the freight charges. You just pay sales tax and tags after that. Even for special orders, the price is worked out ahead of time and guaranteed to have about the same discount. I know, because I asked about special ordering a Prius Touring recently. I bought a Subaru there a few years ago and it really was painless and easy.

When I was there a couple of weeks ago to test drive a Prius, my sales guy mentioned in passing that the folks he helped before me had just purchased an '08 Corolla and were from NC. They drove all that way because the prices are no haggle and a lot less than back home.

Skwyre7 · 12-10-2007, 10:27 AM

I also bought mine in person from McGeorge. The sales associate I worked with at McGeorge was much more accommodating than the one I had at Haley. However, now I have a relationship with Haley (they host our Prius meets), so I'll probably go to them next time. But that's a ways off.

12-09-2007, 11:12 AM	#1
egloryriver Junior Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Southeast Region Posts: 5 My Car: 2008 Prius Model: Package: #4 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	Advise for NC, VA, MA Prospective Prius Buyers Local dealers I visited wanted a few hundred over or MSRP and were not willing to negotiate, which I refuse to pay MSRP-- so after reading most of the postings and scanning on-line regarding buying experiences, I decided to try my hand at obtaining the best price for a 2008 Prius 1224 package (#3, NC)(#4, VA) on-line through the Internet Sales Dept. In a 250 mile radius, I emailed several dealerships and only received 4 replies back. One stated they only sell at MSRP and others were willing to negotiate below MSRP. If they had the color and option I wanted, I would have negotiated further. I was also willing to wait and was in no hurry to buy until I got the best deal below MSRP. These are the dealerships that replied back that were willing to negotiate: Rick Hendrick Toyota (NC): (both replied back)(all sales final??)(fee ??) sandy.nuss@hendrickauto.com and derrick.cassidy@hendrickauto.com Rice Toyota (NC): (Processing Fee $369)(all sales final??)lindaygraham_ricetoyota@gs.reyrey.com Haley Toyota of Richmond (VA): jingram@haleytoyota.dealerspace.com (All Sales Final)(Processing Fee ??) I ran across this in my search, but for me it would have cost more to go to Toyota of Greenfield (MA): (All Sales Final??) 12/05/07 http://www.toyotaofgreenfield.com/HomePage ALL NEW TOYOTA'S ARE SOLD AT $179 OVER INVOICE!* THIS IS NOT A MISPRINT.....CALL OUR INTERNET SALES MANAGER, SHARON HUNT AT 413-772-0231 X 19 TO SET UP AN APPOINTMENT FOR YOUR NEW TOYOTA! I ended up purchasing my vehicle from: INTERNET SALES DEPT. McGeorge Toyota (VA): Chris Weinberge 1-804-755-9233 mcgeorgetoyota3@leadcrm.com Processing fees ($195) (All Sales Final) He was great to work with. He promptly answered every email and was willing to negotiate the best price BELOW MSRP. Another thing I liked about him is that he was knowledgeable, upfront and itemized the fees such as the processing fee, NC tax tag title fee right away. That was it--no hidden charges here, no bate & switch, what we agreed on in writing was exactly what was on the contract. They didn't even try to push you for any other added $$$ items or services (Only asked if I would be interested in a windshield protectant product--no pushing here). They matched the extended platinum warranty (7/100,000/$0) and the APR I was offered by Bank of America [I would only approve the deal if I was already approved for the loan--didn't want to have a call later to say, opps, they didn't approve you for the loan and request the return of the vehicle]. NOTE: if you buy out of state, bring your insurance coverage for the new vehicle with you. My overall buyer experience was excellent. I will now only deal with the Internet Dept. and I will definately only buy a vehicle from Chris Weinberg in the future. I am recommending him to my family,friends, and PriusChat family because he treated me right. I hope your buying experience with Chris will be great too. I hope my search in buying a Prius helps you in finding yours at a great price too.

12-09-2007, 11:37 AM	#2
JimboK One owner, low mileage Join Date: May 2006 Location: Chesterfield, VA Posts: 2,553 My Car: 2005 Prius Model: Package: #2 Thanks: 4 Thanked 104 Times in 72 Posts Friends: 6	Congrats, and glad it worked out for you. I also bought mine from McGeorge, though in person; I live in the Richmond area. Also a positive experience.

12-09-2007, 01:10 PM	#3
brick Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Columbia, SC Posts: 895 My Car: 2007 Prius Model: Package: #2 Thanks: 10 Thanked 21 Times in 15 Posts Friends: 0	I think the key is to find a dealer with a lot of inventory. It worked out pretty well for me last year and resulted in several grand saved.

12-09-2007, 03:22 PM	#4
Mawcawfee Prius-less (for now) Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: The Free State Posts: 98 My Car: Other Non-Hybrid Model: Package: N/A Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts Friends: 0	Fitzgerald Toyota in Gaithersburg, MD Are you aware of them? http://www.fitzmall.com/index.asp It's a no haggle dealer. Every Prius in stock right now is $800 to $1,300 below MSRP. Their prices include the freight charges. You just pay sales tax and tags after that. Even for special orders, the price is worked out ahead of time and guaranteed to have about the same discount. I know, because I asked about special ordering a Prius Touring recently. I bought a Subaru there a few years ago and it really was painless and easy. When I was there a couple of weeks ago to test drive a Prius, my sales guy mentioned in passing that the folks he helped before me had just purchased an '08 Corolla and were from NC. They drove all that way because the prices are no haggle and a lot less than back home.

12-10-2007, 10:27 AM	#5
Skwyre7 What's the catch? Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Richmond, Virginia Posts: 2,332 My Car: Other Non-Hybrid Model: Package: N/A Thanks: 0 Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post Friends: 2	I also bought mine in person from McGeorge. The sales associate I worked with at McGeorge was much more accommodating than the one I had at Haley. However, now I have a relationship with Haley (they host our Prius meets), so I'll probably go to them next time. But that's a ways off.