2008 or 2009 Prius?

[yocase]

Hey Guys, need some help!! My wife and I are moving and need a second car. Nailed it down to Prius as nothing else seems to measure up. We move end of August. I understand that 2009 version of the Prius is going to be short-lived and the 2010 Prius is going to be the Gen III (unfortunately I can't wait until May to get a new one). Is it worth me waiting until Sept/Oct to get an '09 (which will require me to "borrow" vehicles for a month of two) or do I just get an '08 and call it square. I have about a month to answer this question.

Thanks for any input! I appreciate it!

[RhythmDoctor]

Word on the street is that 2009 will be almost identical to 2008. If you find the car you want at a fair price, there seems to be little reason to wait. YMMV

[dustyhuskie]

I am not an expert about car resale but I can tell you how I felt about my purchase. I have an older car that was having engine trouble. I needed a reliable car to get to work and the old dog just doesn't meet that requirement any more. I kept waiting for the Altima hybrid to come to Illinois - didn't happen. I was also hoping that the Prius crash rating would change and that Toyota would work on the visibility\bad driving position issues (not). Two strikes.

Bottom line is, either way, you may have to wait for the car to come in. Are you willing to be without a car in the meantime? My 2008 KBBs (trade) at about -6K from the price I paid for the car (including taxes). The 2009 will probably also take the big hit when you drive it off the lot. I think all of the gen II priuses will take a less substantial across the board adjustment when gen III comes out. If you like the 2008, you may want to just go for it. I haven't heard that the 2009 will be any big improvement but honestly I have no interest in buying again until a plug in option is available.

Have you considered a civic hybrid? They still have the tax incentive and hold their value better than the Prius (may have something to do with the cheaper battery). Last I checked (Dec) the car could be bought for invoice with a nice low interest rate. Keep it a couple of years and than trade it for the 2010 Prius.

[yocase]

Thanks for the replys. As for the Civic Hybrid, yes, looked at it. Unfortunately the wife hates how it drives, looks, feels (you guys know what I'm talking about). I do need a second car and soon. May just buy the '08 and then trade that in later for a '10 (I have family members that would probably buy the car from me for what I had left on the note anyway, so that helps).

[DeadPhish]

Originally Posted by dustyhuskie

I am not an expert about car resale but I can tell you how I felt about my purchase. I have an older car that was having engine trouble. I needed a reliable car to get to work and the old dog just doesn't meet that requirement any more. I kept waiting for the Altima hybrid to come to Illinois - didn't happen. I was also hoping that the Prius crash rating would change and that Toyota would work on the visibilitybad driving position issues (not). Two strikes.

Bottom line is, either way, you may have to wait for the car to come in. Are you willing to be without a car in the meantime? My 2008 KBBs (trade) at about -6K from the price I paid for the car (including taxes). The 2009 will probably also take the big hit when you drive it off the lot. I think all of the gen II priuses will take a less substantial across the board adjustment when gen III comes out. If you like the 2008, you may want to just go for it. I haven't heard that the 2009 will be any big improvement but honestly I have no interest in buying again until a plug in option is available.

Have you considered a civic hybrid? They still have the tax incentive and hold their value better than the Prius (may have something to do with the cheaper battery). Last I checked (Dec) the car could be bought for invoice with a nice low interest rate. Keep it a couple of years and than trade it for the 2010 Prius.

Wow... the Prius is among the top four small vehicles in the IIHS crash test ratings being tied for No 1 or No 2. How high did you want it to go? I've never understood what this 'visibility issue' is. It's much much better than any Camry I've ever had. It world's better than our Solara convertible and our Highlander. What exactly is the issue?

Driving position I understand is a personal issue but this has the most comfortable arrangement for me personally of all the vehicle we've owned except the Highlander.

Yes the HCH does still have a 50% tax credit available of $1050 until 6-30 then it goes to $525 til 12-31. Then $0.

[dustyhuskie]

If you are under 6' tall, you probably don't have a problem with visibility. My line of sight bisects the roof line. With the seat unable to be backed a few inches farther back, there is no correction other than having to hunch over the steering wheel to get a full view out of the windshield. Long legs means there is the added issue of my right kneecap touching the dash. That airbag is going to have to stop millimeters of forward motion to be effective.

When you compare hybrids the Prius comes up short in crash ratings:

2008 NHSTA Crash Ratings: Honda Civic Hybrid
Front Driver: 5 star
Front Passenger: 4 star
Side Front: 5 star
Side Rear: 5 star

2008 NHSTA Crash Ratings: Nissan Altima Hybrid
Front Driver: 5 star
Front Passenger: 5 star
Side Front: 5 star
Side Rear: 5 star

2008 NHSTA Crash Ratings: Toyota Camry Hybrid
Front Driver: 5 star
Front Passenger: 5 star
Side Front: 5 star
Side Rear: 5 star

2008 NHSTA Crash Ratings: Toyota Prius
Front Driver: 4 star
Front Passenger: 4 star
Side Front: 5 star
Side Rear: 4 star

The Honda is also a compact car and still able to obtain better side impact rear and front impact driver ratings. That explains why I hope that the new model has better crash ratings.