Video: It's Not Easy Buying Green

[boulder_bum]

Video - Breaking News Videos from CNN.com

Four month waiting lists 100 people deep, E-Bay auctions fetching above retail for used. The supply is officially short again. I wonder if Toyota will step up production now.

The most heartwarming part is the interview with the guy who sold his Hummer for the Prius.

[boulder_bum]

On a side note, I'm glad I bought when I did! I managed to pay below invoice.

[4G63]

i think $4.00 is the magic number... it really drives people crazy. i got mine when gas was $3.70... when i got to choose color and package.. and no waiting.. and below MSRP. now the very same dealer is selling an 05' with 57k miles for $26.5k...

[patsparks]

Would be nice if the actual video was linked. I have no idea what video you're refering to.
What an annoying site.

[kcopen]

Link worked for me. I actually bought my Prius on eBay 3 weeks ago for 18K, 55K miles on a 2005 base, black with tinted windows. Super clean. However there was no furious bidding war, and no other bidders asking me if i was going to buy it. In fact i bid it to 18 from 17,9 two days before the auction ended and didn't expect to win but I did. So while Prius' are definitely in demand, the report is at least slightly sensational.

[skew]

When I bought mine gas was $1.69 gal, Dealers would laugh when I called around to see if they had one instock just to see. I had to flag an owner of a prius down in a parking lot to look and sit in one. After that I signed up on a waiting list then 2 months later I did get the color and options I wanted. I bet when you call dealers now they answer "hello this is ......... toyota we do not have any Prius in stock but if you want another car press 1" LOL

[miscrms]

Originally Posted by boulder_bum

Four month waiting lists 100 people deep, E-Bay auctions fetching above retail for used. The supply is officially short again. I wonder if Toyota will step up production now.

I don't think its a matter of stepping up production. My understanding is they finished building '08s back in March or April and took the line down to setup for the '09s. They had made enough to satisfy demand though August based on sales this spring, which were much slower. They were even still giving incentives on the hybrid Camry in April. Kind of wish I had gotten in on one of those $250/mnth leases. Then gas went up from $3/ gal in Mar to $4+ in May and all bets were off. Demand went way up, and the cars that were supposed to last all summer are almost gone. Doubt there will be any relief until either gas goes back to $3.99 and everyone starts buying SUVs again, or until the '09s roll in in August. The battery supply situation probably didn't help, but I'm not it had too much to do with it. I think they just underestimated demand. Not that they had any way to know, still I bet they're kicking themselves.

Originally Posted by boulder_bum

The most heartwarming part is the interview with the guy who sold his Hummer for the Prius.

At least now he's leaving a little ozone layer for his kids!

Rob

[stumpy_c]

I thought I'd read somewhere that Toyota was also diverting more cars to EU countries because of the craptastic dollar. Anyone else hear that or am I imagining things?

At any rate I'm glad we bought our '08 last year and paid below invoice.

[Rybold]

Originally Posted by stumpy_c

I thought I'd read somewhere that Toyota was also diverting more cars to EU countries because of the craptastic dollar. Anyone else hear that or am I imagining things?

I've read the same thing in news articles. You saw the length of the waiting list in the video. With that type of demand, Toyota should divert all of their Prius deliveries to the U.S. and sell them for $35K, and then gradually lower the price as "price-point" demand subsides.
.

"I don't understand why Toyota doesn't just outsource. They should contact every major [reputable, quality] battery maker in the world and say "We need more batteries. These are our specifications, and here is our minimum quality assurance requirements. Can you provide us with batteries?"

Toyota should be contacting every major battery supplier in the world right now! Heck, they can charge a $10K "market demand" premium on the Lexus hybrid models. This could be a huge opportunity for Toyota to make some extra cash. They could sell "July delivery, first come, first serve" Prius hybrids for a fixed $40,000 for those that are willing to pay for it. And believe me, there are people out there that are willing to pay for the non-wait list cars." http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-hybrid-news/49214-toyota-battery-production-outpaced-car-demand.html#post645552

.

[JimN]

Originally Posted by Rybold

"I don't understand why Toyota doesn't just outsource. They should contact every major [reputable, quality] battery maker in the world and say "We need more batteries. These are our specifications, and here is our minimum quality assurance requirements. Can you provide us with batteries?"

One can't just flip a switch & expect good quality parts built to your specification instantly. IMO what keeps Toyota's quality high is that it PARTNERS with suppliers so everyone is on the same page. I would not want my Toyota built from outsourced parts. GM & Ford think the same way you do. Look where it got them.