Say BYE BYE to our resale!

[seasidetraveler]

Well, I have noticed that the local Toyota lots are over-flowing with Prius'. I called yesterday and spoke with the GSM at the lot where I bought mine, and have since had several friends buy cars from him, and asked him, "so you givin' the Prius' away yet?", and he responded by telling me that everbody is waiting until Jan 1st, and that they are open special hours on the 1st to accomodate people.
So now, with the gov. giving $3100 to people, what is that gonna do to us that wanna sell ours??? Why would anyone pay even $20,000 for a used one, when they can pay a little bit more for a brand new one?!

GREEAT! If I wanted a car that would drop it's value quickly, I wouldn't have bought a Toyota!!

[seasidetraveler]

I should add-

So losing $3100 in resale, I should have just kept my last car, or just bought a typical 4 dr sedan and not spent so much on a Prius, right?

[Jim06]

Originally posted by remaxmanager@Dec 19 2005, 10:56 AM
I should add-

So losing $3100 in resale, I should have just kept my last car, or just bought a typical 4 dr sedan and not spent so much on a Prius, right?

[snapback]175670[/snapback]

I imagine the tax credit will be less of a factor by the end of July, or perhaps September when it assumedly will be reduced by half. (It phases out after Toyota sells 60,000 hybrids -- any model.) Unless you are planning to sell this year, I wouldn't expect it will have too much of a negative impact on your resale value.

[seasidetraveler]

I was planning on selling... I usually don't keep cars more than about a year and a half, and we're already at a year... I don't like to keep cars while they start breaking- I already have about 23k miles, and I would hate to start experiencing problems, even though I have the warranty- It is a huge hassle trying to get down to the dealerships. I was banking on this car keeping it's value, but I don't think it will, especially now that gas prices have gone "down" (if over $2 is cheap).

[efusco]

Originally posted by remaxmanager@Dec 19 2005, 11:56 AM
I should add-

So losing $3100 in resale, I should have just kept my last car, or just bought a typical 4 dr sedan and not spent so much on a Prius, right?

[snapback]175670[/snapback]

No, just keep the Prius. Your logic for selling is just so twisted it's hard to comprehend. If you wanted to sell you could have done so3 or 4 months ago when it became clear that the tax credit was going to happen.

The car has and will hold it's value, but the market will be tough for a while while the tax credit is at it's height.

Selling so soon makes no sense anyway and you lose a lot of money doing that, so I'm not sure why a couple thousand more makes you so upset when the obvious answer is simply to not sell it until later next year, if you feel you must.

And what on earth makes you think it's going to start having problems? I'm at 36k with no problems, the scattered little things are very rare and odds are you could drive that car for 5 more years with no major issues even at your current mileage.

I just don't understand what you're upset about here at all.

[mikepaul]

I was planning on at least 7-10 years out of my Prius, unless I win the lottery and get a newer one.

39,000 as of the weekend, and no unplanned visits to the dealer yet...

[LaughingMan]

This isn't a "natural" drop in resale value by any degree. It's one caused by a change in tax code. Toyota's not at fault here... blame the federal government.

I completely agree with Evan. If you bought the car with the only intent to sell it right away, like you describe, then why on earth didn't you sell it a few months ago when it was at it's peak?

Wait until the tax credit runs it's course, which should be through by the middle of next year, and the resale price on ALL Prius MYs should go back up.

I personally intend to drive this car for as long as I can. It makes no sense buying a new car every few years to me.

[LaughingMan]

Originally posted by remaxmanager@Dec 19 2005, 01:56 PM
I should add-

So losing $3100 in resale, I should have just kept my last car, or just bought a typical 4 dr sedan and not spent so much on a Prius, right?

[snapback]175670[/snapback]

Eh... i think your line of thinking is rather idiotic, if you ask me. You're just b*tching and moaning about what happens every single frickin year around the end of the year for EVERY make and model car. New models come in, old models go out.

The drop in resale value is artificial. As the supply of all Prius MYs dries up again, it will go back up.

If you can think past the next 2 weeks, maybe you'll realize that.

If not, then by all means set your car on fire and maybe you'll recoup more money through insurance .

[200Volts]

Am I the only one that got a $2,000 tax credit for buying my 04 ?
So now the credit is $1,100 more, no big deal.

[jared2]

Yikes! Selling a car after a year and a half! I don't even get fully used to a new car for about 3 years. I've just gotten pretty much used to my other car - a /95 Tercel that I've had for 10 years and 145,000 miles. I like my 2005 Prius so far, but I won't know whether it is a good car or not until 2015. I will be very happy if it is as good as the Tercel. 10 years of driving a car is real; everything else is just hype.