Experiences when purchasing Prius wanted...

steviet · 07-13-2006, 06:51 PM

Hi all,
Great site/forum, alot of really good info....
I made the decision to purchase a prius a couple months ago (1st week of may) and went and ordered the prius I wanted (grey with package #4). The dealership warned me about an 8 to 12 week lead time on the prius, and at the time I thought was long but decided that I could wait, what other option was there...? So, after 6 weeks I called to find out how things were looking from an arrival time standpoint. I recieved a call back and was told that unfortunately I was looking at mid to end of july for delivery but they had a shipment coming in on the following week that just happened to have a prius and the color I wanted except it was pkg #7 and it was $4500 more that no other consumer had ordered... I decided to wait, but thought to myself how is it that my car that WAS ordered isn't arriving but a car that wasn't ordered by a consumer, in my color, just happens to be delivered? I didn't say anything, after all I know, they may have ordered it knowing they could sell it due to demand.

I called today, a month later, expecting to hear that my car would be arriving within a week or two, only to find out I now have to wait until the middle of august, that would be 14 weeks after the purchase and sale agreement was signed. I was told that they do have some other's arriving next week, again one in my color happens to be on the shipment but it again is the #7pkg for $4500 more. Now this sounds like a bait and switch to me, I don't understand how this is good business, in my view it isn't.

I decided to call another dealer to find out if they had any on the lot and find out lead times and such and he told me the same thing the other dealer did, 3 month lead and sometimes cars just show up. I don't think the dealer is the one puling the bait and switch but it sure seems to me Toyota is trying their best to do it.

Is this how all of your experiences went when ordering a car without all the options?
If so how did you handle it?

Thanks,
Steve

Jeannie · 07-13-2006, 07:14 PM

I got my car last April - I needed it immediately because my old car was totalled, and calling around my area, I was able to find 3 available 'on the lot' at 3 different dealers in packages 3 through 6, any color but sliver (was hit by a silver car, so I wouldn't get one <g>). It was a total of 6 days from my first visit to a dealer to driving home in my Super White package 5.

There ARE available ones, especially if you're willing to travel. I hear that there are a lot of them in NorthernVirginia - maybe an 8 hour drive from MA. The Toyota web site has a place where you choose colors and options and then they'll put out a query to dealers for available stock that meets your specifications - that's how I found one of the three/

Godiva · 07-13-2006, 07:30 PM

Check this thread:

Priuschatter on buying his car.

I wouldn't have been as patient as you or waited as long.

Decide how far you're willing to drive back. Then call every dealer within that radius. Let them know that the first one that has your color and package at MSRP with no port or dealer add ons gets your money.

Don't buy etching, lowjack or any of that other stuff unless for some reason you want it. Don't get the extended warranty unless you want it and they can beat Troy's price. Don't mention Priuschat.

When you're not doing the above, start reading Priuschat. There is a lot of information here.

If you do the work yourself, you'll get the exact car you want sooner. If you wait for the dealers, you'll wait and wait and wait. Eventually you may get your car. But they'll also try to get you to settle for a color or package you don't want.

volkl · 07-13-2006, 07:34 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(steviet @ Jul 13 2006, 05:51 PM) [snapback]285859[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

Hi all,
Great site/forum, alot of really good info....
I made the decision to purchase a prius a couple months ago (1st week of may) and went and ordered the prius I wanted (grey with package #4). The dealership warned me about an 8 to 12 week lead time on the prius, and at the time I thought was long but decided that I could wait, what other option was there...? So, after 6 weeks I called to find out how things were looking from an arrival time standpoint. I recieved a call back and was told that unfortunately I was looking at mid to end of july for delivery but they had a shipment coming in on the following week that just happened to have a prius and the color I wanted except it was pkg #7 and it was $4500 more that no other consumer had ordered... I decided to wait, but thought to myself how is it that my car that WAS ordered isn't arriving but a car that wasn't ordered by a consumer, in my color, just happens to be delivered? I didn't say anything, after all I know, they may have ordered it knowing they could sell it due to demand.

I called today, a month later, expecting to hear that my car would be arriving within a week or two, only to find out I now have to wait until the middle of august, that would be 14 weeks after the purchase and sale agreement was signed. I was told that they do have some other's arriving next week, again one in my color happens to be on the shipment but it again is the #7pkg for $4500 more. Now this sounds like a bait and switch to me, I don't understand how this is good business, in my view it isn't.

I decided to call another dealer to find out if they had any on the lot and find out lead times and such and he told me the same thing the other dealer did, 3 month lead and sometimes cars just show up. I don't think the dealer is the one puling the bait and switch but it sure seems to me Toyota is trying their best to do it.

Is this how all of your experiences went when ordering a car without all the options?
If so how did you handle it?

Thanks,
Steve
[/b]

I went to a high volume dealer in my area, and approached the GM who I fortunately knew. I asked her what her alotment per month was, what her backlog was, and what does she have coming in that is not yet spoken for. I told her I was interested in a package 5, 6, or 7. I was told that I could have a black pkg 7 in 8 weeks. I got it in exactly that time frame.

Perhaps you should do the same? Go to a high volume dealer and put your dibs down on one. Tell them in advance that you want the VIN# once it gets in country. You will probably have a shorter waiting period for the particular vehicle you want by going to a high alotment dealer. I believe that Toyota has alotted more loaded vehicles than the economical ones, which the dealers really enjoy.

BTW, I do like the HID headlights (pkg 6), have yet to use the mp3/wma features, the JBL sound system is nice, Blue tooth is great for answering the phone, voice command dialing is a pain, especially when trying to listen to a route. Voice activated DVD is super WOW, but I doubt I will really use that. I'd dearly love an accurate barametric altimeter.

Three60guy · 07-13-2006, 07:41 PM

steviet:

What needs to be shared with you is what dealers don't want you to know. The dealers have little or no control over what they receive in the way of color and options. They ALL are on an allocation system. It is based on previous sale levels. If a dealer does well, their allocation will grow. But it all comes down to one thing. The dealer will get what Toyota gives them NOT WHAT IS ORDERED. That goes to explain why a certain color comes in with another set of options. Yes, the dealer can sell whatever comes in with regard to the Prius. So, the bottom line with the consumer is "can you accept the color and options they give you?"

Hope that goes to better explain your situation steviet.

rschnapp · 07-13-2006, 07:46 PM

I picked up my Prius (pkg #6) on Tuesday, from Kearny Mesa Toyota.
Overall, it was a very positive experience, with one minor annoyance, which I'll get to later.
Basically, we test-drove a Prius at Toyota San Diego on 7/4. They had an unassigned, white, pkg #7 available, which is the one I drove. I liked it pretty well, but the price of the whippy dippy nav system was absolutely OBSCENE. $1,900? That's just too hard to swallow. That car was exactly the one I wanted, if I could have it without paying for the nav system.
Got home from the test drive, and went to the Toyota web site. Configured a pkg #6 Prius and requested quotes from all the San Diego area dealers. Nearly all of them responded that pkg #6 is no longer allocated to California dealers, you have to take pkg #7 -- I guess Toyota has decided that demand for the Prius is high enough in California that they can get customers to swallow hard and cough up the ridiculous price for that nav system.

I did get an email from "Crystal" at KM Toyota, saying that they somehow had an as-yet-unsold Seaside Pearl pkg #6 Prius allocated for the end of July. We immediately put down a deposit on it.

Monday night, they call us to say that the car has just been delivered!

Tuesday, we show up and, sure enough, there she is. Package 6. Blue. Ready to go.

I pays the money and away I go in my very cool new machine -- a MUCH fancier car than I've ever driven before, much less owned!

The annoyance I mentioned? I was providing my own financing. Kearny Mesa Toyota apparently requires ALL customers to fill out a credit application, regardless of whether they are applying for a loan. This really irks me. There is absolutely NO need for them to obtain my personal information when I am paying cash, so far as they are concerned. A dealer can trivially "hammer" a check, to verify funds availability.

And an irony: As it happened, a few days earlier, I had won tickets to see a preview of the movie, "Who Killed The Electric Car?" The movie was the evening of the same day I got the Prius. Not too surprisingly, the theater parking lot was well stocked with RAV4 EVs, Insights, and Priuses (Prii?).

A very good movie -- but it occurs to me that they totally got the answer wrong. (Go see the movie for their answer.)

The "Electric Car" is not dead. It's on its way back in the form of the PHEV -- an electric car with a backup gasoline generator, built-in. Conversion kits available/coming soon. Production cars coming in a year or two.

P.S. Yes, you got that right: I got the Prius I wanted (although, not the color I wanted) in exactly one week! Just a matter of luck, and some flexibility on my part (accepted a blue car instead of white).

stanleyjohn · 07-13-2006, 08:07 PM

Here in Ct i put a $500 depoisit down in early june 06!They said a 2 to 3 month wait,maybe sooner if i was flexable.Well!! about a month later i just happen to be doing some local shopping,passed a different dealership and saw 2 on the lot.One was not taken due to a cancellation( maybe true maybe not) and i took it home the next day.I dont have alot of trust in the waiting list system anymore.Sure some honest ones are out there,but ive heard alot of cases where the prius is bought right off the lot like i did.Drive around,call around!if you dont wish to wait to long you can get a prius without the waiting list.Good Luck!!

steviet · 07-13-2006, 08:16 PM

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Three60guy @ Jul 13 2006, 07:41 PM) [snapback]285903[/snapback]</div>

Quote:

steviet:

What needs to be shared with you is what dealers don't want you to know. The dealers have little or no control over what they receive in the way of color and options. They ALL are on an allocation system. It is based on previous sale levels. If a dealer does well, their allocation will grow. But it all comes down to one thing. The dealer will get what Toyota gives them NOT WHAT IS ORDERED. That goes to explain why a certain color comes in with another set of options. Yes, the dealer can sell whatever comes in with regard to the Prius. So, the bottom line with the consumer is "can you accept the color and options they give you?"

Hope that goes to better explain your situation steviet.
[/b]

Thanks all that have replied....

Three60Guy,
This was what I suspected, especially after the 2nd dealer told me that basically "they just show up". It's aggravating me that Toyota offers different options but won't deliver in a reasonable time frame or at all. Just so I'm not misunderstood, I don't blame the dealership, thats why I didn't name them, I don't want to give them a bad wrap for something out of their control. I do wish they would have been a little bit more upfront about how much control, or lack there of they actually have.

Thanks again....

Steve

kimgh · 07-13-2006, 08:24 PM

You realize, I hope, that you are not ordering a car in the sense of the dealer sends your "order" to the factory, which then "fills" the order and sends it back to you.

Simply: you express an interest in a particular color/package and plunk your deposit down to get on the waiting list, and then you wait. The more specific you are as to your choices, the longer the wait is likely to be.

As someone else on this thread said, it's all in dealer allocations. So contacting a number of dealers might help you to find the package and color you want in a much shorter time.

rlongenbach · 07-13-2006, 08:40 PM

And actually, it isn't TOYOTA, but rather, their contracted "middlemen". Local Toyota dealer told me about them and I did some research on them.

http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2001/1008/118_print.html

Based on everything I've read, it seems that Toyota needed some help to get into the US market back then (60s). Now they can't get out of the contracts. I read that Toyota WANTS to go to the factory-dealer route....

(I'm guessing that the contracts are similar to South Coast Plaza Mall in Orange County, CA. Sears was approached when it was being built, and wasn't upscale yet. The owners got Sears to become an anchor by signing a 99 year lease for $1 a year, and Sears has full subleasing rights. Fast forward to the future, and this mall, home to Nordstrom, Tiffany & Co, Porsche Design, Armani, etc. etc etc. would love to get rid of their lowest scale tenant, but can't)

07-13-2006, 07:14 PM	#2
Jeannie Proud Prius Granny Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Central New Jersey Posts: 1,382 My Car: 2006 Prius Package: #5 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 1	I got my car last April - I needed it immediately because my old car was totalled, and calling around my area, I was able to find 3 available 'on the lot' at 3 different dealers in packages 3 through 6, any color but sliver (was hit by a silver car, so I wouldn't get one <g>). It was a total of 6 days from my first visit to a dealer to driving home in my Super White package 5. There ARE available ones, especially if you're willing to travel. I hear that there are a lot of them in NorthernVirginia - maybe an 8 hour drive from MA. The Toyota web site has a place where you choose colors and options and then they'll put out a query to dealers for available stock that meets your specifications - that's how I found one of the three/ __________________ Jeannie (2006 Super White, package 5, added leather seats) Folding at Home

07-13-2006, 07:41 PM	#5
Three60guy Senior Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Racine, Wisconsin Posts: 765 My Car: 2006 Prius Package: #8 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 1	steviet: What needs to be shared with you is what dealers don't want you to know. The dealers have little or no control over what they receive in the way of color and options. They ALL are on an allocation system. It is based on previous sale levels. If a dealer does well, their allocation will grow. But it all comes down to one thing. The dealer will get what Toyota gives them NOT WHAT IS ORDERED. That goes to explain why a certain color comes in with another set of options. Yes, the dealer can sell whatever comes in with regard to the Prius. So, the bottom line with the consumer is "can you accept the color and options they give you?" Hope that goes to better explain your situation steviet. __________________ 2006 Package #8 Barcelona Red beauty with Gray Leather Interior w/automatic door lock, side molding, EV Mode & Nav/Bluetooth override modifications. Part II of Modifications. Rear bumper protector. Scangauge II. OEM 2006 XM Satellite Radio & OEM black all weather floor mats. Also, LockPick basic. (360guy <--- An all around guy (get it? round = 360) yada yada) Click links below for Gasoline Prices. United States Color Temperature Map \| Local gas prices (enter your own zip code) \| Oil Prices \| City & State Average Prices While giving equal coverage to two opposing sides may seem appropriate in political discourse, it is manifestly inappropriate in discussions of science, where objective truths exist. Media, are you listening? Global warming is real and mankind is causing it. It is not open to political debate. The sooner we recognize this the sooner we can repair the damage already made.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Looking at purchasing a Prius but..	r53	Prius Main Forum	7	08-04-2006 11:57 PM
Purchasing a used prius	Marcia	Prius Main Forum	9	11-09-2005 03:56 PM
wanted phoenix experiences of dealerships!! any suggestions	lucalou	Prius Main Forum	5	07-26-2005 12:44 AM
Purchasing Prius NAV	flareak	Prius Main Forum	2	07-07-2005 11:46 AM
Purchasing a New Prius	Cyclesome	Prius Main Forum	9	03-03-2005 07:13 PM

07-13-2006, 06:51 PM	#1
steviet Member Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Massachusetts Posts: 37 My Car: 2006 Prius Package: #4 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Hi all, Great site/forum, alot of really good info.... I made the decision to purchase a prius a couple months ago (1st week of may) and went and ordered the prius I wanted (grey with package #4). The dealership warned me about an 8 to 12 week lead time on the prius, and at the time I thought was long but decided that I could wait, what other option was there...? So, after 6 weeks I called to find out how things were looking from an arrival time standpoint. I recieved a call back and was told that unfortunately I was looking at mid to end of july for delivery but they had a shipment coming in on the following week that just happened to have a prius and the color I wanted except it was pkg #7 and it was $4500 more that no other consumer had ordered... I decided to wait, but thought to myself how is it that my car that WAS ordered isn't arriving but a car that wasn't ordered by a consumer, in my color, just happens to be delivered? I didn't say anything, after all I know, they may have ordered it knowing they could sell it due to demand. I called today, a month later, expecting to hear that my car would be arriving within a week or two, only to find out I now have to wait until the middle of august, that would be 14 weeks after the purchase and sale agreement was signed. I was told that they do have some other's arriving next week, again one in my color happens to be on the shipment but it again is the #7pkg for $4500 more. Now this sounds like a bait and switch to me, I don't understand how this is good business, in my view it isn't. I decided to call another dealer to find out if they had any on the lot and find out lead times and such and he told me the same thing the other dealer did, 3 month lead and sometimes cars just show up. I don't think the dealer is the one puling the bait and switch but it sure seems to me Toyota is trying their best to do it. Is this how all of your experiences went when ordering a car without all the options? If so how did you handle it? Thanks, Steve

07-13-2006, 07:46 PM	#6
rschnapp Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 5 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	I picked up my Prius (pkg #6) on Tuesday, from Kearny Mesa Toyota. Overall, it was a very positive experience, with one minor annoyance, which I'll get to later. Basically, we test-drove a Prius at Toyota San Diego on 7/4. They had an unassigned, white, pkg #7 available, which is the one I drove. I liked it pretty well, but the price of the whippy dippy nav system was absolutely OBSCENE. $1,900? That's just too hard to swallow. That car was exactly the one I wanted, if I could have it without paying for the nav system. Got home from the test drive, and went to the Toyota web site. Configured a pkg #6 Prius and requested quotes from all the San Diego area dealers. Nearly all of them responded that pkg #6 is no longer allocated to California dealers, you have to take pkg #7 -- I guess Toyota has decided that demand for the Prius is high enough in California that they can get customers to swallow hard and cough up the ridiculous price for that nav system. I did get an email from "Crystal" at KM Toyota, saying that they somehow had an as-yet-unsold Seaside Pearl pkg #6 Prius allocated for the end of July. We immediately put down a deposit on it. Monday night, they call us to say that the car has just been delivered! Tuesday, we show up and, sure enough, there she is. Package 6. Blue. Ready to go. I pays the money and away I go in my very cool new machine -- a MUCH fancier car than I've ever driven before, much less owned! The annoyance I mentioned? I was providing my own financing. Kearny Mesa Toyota apparently requires ALL customers to fill out a credit application, regardless of whether they are applying for a loan. This really irks me. There is absolutely NO need for them to obtain my personal information when I am paying cash, so far as they are concerned. A dealer can trivially "hammer" a check, to verify funds availability. And an irony: As it happened, a few days earlier, I had won tickets to see a preview of the movie, "Who Killed The Electric Car?" The movie was the evening of the same day I got the Prius. Not too surprisingly, the theater parking lot was well stocked with RAV4 EVs, Insights, and Priuses (Prii?). A very good movie -- but it occurs to me that they totally got the answer wrong. (Go see the movie for their answer.) The "Electric Car" is not dead. It's on its way back in the form of the PHEV -- an electric car with a backup gasoline generator, built-in. Conversion kits available/coming soon. Production cars coming in a year or two. P.S. Yes, you got that right: I got the Prius I wanted (although, not the color I wanted) in exactly one week! Just a matter of luck, and some flexibility on my part (accepted a blue car instead of white).

07-13-2006, 08:07 PM	#7
stanleyjohn Senior Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: Higganum,Ct Posts: 262 My Car: 2006 Prius Package: #7 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	Here in Ct i put a $500 depoisit down in early june 06!They said a 2 to 3 month wait,maybe sooner if i was flexable.Well!! about a month later i just happen to be doing some local shopping,passed a different dealership and saw 2 on the lot.One was not taken due to a cancellation( maybe true maybe not) and i took it home the next day.I dont have alot of trust in the waiting list system anymore.Sure some honest ones are out there,but ive heard alot of cases where the prius is bought right off the lot like i did.Drive around,call around!if you dont wish to wait to long you can get a prius without the waiting list.Good Luck!! __________________ Buy clean and effient to save the world. 2006 Prius,Package7,Driftwood Pearl extras!>window glazing,scotchguard and pinstripes Saw and Bought!on the spot June 17 2006

07-13-2006, 08:24 PM	#9
kimgh Senior Member Join Date: May 2006 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 232 My Car: 2006 Prius Package: #8 Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	You realize, I hope, that you are not ordering a car in the sense of the dealer sends your "order" to the factory, which then "fills" the order and sends it back to you. Simply: you express an interest in a particular color/package and plunk your deposit down to get on the waiting list, and then you wait. The more specific you are as to your choices, the longer the wait is likely to be. As someone else on this thread said, it's all in dealer allocations. So contacting a number of dealers might help you to find the package and color you want in a much shorter time.

07-13-2006, 08:40 PM	#10
rlongenbach Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 15 My Car: Package: Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts TOTM Awards: 0 Friends: 0	And actually, it isn't TOYOTA, but rather, their contracted "middlemen". Local Toyota dealer told me about them and I did some research on them. http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2001/1008/118_print.html Based on everything I've read, it seems that Toyota needed some help to get into the US market back then (60s). Now they can't get out of the contracts. I read that Toyota WANTS to go to the factory-dealer route.... (I'm guessing that the contracts are similar to South Coast Plaza Mall in Orange County, CA. Sears was approached when it was being built, and wasn't upscale yet. The owners got Sears to become an anchor by signing a 99 year lease for $1 a year, and Sears has full subleasing rights. Fast forward to the future, and this mall, home to Nordstrom, Tiffany & Co, Porsche Design, Armani, etc. etc etc. would love to get rid of their lowest scale tenant, but can't)