Questions about buying a Prius

[kruiser]

Hi everyone.

I recently decided on purchasing a Prius as my first new car and have several questions that I hope someone could help me with:

1) When negotiating with the dealer, do you focus on the vehicle price (w/o tax, title, license, etc) or the "out of door price" (everything included)?

2) it seems that many people are buying the Prius with various packages. I want to buy a BASE Prius with NO options, is that possible? Do I need to wait for a long time for a Prius that doesn't come with any packages?

3) Is it possible to get below the invoice now in June 07? I live in Queens, New York. Has anyone had any good deals in the area? I'm considering dealers in the NY/NJ/CT area.

Thank you all.

[richard schumacher]

Check Consumer Reports for car buying advice.

[tanglefoot]

Howdy howdy!

I believe negotiation is done on the purchase price, before the tax and extras. Someone correct me if I'm wrong. I did well having one dealer beat another dealer's "no haggle" sales price.

There are some Prii with no packages but they're hard to find. They do exist, but their availability depends on the part of the country. I don't know what the situation is where you are.
The lowest-equipped Prius I could readily find here in Colorado is the package #1. I really like it...the smart key and back-up camera are really nice to have. The visibility out the back isn't the greatest so the camera is a ton of help for parking, etc.

Have fun car hunting and I hope you find the Pri you want. They are really fun cars. BTW, magnetic gray is the BEST color!! :P

Eric

[JimN]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(prius123 @ Jun 9 2007, 11:49 AM) [snapback]458705[/snapback]</div>

Hi everyone.

I recently decided on purchasing a Prius as my first new car and have several questions that I hope someone could help me with:

1) When negotiating with the dealer, do you focus on the vehicle price (w/o tax, title, license, etc) or the "out of door price" (everything included)?

2) it seems that many people are buying the Prius with various packages. I want to buy a BASE Prius with NO options, is that possible? Do I need to wait for a long time for a Prius that doesn't come with any packages?

3) Is it possible to get below the invoice now in June 07? I live in Queens, New York. Has anyone had any good deals in the area? I'm considering dealers in the NY/NJ/CT area.

Thank you all.
[/b]

Also read www.carbuyingtips.com. IMO negotiate the price of the new vehicle. Watch that the manatory fees and taxes are not overstated. Every other added fee is just extra profit for the dealer that can be negotiated. Negotiate the trade seperately.

A base Prius is either going to be impossible or extremely difficult to get depending on you area. Go to www.toyota.com and try building the car using your zip code. You will probably find that certain trim levels are not available for selection.

Although I would be the first one to say don't buy options you don't want or need I recommend taking another look at your decision. This car is not upgradable. If you later decide you want to add something it will be an aftermarket part. Little things like the SKS and the plugs in the center armrest are more useful than you might think. The back up camera when used properly is valuable. If you need to sell the car later a base model will be a harder sell.

I don't know whether or not you can get the car at invoice. Send e-mails to all the Toyota dealers you are willing to drive to. Describe what you want and don't want and ask for quotes. In your favor, gas prices have just softened a bit. When they jump demand for the car increases so dealers don't need to lower their asking price.

Happy hunting.

[ny biker]

I paid $2000 below MSRP for mine (in northern Virginia). It was a sale price, and they said it was the invoice price. I didn't check if that was true because I would have just been annoyed if I found out they were lying. There were plenty in stock at all the Toyota dealers in the area at the time. I checked several dealers' websites and the lowest-priced in this area had option package 2 -- none were base models.

I agree that the back-up camera is worth the extra cost of getting an option package.

I am terrible at negotiating, especially since my face tends to totally give away my feelings so it was obvious after the test drive that I really loved the car. But I did find that once they have you there negotiating, they really don't want you to leave. So let them know you will walk out if you are not happy with their offer. I told them I didn't know if I could afford it so I had to go home and check my budget, and that's when they started changing numbers. However they were not willing to lower the price of the Prius -- they increased my trade-in amount and lowered my interest rate (I was using through Toyota financing).

Good luck!

[daniel]

I strongly recommend buying a Prius that has, at a minimum, the side air bags and the VSC (vehicle stability control) since you live in an area that gets snow and ice. VSC helps prevent skids if you inadvertently take a turn too fast on a slippery surface. The VSC and air bags are safety features. Don't scrimp on safety.

You can haggle with the dealer in any manner you like. I'd recommend asking, at each stage of the negotiations, what the out-the-door price would be. That is, if he offers, say, $20,000, you ask what that means you'd have to pay including all fees and taxes. If he says he does not know, ask him to find out. If he won't tell you, walk away.

I agree with the above comment to check Consumer Reports. That's the best advice when buying any consumer item.

[kruiser]

Thank you all for the advice! I've decided on a Package 2.

After checking resources online I went to two dealers to check out the situation. The first one had no stock and wouldn't budge on MSRP. The second didn't have any either but offered 22368 before tax and fees on a Package 2 that he would try to get from other dealers (2 weeks), and if unsuccessful would place a fresh order with the factory (much longer). Now if he tries to locate it from other dealers does that mean I won't get a VIN# when putting down the deposit? I read about one similar scenario and the lady got the run-around. Does anyone else have similar experience and how did it work out?

I've also read on this forum that dealers can swap cars before shipments arrive "at port", in those cases can the dealer provide you with a VIN? I'm really not fond of putting down a deposit without knowing that I will definitely have the car I want (a VIN)! Does this make sense?

Also this dealer told me the 08 model won't come out until December, unlike other cars. Is this true?

And thus far I've found out dealers have different invoice prices from places like edmunds.com, usually several hundred dollars higher with holdback, ad fee, and wholesale financial reserve included. Oh well I guess on a car with such demand there's not much you can do. I got lower quotes from dealers further away but I'm afraid that if I show up they won't keep their word, any advice?

[richard schumacher]

The only reason to go to a dealer is to test drive the car and make sure you'll be comfortable in it. Shopping by phone, email, and fax saves a lot of time and bother, and makes it harder for sharpies to pressure you.

Decide what options you want and get quotes by phone/email. Pick the sales terms and the salesanimal you like best and see if they'll meet the best quote *in writing* by fax. Don't worry about not having a VIN even when you put down a deposit as long as everything is *in writing*. Given the way they are selling now the car you get may not have been built yet.

Oh, and when you take delivery, when they try to sell you a bunch of add-on crap ("paint sealant", fabric protection, yada yada) at the last minute, just smile and say no until they shut up. You've got the money, and they want it.

[JimN]

prius123, listen to Richard. Don't worry about getting a VIN. You aren't ordering a car to be built. You are getting on the dealer's waiting list. The deposit is refundable and the dealer isn't going to jerk you around on that. If you follow the advice at www.carbuyingtips.com and shop several dealers at the same time a deposit may not be needed. If a dealer has your car on the lot all you can do is ask they hold it. Some will. Some won't. The salesman talking to you may agree to hold it while another salesman is selling it to someone in the showroom. Things happen. Be patient. Be as flexible as you want and you'll get a car you'll be happy with.

[Charles Suitt]

Hi prius123

Usually, the following year Prius model has become available in October or November of the current year. I would expect the 2008 Prius to be available by mid-November at the latest.

There's a great deal of good advice online about negotiating a car purchase. One of the best single suggestions I could make is 'Let the sales person become aware that you are willing to simply say 'NO' and move on to the next dealer.' In my purchase last November, after the Used Car Manager had made his 'offer' on my 2004 Prius, and the 'Manager' had been called in, etc... etc... I simply said 'No' and commented that I had other dealers to see. I actually had salespersons' business cards visible on my legal pad when they called me back in after they received a list of incoming Prius so they knew I had been shopping the deal.

Don't be intimidated by sales people and their "managers" - YOU are the one with the buying power. I made sure they knew how to contact me and they did call me back in with a comment like "If we can do better, are you still interested?"