Buying a Prius in the South East

[tuck14]

I recently shopped around for a Prius in the SE and here is what I learned. If you want to specify what YOU want on the car you have to find a dealer that will work with you. My local dealer, like most SE dealers, only sells the Prius with the options and accessories that they choose to order. Most of the dealers in the SE add $1100 worth of high profit accessories installed by the SE distributor in Jacksonville, FL. (including $699 for a coating over the exterior paint, undercoating, interior fabric protection, one free oil change, etc.)

I found a dealer in Greenwood, SC (100 miles from my home) that would sell for MSRP with the options and accessories that I wanted. He located the car which was on a ship on the way to Jacksonville, traded a car that he had on the same ship with another dealer, and took my $500 deposit. Ten days later we drove away in our Prius that was exactly the way we wanted it; Salsa Red, option 6, Ivory interior with ivory leather seats (btw, the SE Toyota web site says that you can not get the ivory interior with Salsa Red)

Bottom line, if you want to get a Prius the way you want it in the SE you have to take the time to find a dealer that will work with you.

[DanMan32]

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(btw, the SE Toyota web site says that you can not get the ivory interior with Salsa Red)
[/b]

I noticed that! Must be a bug. I think it used to be right.

[Orsino]

My experience was a little different. My local (west side of Atlanta) dealer told us to expect a six-month wait. We had gone in for a test drive last month, and both Prii on the lot were "pre-sold" to customers who'd been waiting since the previous September. The Internet sales specialist also said to forget trying to order exactly what we wanted, that they'd get what they could and call us when we got to the top of the list.

Four days later, my wife stopped into another west Atlanta dealer, who told us they had one coming in that day that we could have (package six, in the sand color). Before we could go back to do the deal, before my wife could even get home, our original dealer called to offer us one of the pre-solds that was still unclaimed. We bought it that evening.

I didn't get my Salsa Red. I settled for Tideland Pearl, but got it in just a few days--and package six looks just the same from the driver's seat.

54.5 mpg on this tank. I'm very happy.

[Danny]

100 Miles from Greenwood? Where are you located?

[LOLGuy]

I was unable to get over the SE add-ons and went to the length of ordering from a dealer in MD who sold me my 05 Tideland BC for $500 below MSRP. Even when factoring in the shipping down to FL, I came out ahead v. a Southeast equipped Prius.

To boot, the MD dealer was top-notch and the price was right -- unlike many of the Tampa-area dealers who were looking for $2,500 - $4,000 mark-ups.

[tuck14]

I'm located in the mountains of Western NC, near Brevard. I am delighted with how well the Prius is doing in the mountains, expected lower gas mileage given the steep mountain roads in our communtiy but I got 47.5 mpg on the first tank. So far the Prius has exceeded my expectations, I am a happy new owner.

[jeromep]

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Bottom line, if you want to get a Prius the way you want it in the SE you have to take the time to find a dealer that will work with you.[/b]

It would make me so happy if prospective Prius buyers would take the advice of shopping around to heart. I do not live in the SE, so I don't have experience with working with a dealer who is inside a third party owned distribution channel, however I still had to shop around to find a dealer that was willing to be reasonable and commit to acquiring a vehicle that met my needs and wants, rather than just coercing me into purchasing what was coming off the car carrier.

When you are making this kind of capital expenditure, you should get exactly what you want, within the package framework. No exceptions!

[swamprius]

I echo the shop-around advice. One dealer in our area (New Orleans) told us "you have to factory order and wait 6-8 months; nobody has them on the lot," then two other dealers told us that they had several on the lot, and new ones arriving each week. Within a week we had our hands on the exact Prius we wanted.

[1prius001]

To my Prius Chat Buddies,

I have Prius vehicles that I sell for MSRP, and I will ship to your residence. I keep a special reserve for my Prius Chat friends that will be at my dealership in 2 weeks. Let me know how I can help!

Kent Cochran
Internet Sales Manager
970-302-8711