Thinking about buying a base model Prius

oh, my head hurts. but welcome to priuschat, all the best.

 

Don't buy anything extra on a lease, the car is not even yours

 

A student with limited funds and a 2 year old car should not lease a new car.

 

Anybody want a Corolla for cheap? $12000

 

I also don't think you should be buying a new car, especially not leasing it, but I don't know what your motivation is, so I'll leave it at that.

You don't say what the monthly payment would be without the TCP, so it's hard to judge it's value. A new Prius comes with Toyota Care for 2 years/25,000 miles which is 2 oil changes and 5 tire rotations. The TCP they are including extends that another year and 20,000 miles or another 2 oil changes and 4 rotations. Oil changes run $75-$85 depending on where you live. TCP adds a few other things that you may or may not use, so only you can determine if they are worth whatever the cost is, nothing is free.

My problem is you're actually paying $14,500+ for those 3 years and will have to pay another $14,000+ if you decide to purchase. That makes the total deal over $28,500, which I think is a lot for a model Two. My take is you can continue to drive the Corolla for those 3 years and then hopefully you'll be out of school and employed and can afford to buy a new car then. I know 50 mpg vs 30 mpg is enticing, but you'll be pay $70/mo plus gas and throwing in $12,000 to boot. In 3 years the Corolla will still be worth something as a trade-in.

 

Not very many people SHOULD.....


OP: It's your money (or lack thereof) and your life but you should really not be leasing a Prius.
Priuses are good cars, but you have to keep one and drive it for a while to overcome the higher initial buy-in cost.....and let's face it, ANY car is reliable under the terms of a fleece because the fleecers limit you in miles, and you're forced to keep the car properly maintained.

This isn't unsolicited advice.
YOU asked.


My advice?
Pay off the Corolla. Wait for the Whoopdi-doo to die down over the 2016's.
You'll also want to try and make sure that they didn't screw up anything besides the looks of the G4.
Buy when you can afford one and drive it for ten years or so.

Driving new cars every two or three years is really cool but so is having a paid-for house and being able to retire comfortably when you're an old fart like me.

Your call.

Good Luck!
Let us know what you decide.

 

Keep your Corolla and forget about the leased Prius.

 

If you really want a Prius, buy a used one. They hold up very well. And forget any Toyota service plan.

 

Do not lease.

 

Do what you want but forget Toyota care, the first 2 years of scheduled mantaince are free anyhow.

 

Don't lease, don't get an extended warranty plan. Hands down a rip off and an almost 100 profit for the dealer.

 

I wouldn't recommend leasing the prius, particularly as your corolla isn't very old. I would just wait until at least one year after the Gen 4 prius comes out, and see if you still want it or not. Who knows, by that point you may be interested in an electric car instead.