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What Kind of Prius Do I Have?

Discussion in 'Newbie Forum' started by djlen, Nov 18, 2011.

  1. djlen

    djlen Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Somerdale, NJ
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    I am about to buy a 2011 Prius. I thought I knew what I had until coming here.
    With all the categories you folks have on these boards I have no idea which one to post in.
    All I know is it's a 2011 Prius. No clue about what Generation or if it's a C or V or whatever else you are talking about. If someone could clue me in to how to figure this out I'd appreciate it.
    I have a number of questions but don't know which area to post them in.

    Regards,
    Len
     
  2. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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  3. Gurple42

    Gurple42 New Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Santa Monica, Ca.
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Within the next year there will be 4 different Prius models. At the moment 2 are currently for sale. The regular Prius (which you are buying) It comes in 5 trim levels 1,2,3,4,5. 1 is for fleet buyers-usually taxi companies. 2 is the next level, it has the smart key feature which the 1 does not have. 3 is up next with a better radio and blutooth. 4 is next with leather and other options. 5 is the top of the line, from the outside you will notice that it has bigger wheels (17in vs 15in in all other models).
    Prius have been sold in the U.S. since 2001, that design lasted thru 2003 and is referred to as Generation 1 or I. The next design 2004-2009 is referred to as Generation 2 or II. The current design, 2010-2012 is referred to as Generation 3 or III.
    Prius also is now selling the Prius v. The v is a larger model and it's first model year is 2012. It comes in 3 trims, 2,3 and 5.
    Coming later in 2012 is the Prius C. It is a smallest Prius, there are pictures on this site, but not much is known about it.
    Also coming out in 2012 is the Plug in Prius, referred to in this forum as the PiP. It has an additional battery pack that accepts electricity from the grid and has a 15 mile electric only range. Hope this clears up some things for you.:)
     
    1 person likes this.
  4. macmaster05

    macmaster05 Senor Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    You are probably purchasing the regular Prius. I don't think you'd miss catching the salesman saying 'v' over and over again, which I'm assuming they do for those pitches.
     
  5. cycledrum

    cycledrum PSOCSOASP

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    use > search > google search under welcome sign for answers first. if it's really a 2011, post under Gen III 2010+ area
     
  6. car compulsive

    car compulsive Active Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Welcome and good luck in your search. This is a good time to shop for a new 2011 Prius as supplies are up and demand is down. If you have a dealer that is still trying to say you have to be on a waiting list or pay MSRP, find another dealer. You'll probably find the first dealer suddenly willing to negotiate once you do.

    Here's a short article on the current low demand for hybrids.

    Hybrid Demand Declines | wltx.com
     
  7. djlen

    djlen Junior Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Guys, thank you so much for all this info. With all that, I'm sure I have a "reg. Prius". I know it's not a V as there was one on the lot when I was there yesterday and it's way more expensive than the one I'm looking at (approx. $30K). Mine has a smart key and was referred to as a 'basic Prius' with most of the goodies coming standard. I think I'll need a PhD. to drive the vehicle. This keyless stuff really throws me. Lots of charts and graphs in the dash.
    I joined here because I know I'm going to have a ton of questions.
    So I guess I should post in the Gen III, 2010+ forum? And I know this will sound really newbie but why do they call it "Generation III"?

    Regards,
    Len
     
  8. Paradox

    Paradox Prius Enthusiast / Moderator
    Staff Member

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    Five
    Post a picture of it. If it's a 'regular' 2011 Prius it's a Prius 2, 3, 4 or 5. It has to say it somewhere on the window sticker, paperwork etc.

    Gen III is from 2010 present, Gen II 2004-2009, Gen I 1997-2003
     
  9. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    Generations are designated by major redesigns. I should have included this link in my first post:

    [ame=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Prius]Toyota Prius - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia[/ame]

    The cool thing is you can turn the display off and just drive the car or jump in deep and find out all about it. Your call.
     
  10. djlen

    djlen Junior Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
     
  11. Michgal007

    Michgal007 Senior Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    Ask the dealer which package it is, I believe 2011 comes in 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 (may be they write it as i, ii, iii, iv, v). Don't confuse the v with the V.

    Anyway, depends on your package, the price will differ. So, find out online what the MSRP value is for the car you are buying. Then compare that to the price they are asking.

    The 3rd Generation Toyota Prius Hybrid models and prices

    Try to get the MSRP value. They may have added extra stuff like all weather mats and what not, so the price may be more than MSRP because of it.

    You don't need a Ph.D. to drive it. You will get used to it in no time. Just drive it like a normal car, and if you are obsessed with mileage etc., then read up info on this forum (I know it can be overwhelming) about pulse and glide (P&G), and other methods of improving your MPG.

    Good luck with the purchase and enjoy your new ride!
     
  12. djlen

    djlen Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Somerdale, NJ
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    It's package is Prius 2, msrp = 23,520 and they were pretty honest with me. The "online price" they gave me was 23,485.
    I think I still have a little room to haggle. I'm going over with the trade-in in a little bit. Wish me luck. I'll let you all know how it came out when I get back.

    Regards,
    Len
     
  13. Paradox

    Paradox Prius Enthusiast / Moderator
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    2014 Prius v wagon
    Model:
    Five
    Considering the 2012's will be out soon they should come down quite more than the $35 they are offering to come down IMO. I'd use that as my bargaining tool...
     
  14. car compulsive

    car compulsive Active Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
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    Model:
    Two
    If you're going to trade in your current car be very sure to visit multiple dealers. There can be a big difference in what they offer you for a trade in addition to the price of the new car. For me, it was a $1500 difference in trade-in between the two dealers and the dealer with the higher trade-in offer had the exact car (blizzard / dark gray two v. red / dark gray three) I wanted. Granted, I bought in August when there wasn't any discounting of Prii here in Michigan.
     
  15. djlen

    djlen Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Well, they didn't come down on the price but gave me more on the trade than I thought I'd get (which surprised the heck out of me) so I think I did OK. Doesn't matter to me which end I get a break so I'm happy.
    Also, they threw in some perks for free service for 3 years and free key replacement for loss or breakage. I know those keys cost a lot to replace, so I felt good about that. And I got an extended warranty, bumper to bumper for no extra charge too.
    Thank all of you who answered my questions and sent links. I still have much reading to do and questions to ask, but now I know the help is available when I need it. The owner's manual is 600+ pages long!!!

    Regards,
    Len
     
  16. car compulsive

    car compulsive Active Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Congrats! If it's a Prius Two, you can skip large parts of the manual that are about options you don't have. The most important thing to get out of the manual is to learn how it's organized so you can look stuff up later. Also, check out the Gen III section for suggestions on how best to drive your new car to take advantage of its MPG potential. There are some good hints and videos that's don't require you to hypermile or hold up traffic.
     
  17. rogerv

    rogerv Senior Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius Plug-in
    Model:
    Plug-in Base
    Congratulations on your new Prius. I am curious about the bumper to bumper extended warranty at no charge. Is that the Toyota Platinum Warranty, or something else? Dealers usually try to get somewhere near $1500 or maybe more for that warranty.
     
  18. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Although it's a bit too late for the OP, Toyota Vehicles : Toyota Announces Prices for 2010 Prius / Toyota has a nice table of the models (when they still used to use Roman numerals instead of spelling out the model) and options but the prices are old.
    One big pet peeve of mine about the Wikipedia entry is that some "genius" decided to make up the incorrect designations (XW10, XW20, etc.) and some newbies end posting saying they have one of these. UGH!!! Toyota has NEVER called Priuses by XW10, XW20, etc. It's been NHW10, NHW11, NHW20, ZVW30, etc. The door placard sticker does NOT say XW20, it says NHW20.

    I would fix it if it didn't have a whole bunch of other repercussion/result in other things that need fixing. Also, I worry that same genius will just undo my changes, wasting my time.

    Bob Wilson and I are miffed about this and he did some more digging into this matter but I think both of us are in the side of, it's not worth the time to fight the battle. (I'm certainly not going to.)
     
  19. hill

    hill High Fiber Member

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    Location:
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    Vehicle:
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    Model:
    IV
    The regular Prius has a package II, III, IV, an V. V is the high tech package ... larger tire/rims, self parking, lane assist, collision avoidance and other high tech goodies. It costs the most. Yes, the bigger Prius they called v also ... to the dismay of many PC'rs.

    .
     
  20. djlen

    djlen Junior Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Somerdale, NJ
    Vehicle:
    2011 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    rogerv, I think that there are three different bumper to bumper warranties. I believe the one I got was the "economy" one but I've got soooooo much paperwork here and my mind is mush with all the numbers and stuff that they told me. I will have to look through and try to make sense of it all in the coming days. Just very happy to have a Prius sitting in the driveway tonight.