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Prius Availability

Discussion in 'Newbie Forum' started by RandomLurker, Mar 19, 2012.

  1. RandomLurker

    RandomLurker Junior Member

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    Salesmen say the darnedest things. or Oh no! There's a Prius shortage!

    "If you like this one, you want to buy it now. It will be gone. Maybe tomorrow."

    "Gas goes up. Sales go up. It all depends on that right there." /points to gas station sign.

    "We had only one C. Sold it that day."

    "All Prius come from Japan. Very far away. We don't get many and they don't last."

    All things a salesman said. To hear him tell it, Prius are like hen's teeth. Especially the C.

    Your thoughts?
     
  2. wjtracy

    wjtracy Senior Member

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    Run but don't hide. You should be able to find a dealer who will tell you when cars are available and not pressure you. You are not giving geographic location so we cannot help. There is a dealer Dianne on this website in CA she helps a lot of CA people.
     
  3. RandomLurker

    RandomLurker Junior Member

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    Well, yeah, vehicle availability does vary by location. :cool: DFW Texas.

    I'm just wondering, in general.
     
  4. cwerdna

    cwerdna Senior Member

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    Location, location, location

    It would be VERY helpful if ALL users, esp. new ones at least put in their state for the location.

    We see numerous questions that sometimes different answers depending on the region (examples: HV battery warranty, packages/trim levels available in different regions, incentives/rebates/deals that are region specific, etc.)

    OP should be able to search inventory at http://www.buyatoyota.com/inventory/index.aspx.
     
  5. Keiichi

    Keiichi Active Member

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  6. RandomLurker

    RandomLurker Junior Member

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    Thanks for the replies.

    I was looking for some 'in general' responses. What was your perception of availability when you were looking? What is it now? What kind of spiel about availability did you get? What have you heard lately about availability?

    I do appreciate being pointed toward using dealer web sites to search inventory. I suppose there was an off chance that I did not know about the internet. ;)

    But seriously, I'm just looking for buyer and shopper experience. And I'm telling you what was told to me. Shooting the breeze about the topic.

    My blood type is O+, if that helps. :D
     
  7. Edward74

    Edward74 New Member

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    new ones at least put in their state for the location.[​IMG]
     
  8. Keiichi

    Keiichi Active Member

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    Well, it is still a vague kind of question... I mean again, depends on where you are at and what you are looking for... Like for me, I wanted to get a Blue Ribbon v 5 with ATP... My options were Silver and Blizzard white. That was around end of January. Dianne from Carson (I would say about maybe 2 and a half hours south of where I am) had one about a couple of weeks later. But in my area, not many local dealers had that particular one I wanted.
     
  9. ItsNotAboutTheMoney

    ItsNotAboutTheMoney EditProfOptInfoCustomUser Title

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    I bought at the end of 2009 so they were plentiful. Mine had obviously been on the lot for at least a month (bought end Dec, inspected middle of Nov).

    Now they'll be sold more quickly but still they're plentiful, so even if your local dealer tries to treat them like it's 2007, you can travel to get a deal.
     
  10. 6dogs

    6dogs New Member

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    I think those are very common comments & mostly true at some point. I was not pressured at all even with those types of comments. My 1st look at Toyota's there was only 1 Prius on the lot. The next time I went in to measure vehicles after doing research there were 2 used & no new ones. The next time in they had a shipment of 2011 Prius 2 that they had a decent deal on & those started to go quickly & I was then test driving 2 Toyota's & the dealership always kept me informed as to how many they had in stock. There were a couple of 2012 Prius 3 & I test drove 1 but I wanted the 2011 Prius 11. On Monday they called & said I better be up there that day because they only had 2 of the 2011 left. I did go up after work & they were all gone BUT since I had been there so often & test drove etc... they did do a search to find me a 2011 Prius 11. They found a Silver & I signed my paperwork that PM. They called 2 days later to say they got the car in but there were chips in the windshield & they were working on locating another Prius for me. They did & when I went in to pick up my car they showed me the Silver with chips in the Windshield, I did not like that & I saw the Beach (gold in person) & chose the gold Prius. I think my dealership went above & beyond since I had nothing signed & they could have done the bait & switch which I would have not gone for BUT I think they really worked hard. They got a Prius c in & it sold in 1 day, so I do have to say that the Prius go very fast. I am in NC.
     
  11. itsallgood

    itsallgood New Member

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    I live in Northern Illinois ( burbs north of Chicago) and all of the dealers I went to had several Prius ( Prii?) on the lot, it took only 1 day for the dealer I purchased from to obtain the exact car I was looking for. Since my purchase on 3/5/2012 gas has increased from 3.89 $ to 4.49$ in the Chicago area . I think if people are on the fence about purchasing a hybrid they may change their minds soon. I am thoroughly enjoying my new Prius and the great gas mileage , I have a 65 mile per day commute and have only filled my tank twice since purchasing the car! I am a convert ! If the gas prices continue to remain high I think the availability of hybrids will definitely be affected but I am glad I "beat the rush".
     
  12. WE0H

    WE0H Senior Member

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    There is NO shortage or issue with ordering a Prius exactly the way you want it and no reason to be paying MSRP or even close to it. If your dealer is trying to screw you, go elsewhere. I recently locked in a deal at $500 over invoice on my Prius Four order.

    Mike
     
  13. Prius_2012

    Prius_2012 Junior Member

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    I bought mine (beginning of March) from LONGO TOYOTA, southern California. It was Prius 5. They gave me sweet deal.. 2000 below MSRP..
     
  14. zebelkhan

    zebelkhan Member in good standing

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    20 days ago when I bought my 2012 they had many on their lot. The sales guy must have told me just about every single one of those lines, and more. So I told him I would buy on my schedule, not his, and if Prius was not going to be available when I was ready, at the price I wanted, then there would be many other makes and models to choose from. Then he calmed down and tried to sell one from his lot, which was more expensive and not the color I wanted. Of course that would not fly either. Bottom line, they still have many on their lot (not the same ones, but more shipment) and still say the same things to pressure their customers...
     
  15. sdtundra

    sdtundra Senior Member

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    Went into Toyota of El Cajon yesterday to look at a Land Cruiser and they had 10 lift backs on their front lot and 10 more in back I was told, 3 V's and a total of 8 on premises and 2 C's.