Replace 2014 Plug in with 2018 Prime Premium....Does it make sense?

Go for it. Prime is a great car.

 

1) no, it never makes sense to trade up from a perfectly fine car

2) maybe, we can't predict the future

3) if you really want one, and there is no tax on your budget, get it. can you live with the smaller hatch and 4 seats?

 

You present information as a financial decision, but ask the question in a more general way. That means we have questions.

What is your motivation? If it is safety features and other conveniences, what are they? Seemingly simple things, like the dramatically improved screens, have some worth. How much value do you place on that?

2014 certainly didn't have proximity sensors and the base didn't have radar auto-braking. Will those contribute to insurance discounts?

There's obviously a gain with so much more EV power & range, as well as the electric heater. Faster recharging is nice too. Will you benefit from that?

You get the idea.

 

What John said.

From a financial point of view, it always makes sense to hold on to a reliable car longer rather than buying new, until the anticipated costs of repair exceed that of a new (or new-to-you) car. However, as mentioned, there are usually other factors involved, such as the value you place on added/enhanced features and efficiencies. That is something only you can decide.

I am in a similar situation; I strongly considered replacing my 2014 PiP this summer as Ontario was cutting the EV rebate ($5k) but ultimately decided to wait and keep my ‘14 for at least another year, since my budget says I really shouldn’t be buying another car right now. I came to the rational conclusion that as much as I like the Prime, there is nothing wrong with my ‘14 (132k KM), and there are still some compromises with the Prime that I hope change in the near future (lack of CarPlay and 5th seat primarily... and hoping the at least the former changes soon, maybe in 2019 since Toyota has added CarPlay to some other models). I drive a lot for work in Sales, so the iPhone integration is important for me.

So, I will continue to wait see what comes in the next year. Good luck with your decision.

 

I sold my 2012 PIP base and got two 2017 Prime Advanced. Since I already had one charging station for the 2012, I also got a second charging station for the second Prime. Leave all the payoff and financing out of the decision process. I upgraded primarily for the safety improvements, ride/comfort improvements and technology improvements. No brainer.

 

Great to hear, congrats!

However, I am curious as to why you decided to buy a second charging station; could you not share one L2 between both since it is only a 2.x hour charge time...? I share an L2 between my PiP and Leaf daily and have never had an issue with time, I just take 20 seconds before going to bed to step outside and swap the plug to the Leaf for overnight. On the odd time both cars arrive home late, I would just use the L1 for the PiP to charge both at the same time.

Just curious about your situation, as most don’t bother to buy an L2 for a PiP/Prime alone in the first place, since the charge time is short anyway...

Cheers.

 

We have 2 Prime, each with its own L2 charger.

The convenience is great. We just come and go without ever having to share plugs, which makes timing a complete non-issue. There's the benefit of pre-conditioning as well. And reaching from garage to out in the driveway works too, on either side.

The easiest part of that decision though was getting $500 per charger from our electricity provider.

 

My wife got a 2017 Prius Prime Advanced to replace her 2013 PiP because she wanted to make it to work and back (14.6 miles) on EV while using modest AC (heat pump) for heat or cooling. She has never been happier with a vehicle. Also note that the Prime was the least expensive or our 4 Prius purchases, all at highest trim levels. She gets many complements on the styling of the Prime. I have been filling 2 - 3 gallons at a time to keep the gas fresh totaling 7.7 gallons for the just over 9000 miles.

Spend some $ and make yourself happy with a Prius Prime.

 

Fair enough. I hadn’t thought of the pre-conditioning angle, as that is barely worth doing with the PiP since it can’t heat. :-/. The incentive is of course a bonus.

Thanks for the reply, John.

 

Strictly from a financial point of view, I would have to agree with others that keeping reliable current car is better than buying a new car. That said PRIME is a much better car than 2014 PiP in many respects. If you value those improvements, then this year (2018) maybe a good time to buy PRIME for there may not be $4500 federal tax credit for 2019. Only thing is that if you take factory incentive, you will not be able to take factory subsidized low APR. It may be difficult to find 0.9% loan on your own now the rate has gone up quite bit. Good luck.

 

A new car is always a bad financial decision. I don't always follow my own advice.

If you want one and can afford one go for it.

 

I was in a very similar situation several years ago. I purchased a 2002 Gen 1 and planned to keep it for 10 years. Then in 2006 there was a $3150 federal tax credit so I went ahead and purchased a new Gen 2. For me it worked out really well, the Gen 2 was so much better. And the car is going strong after 12 years and 150,000 miles. Besides the tax credit what also helped is I put down as large a down payment as I could, and then made as many extra payments as I could to pay the loan off early. And I sold my Gen 1 privately to get the maximum value instead of trading it in. Putting all of that together reduced the financial impact and made it well worth it for what I got with the new car.

I realize you are looking at 0.9% but is there an alternate cash incentive instead? Also Oregon has had some pretty good rebates, not quite as much as east coast but you could fly and drive, but only if you wanted to make the trip as it might wind up costing the same as shipping from the east coast.

 

Replace 2014 Plug in with 2018 Prime Premium....Does it make sense?
It does for me!!!!
2014's in good shape can be found now for about $15,000 or less.
They're every bit as efficient as they were four years ago, and they've proven to be quite reliable - especially if you have enough money in the bank to cash flow the car and any repairs that might be necessary after the CARB warranty expires.
Wait 4 years.
Bank some money.
Pay cash for a Prime.
Thank the kind folks for paying the depreciation and early adoption fees.
If your retirement is fully funded, kiddo's college and weddings are paid for, house is paid off, and you have a large emergency fund?????
Yeah.
Why not?
Live a little!!

However (comma!!) I never could afford to buy a new car every four years in my younger years.
Since credit is easy?
Sometimes I did it anyway.....
Now?
I'll have to retire a little later than I would have done so originally....and a little less luxuriously.


You'll probably want to be a little bit smarter than I was.
YMMV......

But...really.
Driving a 4-year-old Pip?

Isn't suffering much!

 

If saving money is #1, keep the current car.

What is tradein/selling price of PiP?

 

check the pricing thread, some excellent cali deals are happening

 

Not always, in rare cases, you can get a new car for less than the price of a used or current car. For example some of us were able to get our Primes for $8000 off MSRP from the east coast. Combine that with $4500 off tax. So I bought my Prime Premium for $17,500. I just did a KBB Instant Offer quote and it's worth $21,300 trade in.

My previous car I bought new and sold was a 2015 Ford Focus EV. I bought it for $24,400 - $7500 irs - $2500 state rebate = $14,400. I sold it 3 years and 38,000 miles later using the KBB Instant Offer of $11,600.

The time before that was a 2017 Hyundai Sonata Limited I bought for $18,700. I did the KBB Instant Offer and it said $18,500. I just went to one dealer and they said they would give me $18,000 and I accepted. This was my first time doing the KBB so I learned if the dealer gave you less than the Instant Offer, take it to the second dealer. I was happy to drive a new car for $700 for one year.

OP, I would wait until December to see if the rebates are increased in the NE. And keep checking the prices paid thread to see which dealers are giving good deals. I think someone posted recently about Balise Toyota in RI, that's where I bought mine from.

 

The 2 years of pre-paid maintenance (nothing is free) is worth little. A 3 quart oil change every 10,000 miles. Tire rotations. Inspect and correct fluid levels. That's about it. The 2 year pre-paid towing is also worth little. It is only to the nearest Toyota dealership. Most of us already have emergency road service on our car insurance for little cost.

 

Out of state purchase forfeits the California State rebate check.