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Should I wait to buy?

Discussion in 'Newbie Forum' started by killertofu88, Sep 25, 2016.

  1. killertofu88

    killertofu88 Junior Member

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    2016 Prius
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    Ok, here's my situation. I have an 07 Camry CE manual, very low mileage for its age 78k now, maintenance kept up well and no major issues during my ownership. I was given a trade in range of $4500-$8500 by a dealership today. That range will narrow when I'm ready to buy, I'm told.

    I know I want a Prius, not a c (didn't like the hill climb or the lack of acceleration on the highway vs regular Prius). I test drove a gen 3 and a gen 4 as well. Obviously the gen 4 felt better because it was new, but it also felt better because it felt like it handled closer to my Camry than the gen 3.

    My question is when do you guys think there will start to be more used 2016 models available? Given my cars age and assuming it stays in the same condition and still has well under 100k, do you think my trade in value will go down much in another year? I've had two dealers tell me a manual transmission Camry is a hard find.

    I don't have to buy new, but I could maybe squeeze it if need be, but I'd rather save some money and let someone else eat the depreciation while getting the model I know feels the best to drive.

    What do you all think?

    Other info:

    • I plan to purchase in full from dealer, no finance no lease. I'm gonna own this next car and drive it till it stops. Only reason I wanna trade mine in is because I'm tired of stick in the city.
     
  2. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    Geez. Its only 9-25-2016, and you are looking for a used model year 2016? Assuming the typical new model year being introduced during the Fall of the year before, the MY2016 was introduced in Fall of 2015. People who leased the car for two years, Fall of 2017. Dealers will likely get rid of their test models 2016s before they hit too many miles. Then there are those bought the car and want something newer, so you could buy theirs.

    Mileage depreciates a car faster than time. Play with KBB and you see what I mean. Plug your 2007 w/ current mileage today. Pretend you have a 2006 and add a years worth of miles to simulate your 2007 a year older w/ a years worth of miles.

    Normal cars are depreciating assets no matter what you do. Rare vintage cars appreciate no matter how old and how many miles. Drive the current car until you absolutely get sick of it, or the 2016 is at a price you like. It will probably be awash no matter what you do: sell Camry now get more now, but pay more for the 2016. Sell Camry later, get less, but pay less for the 2016. Future of gas prices at the pump could drastically affect your 2016 purchase price. If gas somehow shoots back-up to $4/gal, that 2016 will be expensive; unlikely according to various petroleum experts, but no one can predict the future. Since gas is cheap right now, Hybrids don't command the price premium they did when gas was high.

    Very few people want a manual car in general. If you were driving a manual Honda Accord or Civic, or Acura Integra/RSX, these cars would have a sizeable market b/c of the teenagers and the large import tuner crowd. I can count on one hand the number of Camry's that have been tuned/fixed-up. And arguably, California is the largest import tuner market for the US, if not the world. The number of Civics, Accords, Integras, RSXs, that I see fixed-up are too plentiful to even bother counting. A fixed-up Camry sticks out b/c you rarely/never see it.
     
  3. killertofu88

    killertofu88 Junior Member

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    Maybe that's why the IRA I was at considered the 4500 trade in a low end for them, when that was towards the upper end I got on edmunds for my car. I mean, holy shit, if they offer me anywhere close to the upper end of their range, I'll be happy.

    So there probably won't be many used 2016's too soon, but do you think there will be some decent deals showing up in the next two months as they try to clear them out for the incoming 2017's? I wasn't sure how soon used versions show up because I'm seeing a pretty good amount of used certified 2015 prius models on the market.

    Thanks for the info, btw.
     
  4. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    NO dealership will give you anywhere remotely near KBB (Kelly Blue Book). KBB is for consumers (think retail).

    Dealers used the Black Book. It is far lower than KBB, b/c they need/want to make a profit (buy low sell high). Your 2007 will likely be accepted as trade-in, and quickly dumped off to an auction, appearing on a lower tier used car lot.

    Internet search "dealer black book" to see if you can find a site to give you free pricing.

    Check out My Car Value Estimator - Black Book Value - Used Car Values | Cars.com to see the depressing low price you will likely get.

    Selling private party is the only way to get in KBB range. But, it can be a pain to sell private party and poses risks. Trade-in is convenient, and you pay for that convenience w/ a lower dollar value given for your car.

    You should read Edmunds and Consumer reports buying guide and suggestions on buying new/used cars. NEVER let them know you plan to trade-in your car! If you were playing poker, you just revealed your hand. They will price the purchasing vehicle higher, b/c they know you will want more for the trade. Think two separate transactions. 1) Haggle for the vehicle you want, get price finalized and in writing. 2) Before signing anything, let them know you decided to trade-in your car. You need to haggle a higher trade-in value. They will haggle lower. You have the upper hand, as you can say no thanks and walk out. They just spent time and know they have a vehicle sale in front of them. It just becomes a question of if they are willing to give you a few dollars more and you being firm in walking away starting the whole process somewhere else. If you are persistent, you will get more of what you want: lower purchase price, higher trade-in value.
     
  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    welcome! there have been a couple unhappy owners who have traded in, maybe you'll get lucky. but they are discounting so deeply now, i'm not sure there's any depreciation left.:p all the best!(y)
     
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  6. sttkailua

    sttkailua Active Member

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    ktofu88,

    Nothing wrong in buying a newer model used car.
    I bought my 2013 Prius from Toyota dealer. It was in a rental
    fleet with 20K. Still under factory warrantee.
    If you can wait til end of 2017, you may have some used 2016s coming
    off the rental fleet. If you can't wait that long, look for a dealer demos for sale.
    Only thing is that you will not have choices of color, options.

    I enjoyed driving a stick in my youth, but in stop and go traffic now, my
    calf would cramp up.

    good luck, you will really enjoy your 2016! 50+ MPG!

    stt
     
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  7. killertofu88

    killertofu88 Junior Member

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    Yeah, I'd honestly just keep driving my camry if it wasn't for the stick shift. I'm tired of traffic/hills in the city and my girlfriend can't drive stick. For me it's not even my calf but the bottom of my foot that just starts to feel strained. If you saw my left shoe, you'd see noticeably more wear on it lol. It's honestly a dying skill anyways, though I'm glad I had the experience, but the city is no place for someone to learn stick anyways IMO. I was nervous enough in the suburbs about stalling out without someone honking at me a second after the light turns haha.

    As for the 16' prius, I'm gonna go for some more test drives and compare it with the gen 3, maybe even compare it to a few used Camry Hybrids. When I last tried the gen 3 vs the gen 4, there felt like a noticeable handling difference, and I'm just thinking the gen 4 would handle the windy awkward one way streets of Boston much better.
     
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  8. sttkailua

    sttkailua Active Member

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    ktofu88,

    My oldest daughter went to BU 1 year in 06. The Big Dig era!
    Boston not too easy driving for me! Big snow storm came, she transferred to
    a West Coast school. Saw a Red Sox game, never had a chance to return.
    I also had an 09 Camry Hyb. A smoother, bigger car cruiser with 40 mpg. I got 181K miles
    with no battery issues. If you decide on the Prius, get the Soft touch leather, with heated seats.
    A plus for the cold Boston winters!

    stt
     
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  9. romr

    romr New Member

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    I came out of a Camry se, it was quite a transition to the Prius, wife drives the Camry now but when I drove it the other day I was shocked at how fast it was lol. You can pick up a new 2016 now at great deals, oil is down, lots to choose from, get 2k back or 0apr, and everybody wants to see the prime before they buy...perfect time to get a deal, negotiate well got a Prius 3 touring 23,800 a month ago and I'm sure you can do better, I would definitely sell my car on Craigs screw dealer trade ins.



    iPad ?
     
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  10. 05PreeUs

    05PreeUs Senior Member

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    Rental companies and fleets shed their vehicles between 12-24 months, often miles are a factor. Since the '16s have been "out" for 12 months, they should start appearing on dealer lots ANY DAY, if not already.
     
  11. killertofu88

    killertofu88 Junior Member

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    Hey so just to close this thread, I got a 2016 Prius two in magnetic gray with moonstone interior. I love it. Got about 5g for my trade in and wound up with a drive away price of about 17,500. Paid cash and own the car outright. Now I'm just gonna keep and care for this thing until it no longer runs, which I suspect will be a long time from now :) IMG_9268.JPG


    iPhone ?
     
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  12. 05PreeUs

    05PreeUs Senior Member

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    VERY WISE!

    My grandpa used to say "Son, if you can't put down dollar bills for it, you simply can't afford it".

    35 years of purchasing stuff and I can attest that he was right!
     
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  13. PriusNeckBeard

    PriusNeckBeard Active Member

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    Drive PWR mode. It's aweseome.
    Also, I think I'm getting slightly better mpg. I've heard others on this board say the same thing.
     
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  14. Kramah313

    Kramah313 Active Member

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    I get better mpg in PWR mode in my 2012. If you're one that gets used to the feel of a gas pedal of a car I would recommend trying it
     
  15. exstudent

    exstudent Senior Member

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    Enjoy your Pri.

    Consider upgrading to a magnetic drain plug for the transaxle (assuming the Gen4 don't have one like the Gen3) and performing an early drain/fill. Also regular drain/fills of the transaxle are always a good thing.

    Read Post #473. Good pictures and a link to the ATF-WS oil analysis study is in the post.
     
  16. JDenyer232

    JDenyer232 Member

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    Congrats. I have the silver color of the 2. I love it, i have yet to get a tank that averages less than 60mpg hand calculated! Enjoy your new car
     
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  17. killertofu88

    killertofu88 Junior Member

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    I'm gonna try doing power mode once I do my first gas fill, which....might be a while lol. I honestly don't mind having subdued acceleration because so many Boston drivers accelerate and then slam their brakes, so it's nice to have that forced hesitation heh.
     
  18. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    $17,500.? wow! did you add it to the best price thread? you must have gotten it just before the quarantine. all the best!(y)
     
  19. killertofu88

    killertofu88 Junior Member

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    I didn't, and I figured it wouldn't break a record considering my trade in was 5 thousand before all the taxes and fees and such.
     
  20. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    ah, gotcha, thanks!