Let the price gouging begin! (in CA)

When I began seriously Prius shopping in mid-Jan., I quickly realized that I was in danger of not being able to get stickers if I bought one that didn't already have them.

When it came down to 2 similar 2004 Priuses (one blue with and one red without stickers), the evil floor manager (at a Toyota dealer that shall remain nameless!) insisted on a price $630 above the Kelley Blue Book value because the car had the access stickers. He said that when the stickers ran out the prices would go way up, blah, blah, blah.

After reading detailed postings here on Jan. 23, I thought the situation looked dicey in terms of buying the Prius sans stickers and acquiring the dreaded transponder (the curse of living near bridges!) and mailing in for stickers from the ever-dwindling pile. I decided to pay their sticker ransom and went in to buy the car. It was then that I spotted a 10-point "guarantee" that they would sell all used cars 3 years or newer for the KBB value or lower. When I questioned the higher price, the floor manager claimed that the stickers justified an "exception" to the guarantee, that the car was older than 3 years (even though this one was put in service Aug. 2004), that I was bringing up a "technicality", and various other used-car sales BS. When I was unhappy with this, he began threatening not to sell me the car "because I wouldn't be happy"!

To cut to the chase, he called in customer service rep., who took it to a higher level and - lo and behold! - they decided I was right! Oh, happy day! I bought the car for its KBB retail value. This is the first time I ever felt I came out of a used car bargaining session feeling victorious. I am now driving my very shiny blue 2004 Prius in the carpool lane with a great big smile!

 

I didn't mean to say that raising the car's price because of the stickers was - in and of itself - gouging. I only thought that not honoring their guarantee was wrong.

They were claiming the price would go up $2000 when stickers ran out, but I spoke to the salesman today (on another matter), he said that the DMV was officially out of stickers and they had been told that the price on any hybrid with stickers would go up $5000.

That seems a bit ridiculous to me, but I guess you guys are right - a car with stickers is worth whatever someone is willing to pay for it. For some people and some commutes, it may be worth the price.

My foolish husband, who has had a Prius since 2001, is kicking himself that he didn't get his stickers while he could. He started to try in early Jan. and faxed in his FastTrak form, but four weeks later still hasn't gotten the kit. So I guess he will be trying to borrow mine a lot