Black #9, 12/26/03, Cape Girardeau, MO

Date Ordered: 12/26/03 (I actually ordered it on 12/8, but the dealer doesn't place their orders till the end of the month)
Dealer Ordered From (Incl. City/State): Soskin Cape Toyota, Cape Girardeau, MO.
Timeframe given for delivery: unknown/"a couple of months"
Color: Black
Option Package: BC/9
Your # on Dealer's Waiting List: 2

I was #2 on the list in December, and I'm still #2 on the list as of 3/14/04. I was originally told that they were getting 1 car allocated a month, but obviously this isn't true. Also heard a rumor that the owner sold a Prius out of line to those of us already on the order list. My salesman has been great, but I'm not overly happy with the dealership itself at this point.

 

Thanks for the info Evan.

My salesman told me a few weeks ago that the folders for the three Prius on order at the dealership were sitting on the sales manager's desk. When he asked what was up, he was told that they were asked by Toyota to enter the information into a database. He told me I should be receiving a letter from them at some point in the near future, but had no idea what it would say. I'd seen postings on the yahoo group and told him what the letter was probably going to say. I've yet to receive anything from Toyota yet. I don't fault my salesman because I'm pretty sure at this point he's being fed information that later is disproven, so I'm keeping my eyes wide open on everthing to do with them.

I'm not quite ready to jump ship yet. As you say, I'm #2 and the number one guy should hopefully be getting something real soon. I am going to start calling nearby dealers tomorrow though (something I should have done from the start, obviously). If I can't find anything close, I might be getting that contact information from you.

Thanks again for your info.
Scott

 

Speaking of keychains... I just got back from being out of town this weekend, and what did I have in my mailbox? You guessed it: my prius keychain. Well, at least that much of my buying experience is going right.

 

You know, I had the very same thought reading that card, although I think my thought was something along the lines of, 'my deposit better do more than just assuring my interest.'

The last time I talked to my salesman, he wasn't sure why they hadn't gotten any. His current theory is that they aren't allocated a full car each month. I noticed a neighboring region is getting the exact car I want in two days, so i'm going to be calling them in the morning. I'm sure it's already sold, but it's worth the phone call.

 

An update

I just thought I’d give an update on my wait, seeing as how I passed the 6 month wait mark last week. Since December I lasted for 5 months at the #2 slot, until the #1 guy gave up on his wait and bought a Camry. I’ve been #1 for about two weeks now. About a month ago the salesman I’ve been dealing with through this whole process quit the dealership. No one contacted me to tell me who would be handling my purchase until I called to ask for my salesman and was informed that he “no longer works here.â€

Sometime in April they actually got a Prius (Driftwood #4), which would make it the first car that I knew for sure was sent to them outside of the TRAC car – there was a rumor that they had an earlier allocation that was sold out of line by the owner. My salesman at the time said that this April car was not actually an allocation, but that it was a “GM Pool,†which he described as, “the region filled all of their orders for that allocation and sent out the extras to places that haven't gotten many.†This car was sold to someone further down the list.

The first car that I know was an allocation was actually allocated on my six month anniversary. It was a Tideland #7. My current salesman declared that this was the car ordered by the first guy, but I knew from my previous salesman that the previous #1 guy wanted Driftwood. I offered up the suggestion that perhaps they weren’t getting cars they ordered, that they just allocated “a car†to the dealership. He didn’t sound as though he’d ever heard anything like that before. I was too disheartened to hear that it wasn’t a pkg #9 to actually argue the point with him.

As it stands now, I’m guessing that if the April car was actually an allocation, then I might see a car again sometime in July – which hopefully will be a #9 (I mean, first it was a #4, then a #7, #9 is next, right?). If the April car was actually this “GM Pool†creature and they are only getting allocation of 1 car every six months, then I guess it’ll be sometime in December before I see anything.

Once I get some energy back, I’m going to try calling around to a few more places.

 

I got the call last night that a 2005 Black BC will be at port on the 27th (although that doesn't match the shipping schedule) and that I should have it here in Southeast Missouri in about 2 - 2 1/2 weeks. Looks like I might actually be getting close to seeing a car.

It seems my guess about December was a little off, although interestingly enough I've gone through *another* salesman. This is like the third person I've talked to since I put my order in. I wonder if they'll give *me* the salesperson's commission?

 

Yeah, there's not anything else I'm going to be buying from them, most likely. Unless, of course, they give me a great deal on the extended warranty or something. I'm definitely going to ask. Besides, what's the worst they can say to me? No?

 

well, it's finally mine. After 10 months and 4 days, I finally have my Prius. They wanted way too much for the extended warranty and wouldn't give me the commission (not like I expected them to, really, but I had to ask). I drove it around for a couple of hours and I love the way it feels.

now, back to reading the manual.