208 Prius anywhere in Northern VA/MD??

I'm working with Diehl Toyota in York, PA. Bobby Rahal Toyota in Mechanicsburg told me pretty much the same thing you've heard, that with 30 names on their list and maybe 6 vehicles per month it could be 5 months to get a car. Diehl is maintaining a much shorter list (they took my name a couple of weeks ago and I got a call last weekend to say that the list had gone below 5 and did I want to make a $500 deposit) and it sounds as though I may get my car in June (I gave a couple of packages I'd like and about half the exterior colors are acceptable to me).

My price isn't locked in, although everything I've been told lets me believe I'll be paying MSRP (of course that just went up last week...).

 

We just picked ours up yesterday from Miller Toyota in Manassas. About three weeks ago we had put a deposit ($200) on one that was coming in last weekend. The dealer told us what was coming and we chose from those. We now have our car! (Sorry)

About three weeks ago and up until picking ours up I obsessively researched dealers within 100 miles of Loudoun County and didn't come up with much. The Cars.com website will list cars available in the area. I checked it earlier today and there were about 9 listed, some of which were 2006s and 2007s. That was within a 30 mile radius of my zip code.

What you're hearing about the wait time is about right. We were fortunate enough to get in on the tail end of the supply line. During our wait it seemed that the ones that were available were package 6s, but even those seem to be gone now. From my experience with the various dealers I recommend Miller Toyota and the Fitzmall group. Both were polite and helpful and seemed honest. Fitzmall has a no-haggle price and seems pretty straightforward in that regard.

When we picked up our car the salesman (Fred Lutz) said that orders taken now wouldn't arrive until July or August. The best course now seems to be to find a dealer who has an idea of what the colors and packages are that will arrive in their next shipment and put down a deposit. And wait (ugh!).

I wish I had better news for you! I will say that the rumors are that the 2009 version, although not much different from the 2008s, should begin taking orders June 1st and arriving in Aug/Sept. If you're in a position to do so, expand your search and drive several hours to find one further away. Not the most convenient option, but may have possibilities.

Good luck!

 

Quick follow-up: I just searched Cars.com for within 150 miles of zip 20147 and about 150 cars came up. Worth a drive to Pennsylvania? A few showed up under Younger Toyota in Hagerstown, MD. I don't know if the website is completely up to date but worth a try.

 

The problem with dealers' online inventory is that with the waitlists the cars are actually sold before they appear on the website. Rahal Toyota in PA currently shows a Spectra Blue Package 6 that appeared some time last week; I emailed them the day it appeared and they admitted that the cars are sold long in advance and they only show up as a formality until the final paperwork is signed. So I'm not sure the cars.com inventory is going to be any more accurate than the dealers' own websites.

 

Here's a suggestion that might work. 48 hours ago I emailed 3 dealers within 100 miles with whom I had no prior relationship. Tomorrow at 2:00 one of those dealers will bring me my new Prius.

That dealer had a "waiter" cancellation the day before, he figured everybody else on the list has already been told they had to wait and were happy with that. Reading me as a now or never opportunity, he offered me the car at list with no add-ons, SOLD!

So keep trying other dealers. Timing is everything. My usual dealer who I have purchased 5 Toyotas from in the last 18 months, jacked me around and told me $2K over list. Did I say he is my former dealer?

Now we have 3 2008 Prii in our fleet. Gas savings alone easily pays for the cars as we drove Yukon XL's in the past. 14 mpg to 50 mpg, gotta love this car! Sorry if this sounds like bragging, just happy!

 

Try Darcars in Frederick, MD. One of my co-workers called them Tuesday looking for a Prius, he's picking it up this Saturday. He got it under sticker, but I can't remember how much.


-GT

 

Re: 2008 Prius anywhere in Northern VA/MD??

i had this same exact issue.

hit beltway toyota in md. prices are better, deposit is lower (300), "processing fee" is limited to 100 by law (rather than 379 on up that you find at all of the nova dealerships), wait list is 6-8 weeks (or less, supposedly). if you live in nova, they will only charge you the 3% tax and not add on random additional "tax" percentages. (ranging from .17%- 1%).

they'll lock in the price (i totally got screwed over by springfield toyota).

Ask for Ron Etheridge. Nice guy. Doesn't seem to know a whole lot, but will ask his managers and he'll be straight with you and keep you up to date on your progress up the waitlist. It helps if you know what you want going in (package-wise). Also? If you give them a range of 5 colors and just call it a "lottery" for which one you get, you'll have a better chance at getting a car sooner (i'm told).

good luck

 

Found the dealers by doing a Google on Toyota dealers in towns within 100 miles. We're pretty rural, the dealer that called me back with the offer is in a town of only about 45,000 people. BTW, the salesman delivered my Super White pkg 6 to my home tonight, about 75 miles from the dealer. Super nice people and I think they were happy to sell a vehicle at MSRP. I'm glad to get the car without the agonizing wait, plus they gave me a decent trade in value on my guzzler.

Timing is the key, you just have to get lucky and make a contact when someone else has backed out of a deal or pulled their name from the list. The internet manager seems to be a good contact too.

Good luck in your search!

 

This may be true in the NoVa/MD area. Contact several dealers so they know what you're looking for and can contact you if for any reason one shows up. At least that way you have some lines in the water - maybe you'll catch something.

 

Patience is key. You'll find one, but you may have to wait a little bit. The wait is worth it. I got mine at Priority Toyota in Richmond about 3 years ago...so I've been kind of in the dark as far as how the lists are right now at dealers. When I had it in for service a month or so ago, they tried to sell me on a 2008 model offering me a good trade in, but I figured "why?". Now, they have none on their lot. You could always go pre-owned, but I know you don't always get exactly what you want going that route. Even looking at Auto Trader on the East Coast, there aren't too many available with decent mileage.

Good luck in your search!

-Dave.