advice and tips for buying out of state

My concern would be with the brake break-in period. The 200 miles probably assums that the car is bought locally and sees normal city driving for the first 200 miles. With an out-of-state purchase, one should extend the brake break-in to be 200 miles after arrival at your home town. In all probability the hills and valleys on the drive will take care of varying the engine speed that is the usual recommendation.

 

Hi betshsu,

I live in Reno, NV and I purchased my Prius in Helena MT. from Helena Motors ( http://www.helenamotors.com/ ). I heard they had a silver #9 early Friday morning from this site. Called the salesman ( Larry Deshner
1-800-793-6731 x2760, [email protected] )at 9:00 am and put down a deposit on my credit card.

I made sure that I understood exactly what I was buying and what I would pay for it (MSRP). I also clarified that the car had to be completely ready to go when I arrived. Lastly, (this was not my first car purchased outside of NV) I made sure that we agreed on how the car payment, tax and title would be handled (I was paying cash with a personal check for the car).

I puddle jumped to Helena all day Saturday arriving in Helena around 4:30 pm. Larry was waiting at the airport and took me to the dealership. I had the dealer prep documents from this site and found the Prius ready to go.

The ENTIRE deal was done in less than fifteen minutes. I was underway before 5:30 pm in a light rain and taking it easy. Arrived around 1:30 pm Sunday in Reno. 900+ miles over the Continental Divide, easy miles and not one hiccup. Averaged 44 mpg on the trip home. Could not be happier with the Prius, or Larry and Helena Motors! By the way, I purchased an extended warranty for three additional years or 75k miles for less than $700.00!

My last comment is to be very sure that you understand what your DMV expects you to have to title the car and settle any taxes that may be due in your state. The only problems I have ever had is when the NV DMV had a requirement that was different from the selling state (Make sure that you have the original copy of the signed ODO document from the dealer).

In my case it was worth the effort....

Good Luck,
Tom

 

I have an order in at Helena Motors. They now have a waiting list all be it a short one. My son goes to college in Helena so I will combine a visit with him and pick up a car. Would you suggest I check in with the local DMV here in Washington before I leave to get my ducks in a row? I know of at least one other person on this board (Hedwig) who purchased at Helena Motors so they should be getting better at this out of state stuff.

 

Hi hdrygas,

I had one problem with Helena Motors that was trivial but took awhile to fix. They do not have front license plates in MT so they did not install the front license plate holder. It took awhile to get one from Toyota. I would mention to your salesman (Larry?, if so please say Hi for me) that you need the front plate bracket (assuming you do, I would get it in the box if nothing else).

The only other problem I had was with the NV DMV. They wanted (insisted that it was federal law) that I produce the original (not one of the copies of a multi-part form) of the ODO certification form. Fortunately, Larry had given me the original and they sent the copy marked "State Copy" to the NV DMV (that just makes too much sense!). Make sure that you understand what the DMV wants for paperwork and how they are going to handle WA sales tax if you have that.

I could not be happier with the Prius and Larry and Helena Motors did a GREAT job, VERY smooth!

Good Luck,
Tom

 

Good tip! Thanks I have been to the DMV and I do need an original of the odometer not a copy. I hope others who have purchased at some distance from home and out of state respond this will be a great help. I will say hi to the folks at Helena for you.

 

Betshsu, what state are you buying from? You need to make sure you get title, registration and licensing all figured out. I'm also in TX and i bought from CA. I had to get the dealer to drive the car to NV for me so i could legally take possesion of the car there to avoid paying the CA taxes. Also, since i didn't get licensed in CA, as soon as I got to TX i had to go to the county office to get licensing and titling done. They were able to give me a temp license while i waited for CA to send over my manufacture origin papers. Also, talk to the dealer and make sure they will have everything you need when you pick it up. Ask them to provide you with copies of the predelivery checklists and everything. What made it smooth for me was I signed all the contract papers before even going to pick it up. I also put down my down payment on it. Check with your insurance too to make sure you have insurance as you travel. Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions.

=) JB