Change when will it come

you could have had an interesting conversation with the sales manager

 

When I went to a local Chevy dealership to see, and eventually test-drive a Volt, everyone I spoke with (I gave three salesmen rides in my Tesla) was enthusiastic and upbeat about the Volt. They wanted my opinions of it, as an experienced EV driver, but they all were very positive about the Volt. I'm sure they would not have discouraged any interested customer from buying one.

It's possible that you encountered prejudiced salespeople, or that those dealerships didn't have an actual supply of the cars, and wanted to steer you to a model they had an excess of. In my experience (and that of many others here on Prius Chat) sales people are the LEAST-well informed people concerning the cars they sell. A successful sales person needs to have people skills, but very rarely is asked for information about a car beyond acceleration, gas mileage, features related to comfort, and price/financing.

 

I think that there might be something else at play - the truth.

Starting out with the Volt you definitely have a car that is too expensive and has quite a few limitations such as seating for only 4 instead of 5. In the news you have reports of battery fires and this really is a cutting edge product so the reliability over the long term is defiantly a question. When you compare it to the Cruze Eco at about $20k the Volt is not that logical a choice based on the finances - the "green" halo costs something like $15k.

On to the Honda's - the Civic is a great car in general, but the hybrid version does not seem to compelling to me compared to the other versions of the car. The Insight seems like a dog of a car. I just parked next to a CR-Z earlier today and thought what a nice looking little car it was. I thought that Honda really missed the mark on it though - they should have thrown in a gas engine and they would have had a car with pep that was fun to drive at a better MSRP and similar MPG's - it is a car that really should not be a hybrid.

I think that there is a reason why the Prius makes up the lion's share of the hybrid market - it is the only one on the market that makes a whole lot of sense. Even the other Toyota/Lexus hybrids suffer from being a tough sell - there are just too many compromises such as the woeful trunk in the old Camry hybrid. All that being said, the reviews of the new Camry hybrid have been terrific - perhaps this will be the next hybrid to be more than a niche model.

 

The novel "Wheels" by Arthur Hailey came out in 1971. One of the main plot themes was the infection of the US market by these really crappy cars being made by Japan. Not to worry, In the novel the superiority of the American cars would win out and the fad would fade.

Truth today is not truth tomorrow.

 

It might be that salespeople won't make as much for selling x type of car, which might be a hybrid.

It's amazing that Prius sells as well as it does even though they cost more for their size. As much as I like the Prius v for example, it costs about $4,500 more than a Camry LE. Even bigger difference over a Nissan Altima.

Prius fans are quite different than the average driver who just wants a set of wheels. They don't care too much about high mpgs, they care about low cost. But, things will get better for hybrids in the future. They will find a way to keep hybrids costs in check and as gas goes up, more will get higher mileage vehicles.

 

At the current stage of development—of both the hybrid drivetrain and the public's understanding of it—the Prius offerings make the best use of it, and make the most sense to the public.

The Volt's styling doesn't convey what it is. It's too bland and derivative, and the packaging isn't good.

The Prius says efficiency and versatility. Everywhere you look, inside or outside, its message is consistent. The Volt, not so much.

It's also obvious, in so many ways, that Toyota believes in it. Consumers can tell the difference, even if they're not directly aware of it themselves.

 

part of the magic of the prius is, there's nothing to compare it to. it's bigger than a corolla, smaller than a camry, yaris? scion?

 

I agree, it defines its own niche, and it's not just because of the HSD. It's the complete package.

 

Maybe they just knew which held the greater profit margin for the dealership, which had the higher commission for the salesperson or which their manager told them to sell so they could get it out of inventory? :noidea:

 

While the prejudiced American press and the big US car companies are first to ignore the Prii sales almost altogether (so far), they are not likely to ignore them in later 2012 when all 4 Prii models are rolling off the sales floors and dominating the market in ever greater numbers.

In mid 2009 when I was shopping for my GenIII, the first salesman at one of the better Toyota dealers (and the dealership I eventually bought at) wanted to show me several other models, but certainly not the Prius I was there to test drive. There might have been spiffs on those other models, and I saw through that, but insisted on the Prius because I knew what I wanted, read these forums, and had done my home work.

The second salesperson, and the one who eventually sold me the car, confessed to me that almost no one there had ever really been designated the expert for that model. This salesperson had never sold one himself, just having been moved form the sister BMW dealer next door. Turns out he was just as curious about the Prius as many customers were. Se we talked about the tech and the differences between the GenII and whatnot for about an hour.

While we were talking, their one black GenIII floor model was leaving with another prospective customer test driving. We talked more and waited our own turn.

Turns out, the guy was hesitant to talk to customers about the Prius because he didn't know all that much about it. After the test drive, any concern of his were completely unfounded. I bought from that salesman just because he didn't have any preconceived biases against the car, as most others did at that place, or other dealers.

Their service department had no biases, as they had been servicing the model for the previous decade though the three generations. Salespeople are not first to tell you they are ignorant about certain vehicles when their egos get in the way. It was a remarkable and unexpected confession I will probably never encounter again.

I have not yet seen a Volt, and don't need to. I feel that model will be just another small footnote in GM's history.

 

When I bought my 2004 Prius (test-drove it and ordered it in November of 2003, took delivery in January of 2004) the salesman knew virtually nothing about the car, but was very enthusiastic about it. When I seemed unsure after the test drive and asked about cold-weather starting and cabin heat (I'm not sure Prius Chat even existed in November of '03, and I didn't find the site until a month after I'd bought the car) he offered and encouraged me to take the car from their closing time on Saturday until Monday morning, giving me all day Sunday with the car. There was never any attempt to steer me toward a different car. However, by mid-year of 2004, when the waiting list had stretched out to well over half a year, I think maybe a year at that dealership, they were discouraging people from ordering it, just because of the long wait.

 

It does. Very rarely has a salesperson talked me into buying something I wasn't already there to purchase. More frequently, a salesperson has convinced me NOT to buy something from them, mostly through their attitude. I have far more respect for the person who says 'I don't know' than the person who just makes stuff up or tells me lies. Mind you, I've usually done enough research that there's a good chance I know more about the particular product than the salesperson. So, I already know the answers to my questions.

 

I've never understood the appeal of diamonds. Apparently, their use as engagement gifts was invented and promoted by the South African diamond conglomerate De Beers. I've always thought that emeralds are much nicer stones. If I ever met someone willing to marry me (about as likely as winning a hundred-million-dollar lottery without buying a ticket) I'd want to give her an emerald instead of a diamond.

What kind of sheep does a person have to be to want exactly the same kind of stone that everybody else has???

 

Has gold surpassed diamonds in gram for gram value yet? It's hard to get an apples to apples comparative measure because cut diamonds derive some (most?) of their value from the labor that went into cutting them into shape, but it seems to me that diamonds have always been regarded as "more" valuable than gold. But it shouldn't be that way - we can make diamonds in any quantity we want, we cannot make gold (at least, not yet).

 

We can make industrial diamonds. I don't think we can make gem-quality diamonds yet.