Dealer wants to buy my 2004 Prius

Wow, that's pretty wild!

What is the waiting time in the Atlanta area and what color is your car? What's the condition of the paint on your car?

I'm just wondering if the demand is that high that they can sell yours for some serious money. And, since you're already enamoured with the Prius, you would get an '05 but have to wait many months for it.

 

Never heard of this, but it seems inevitable now that you mention it. The dealer can charge way over MSRP for a used vehicle, and is limited to MSRP on a new. He stands to make several thousand dollars while Prii are a hot and limited commodity.

You get to trade up to a brand-new model, but you'd probably start from scratch with any financing. You might make a counter-offer that includes the dealer making up your equity in the '04 in addition to the trade-up.

Short answer: if they're calling you, you have the advantage, and probably shouldn't accept their first offer.

EDIT: Please let us know how this turns out. I'm very curious.

 

What about the multitude of buyers who paid for a "Market Adjustment" ranging from a few hundred dollars upwards of $6,000?

MSRP is just that: SUGGESTED. Dealers are free to charge any price that the market will bear.

 

I got a similar solicitation, except mine offered to basically trade my Prius for a Camry that was listed at like $5,000 below MSRP. So the only thing that I could figure out was I would re-do the financing for the lower amount and they would sell the used Prius for a mark-up over MSRP. You can still do that here for people who want it now.

Oh yeah that was me. that's why I paid to much, but still no regrets.

if this comes up twice it is because of my works stupid internet server!

 

if anyone told me they wanted to buy my car, I'd tell them where I think they could go...

i'm not giving this car up for anything. it's a Prius for one, but it's also our first new car and that really means something to us. like a sign of our success, ya know? and the second one just isn't as special.

 

Same here, particularly without any further details. For example, the wait time (if any) for the 2005 you'll be getting, whether the 05 will be new, used, or a demo, etc.

 

I'd pursue it if I were you. But don't be suprised if when it comes time to do the deal he "forgets" about the "not costing more money" part.

When I had my Tacoma I'd occasionally get cards from the dealer saying that there was "tremendous demand" for that vehicle and I could trade it in for something else. Basically it was just a come on to buy another car. I suspect yours is like that. But I could be wrong, which is why I'd look into it.

 

Same thought here. :wink:

Also, there's the potential for a sales tax issue. If the deal is done as a purchase and sale (i.e. cash for the 04 first and then cash for the 05) rather than a straight trade, sales tax will be owed on the 05.