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My Buying Experience with Prius

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by frankenstein, Jul 6, 2008.

  1. frankenstein

    frankenstein Junior Member

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    Was on a waiting list for a Prius. Salesman and I agreed on an out the door price, etc. He put it in writing. I get a call telling me the car is in. I get there, and the salesman pulls the old bait and switch. Car will cost me $700 more than we agreed upon. I call him a lying #@*%&, and he takes me to the Sales Manager who is about as slimy an individual as I've ever met. He tells me any deal the salesman makes is not binding without his approval, and he's not going to approve the original deal, so take it or leave it. I walk out. I send a letter to the General Manager of the dealership and Toyota's corporate office, detailing salesman's dishonest practice and I include the document promising me the original price. Long story short, corporate gets on the dealership who calls me and tells me they will get me my car and my price. And they did! A miracle! But I'm still so poisoned by the experience I will never buy from that dealership again. By the way, sold my '07 at a thousand more than I paid for it, to buy the '08 for the same price. Neat.
     
    #1 frankenstein, Jul 6, 2008
  2. KayakerNC

    KayakerNC Member

    Joined:
    May 15, 2008
    399
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    Location:
    Eastern North Carolina
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    III
    OK, it's called negotiation. Don't be poisoned by your learning experience. :fear:
     
    #2 KayakerNC, Jul 6, 2008
  3. EJFB1029

    EJFB1029 New Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Corpus Christi, Republic of Texas
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    ALL Sales negotiations are approved by the Sales Manager, there would be NO LEAVING the dealership with a sales order if it wasn't, they were just trying to get more money, and thats all.
     
    #3 EJFB1029, Jul 6, 2008
  4. SVPriusFan

    SVPriusFan Hymotioned and loving it...

    Joined:
    Dec 24, 2007
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    Location:
    Denver Suburbs
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    What dealership was it, and who were the sales person and manager you dealt with? You may save someone from having to go through the same experience...
     
    #4 SVPriusFan, Jul 6, 2008
  5. Ichiro

    Ichiro Member

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    Apr 25, 2008
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    Location:
    SF
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Why did you replace your 2007 with a 2008?
    I'm just curious as to why anyone even think about replacing a car with the identical model just one year newer.
     
    #5 Ichiro, Jul 6, 2008
  6. 4G63

    4G63 I quit boosting

    Joined:
    Feb 4, 2008
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    Location:
    Aurora, IL
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    i bet they wouldn't do that if its not a prius ur buying
     
    #6 4G63, Jul 6, 2008
  7. rfruth

    rfruth Member

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    Houston, Tx
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    Other Hybrid
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    >> Why did you replace your 2007 with a 2008?

    Why not ifs its $0 & the old one wasn't customized (do people form some kind of emotional bond with their motor vehicle) ?
     
    #7 rfruth, Jul 6, 2008
  8. Sheepdog

    Sheepdog C'Mere Sheepie!

    Joined:
    Mar 12, 2008
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    Location:
    Sanford FLorida
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Model:
    II

    duh! Yes!! and Rachel has a thing for me too!
     
    #8 Sheepdog, Jul 6, 2008
  9. Stefx

    Stefx Member

    Joined:
    Apr 11, 2008
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    Location:
    Canada
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    If someone wanted to buy a 1-year car at current year MSRP, why not?
     
    #9 Stefx, Jul 6, 2008
  10. SVPriusFan

    SVPriusFan Hymotioned and loving it...

    Joined:
    Dec 24, 2007
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    Location:
    Denver Suburbs
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Well, I did the exact same thing - sold my 2007 this March for a new 2008. Except in my case I sold my Prius for way above KBB value (thanks to the CA HOV stickers) so that when I moved to Colorado I was able to get a new one out the door for almost nothing out of pocket. I basically traded a 31K '07 for a zero-time '08...so no complaints:D
     
    #10 SVPriusFan, Jul 6, 2008
  11. sorka

    sorka Active Member

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    Location:
    Merced, CA
    Vehicle:
    2019 Prius
    Model:
    Limited
    I would love to be able to do that in CA, but the taxes and fees you lose by selling and rebuying mean you'd have to sell for $3K to $3.5K above MSRP just to break even.
     
    #11 sorka, Jul 6, 2008
  12. TravelBliss

    TravelBliss It's worth the wait !!!

    Joined:
    Apr 22, 2008
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    Location:
    Sunny Prius heaven :)
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    Sorry you had to go thru all that, but i'm not surprised...its a hot item and dealers will gouge you to death. Lucky you had all the paperwork and the perseverence to go above to corporate. I probably would have been soooo turned off, and bought a Honda!!
     
    #12 TravelBliss, Jul 7, 2008
  13. zahleeb

    zahleeb New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 18, 2008
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    Location:
    New York City, NY
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Hello, I'm with Bloomberg TV and was reading your story about you selling your Prius for above MSRP because of your HOV stickers. I'm doing a story on people trying to profit from their used Priuses and wondering if you might be able to connect me with the person you sold to? Also, would you be willing to share more of your story with me? If yes, please give me a call at 212 617 1822 or email me at [email protected] . Since it's the weekend, I'm also available at 310 350 6331. Thanks so much and I hope to hear from you soon. Zahra Burton
     
    #13 zahleeb, Jul 19, 2008
  14. cycledrum

    cycledrum PSOCSOASP

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    I'm much more inclined to deal with a fleet manager in buying a car, the one with their own office away from the showroom.

    I try to stay away from transient floor salespeople and certainly don't want to get into the back and forth game between them and a floor sales manager.
     
    #14 cycledrum, Jul 19, 2008
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