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Please help me choose which one to buy!! :D

Discussion in 'Newbie Forum' started by IndianaJ, Jul 18, 2010.

  1. IndianaJ

    IndianaJ New Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
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    N/A
    My DH and I have decided to buy a Prius. After searching we have narrowed it down to two.

    Can you all help us decide? Since I'm new I can't post links yet so I'll give some specs on each and after a few posts, I'll post the links.

    Thank you!!

    This one is an 07 silver Touring package with 57,000 miles on it.

    Rear Head Air Bag,Side Head Air Bag,Side Air Bag,Passenger Air Bag,Driver Air Bag,2nd Row Bench Seat,Keyless Start,Tire Pressure Monitoring System,Emergency Trunk Release,Rear Spoiler,Front Reading Lamps,Passenger Illuminated Visor Mirror,Driver Illuminated Vanity Mirror,Passenger Vanity Mirror,Driver Vanity Mirror,Vehicle Anti-Theft System,Auxiliary Pwr Outlet,Steering Wheel Controls,Variable Speed Intermittent Wipers,Heated Exterior Passenger Mirror,Heated Exterior Driver Mirror,Power Passenger Mirror,Gas/Electric Hybrid,Continuously Variable Trans,A/T,Intermittent Wipers,Power Windows,Aluminum Wheels,Traction Control,Compact Spare Tire,Adjustable Steering Wheel,Power Steering,Bucket Seats,Cloth Seats,Pass-Through Rear Seat,Power Driver Mirror,Heated Mirrors,Power Door Locks,Keyless Entry,4 Cylinder Engine,Front Wheel Drive,Child Safety Locks,Rear Defrost,Cruise Control,Front Disc/Rear Drum Brakes,4-Wheel ABS,CD Player,AM/FM Stereo,A/C,Climate Control

    The next one is an 08 Black 60,000 miles, leather, and navigation

    ,Variable Speed Intermittent Wipers,Power Passenger Mirror,Gas/Electric Hybrid,Continuously Variable Trans,A/T,Intermittent Wipers,Power Windows,Aluminum Wheels,Traction Control,Compact Spare Tire,Adjustable Steering Wheel,Power Steering,Bucket Seats,Cloth Seats,Pass-Through Rear Seat,Power Driver Mirror,Power Door Locks,Keyless Entry,4 Cylinder Engine,Front Wheel Drive,Child Safety Locks,Rear Defrost,Cruise Control,Front Disc/Rear Drum Brakes,4-Wheel ABS,CD Player,AM/FM Stereo,A/C,2nd Row Bench Seat,Keyless Start,Tire Pressure Monitoring System,Rear Spoiler,Front Reading Lamps,Passenger Illuminated Visor Mirror,Driver Illuminated Vanity Mirror,Passenger Vanity Mirror,Driver Vanity Mirror,Vehicle Anti-Theft System,Auxiliary Pwr Outlet,Steering Wheel Controls,Climate Control,Side Head Air Bag,Side Air Bag,Passenger Air Bag,Driver Air Bag

    This is very wordy, and thanks for helping!
     
  2. tumbleweed

    tumbleweed Senior Member

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    Vehicle:
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    If it were me I would choose the 07 with touring pkg. It doesn't have nav but frankly Toyota's nav system isn't all that good, I have the Toyota system in my car and it is quite usable but I think a Garmin is better and cheaper to upgrade.

    Also the 07 is Silver and although black looks good it is very hard to maintain.

    The important reason is the touring pkg which has wider tires on 16" wheels (vice 15") and some suspension changes which make it handle a little better.

    Leather is nice but Toyota does make good quality fabric upholstery.

    Strongly recommend that you do a vehicle history report on each and make sure that they have not been in a wreck. Also check service history and make sure that everything has been done and is documented. It might also be a good idea to have whichever one you decide on inspected by an independent mechanic or a Toyota dealer not involved in the transaction.

    Make sure you get the Owner's Manual, Warranty Booklet, Nav System Manual if you choose the 08, etc. Make sure the spare tire, jack, lug wrench, etc are all there.

    Good luck. :)
     
    1 person likes this.
  3. Rokeby

    Rokeby Member

    Joined:
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    Location:
    Ballamer, Merlin
    Vehicle:
    2008 Prius
    The things that the Touring package adds are 7 spoke, 16 inch wheels;
    a slightly larger rear spoiler; and different suspension bits.

    IMHO;
    Pros
    - the suspension seems to be less susceptible to pulling sideways in
    crosswinds.
    - maybe a teeny little bit quicker in stopping.
    Cons
    - there are few alternative tires that fit on the 16 inch rims.
    - OEM replacement tires are rather expensive.
    - even the non-Touring rear spoiler is somewhat fragile, the Touring
    one more so. It is plastic and cracks/breaks/falls off far too easily.
    IIRC, ~$300 to replace. Never use the spoiler as a handle to close the
    hatch. Better yet, never touch the spoiler at all!

    Be careful, dealers like to claim cars are the Touring model when
    they never were and are not. Only something like 10% of Prii,
    IIRC only '07-'09, are OEM Touring, and they weren't sold in all parts
    of the country. So there's a~$1K "rarity factor" that gets added on.
    See here for more info.

    As to the Prius' nav system, it doesn't generate many rave reviews,
    especially for folks who are heavy users of the after-market systems.
    I never had nav before, and I think its not user friendly at all.
    Upgrades via DVD/CD go for something like $400. What's with that?

    If you use nav/GPS lot, it seems an after-market unit would be better.
    Still, I find it better than a paper map to quickly find detour routes
    around accidents and road closures -- mostly water pipe/main breaks!?
    -- in my mostly urban/suburban driving.

    In the end, the cars' service records are much more important.
    If you can get and post the vehicle VINs, other folks here can direct
    you to a site that has each cars full, "official" service record. IIRC, its
    at the Toyota official website.

    Personally inspect the existing titles.
    If the word "salvage" appears on the document, RUN, do not walk away.

    Hope this helps.
     
  4. adamace1

    adamace1 Senior Member

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    Great answer!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
     
  5. IndianaJ

    IndianaJ New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 18, 2010
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    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Vehicle:
    Other Non-Hybrid
    Model:
    N/A
    Wow, thank you both for posting great info. After reading this I'm highly doubtful the 2007 is a touring. I found some ammo from this site and will check it out when I test drive tomorrow.

    The VINS were posted online. Can someone please check them out? That would be amazing!

    The 2008's is JTDKB20U087726932

    The 2007's is JTDKB20UX73254132

    Thanks to anyone that can help with this. :D