Selling 04/05 hard to do?

how many miles on it? and what's package 5 on '04?

 

Might I suggest http://albuquerque.craigslist.org/ ?

It's free, and (at least in my area) frequented by folk that might be more interested in a Prius than the average local newspaper reader.

 

I agree. Craig's list is a good way to go. It costs you nothing and it's a popular resource.

 

Perhaps you are being cursed by the tax credit. It works against you right now:

If you add the $3,100 tax credit to your asking price, one can buy a $25,510 '06 package and have $40 left over. That is a Package #5 with more features that your car and no miles on it.

• Driver & front passenger seat-mounted side and front & rear side curtain airbags
• Backup Monitor
• smart Key system
• Vehicle stability control (V5C)
• Anti-theft system plus Homelink ® universal transceiver
• JBL Premium AM/FM 6-disc in-dash CD changer, nine speakers, MP3/WMA playback capability, auxiliary audio input miniplug plus hands-free BluetooThTM phone capability

 

A lot of people don't want the lower packages. You've got no VSC, no NAV, and I'm not sure from your description if you have the rear air bags. I drive an '04 pacakge 7 ("AM") which has the full safety features but no NAV, and I suspect part of the reason I got it as quickly as I did was that the no-NAV packages were in much lower demand. (I had no need of NAV in Fargo; but now that I'm in Spokane I'm using a Garmin Street Pilot --recommended by someone here on PC-- and I'm very happy with it.)

In short, I think too few people want to settle for the package 5 on an '04.

The fact that you've been advertising widely and have not sold the car in six months of trying, says you're asking too much. The easier it gets to buy a new car from a dealer, the harder it is to get a high premium for a used one. No matter how clean your car is, a buyer is likely to prefer a new car from a dealer over a used one from a private seller, especially when the difference is small. You are expecting to trade up for just $1K or $2K; but that means you're asking a buyer to accept a used car for just $1K or $2K less than he could get a new one for, and with more features. You may indeed have to lower your asking price.

 

Just like prius sales have slowed since the summer, SUV sales have picked up. The price of gas is working against hybrid selers right now. When it starts to go back up in May and June and people start panicking again, that's the time to sell it.

Also, I recall from working at a stealership that car sales drop dramatically in the winter.

 

Same problems here (The Netherlands). Went to the dealer and they offered me a demo car ('05) for 26.000 (euro) and a new one costs about 30.000. But with new cars they always give you a reduction and then you are getting a new car for 28.000. So it only is a 2.000 difference and the most people who can afford a Prius will go for the new car if the difference is so low.

 

I sold my 05 Prius, 10,700 mi, package #2, on 11/9/05. I bought 3 day 4 line ad in Wash. Post for $35.00. The MSRP (what I paid) was 22,560, I asked 22,900, got 21,500. The Northern Virginia area is a very hot Prius market because of the HOV exemption (due to expire in July 06 unless the state changes the law). An ad in a CA city with HOV and when gas price was over $3 may have sold your car but,at a lower price. I have a $500 deposit on a 06 Prius #2. For about $1500 difference (not including taxes and title), I will get a new car and a $3,100 tax credit. I only got 5 calls on the car and sold it to the first offer. Now everyone is waiting for 2006 to buy an 06 model. I'm back driving the 95 Saturn SL2 and hate driving. I'm filling up every week vs. every 3 weeks with the Prius. I really miss that car.

 

magicguy,

Exactly one year ago, I sold my perfect, '04, loaded package 9 (BC) with 11,500 miles for about $1,000 under the sticker price. Used cars.com and autotrader.com. I even met the buyer halfway between Detroit and Chicago.

That was at a time when the Prius was super hot and it still took almost a month.

I'm not saying the Prius isn't hot now, it's just far more available. The tax credits on new cars will deflate the resale prices of used Prius by a like amount.

 

come on here, Local Ad, Illness Forces Sale! then the description of the car then PRICE CUT then what ever your asking for it. Do it like a dealer would.