Those Pesky Details....

Hi pre~us--

Welcome to the community, first off. And I hope you have a great time here, and if you get a Prius, many long and happy miles of motoring. I'll try to answer each of your questions in turn.

You'd be hard-pressed to find a Prius for under 10k that didn't have a lot of miles given the current state of the economy and gas prices. If you want a car in solid condition, be prepared to be spend at a minimum of 10, although 12-13 may be more realistic.

1) Here is the complete list of models and options for the 2004-09 Prius.

2) There aren't many major differences between the touring model and the base Prius; the touring has a slightly larger rear spoiler and 16'' wheels. Basically, it looks cool, but cost you a bit more $ when it comes time to buy rubber. Also it may cost you a couple MPG on the highway, but nothing world-shattering.

3) Dealership, stealership. Since you're in the Midwest, I suggest Steve at Autobeyours. I don't know exactly where in Wisconsin you're living, but it's worth a shot to check him out, because his prices are going to be far better than a dealership's.

Hope that answers all your questions.

 

I've seen toyota dealerships misrepresent non touring as touring models so you better learn to spot the differences as those small private dealerships almost always get it wrong.

If I lived down south I would buy a touring and run the 16" tires yearround. But since I live in the north I prefer the 15" non touring standard wheels as i like to put winter tires on those and then buy nicer 17" wheels for the summer.

private party value is typically about halfway between trade in value and retail value. So you'll save money and the seller will make more money over trading it in, everybody wins except you if the seller is dishonest. pay extra for a car with good service history, I believe toyo cpo comes with 7 year 100K mile warranty but that increases the price as well.

 

At 8k you're probably looking at a 2004 or 2005 with lower mileage or 2006, 2007 with higher mileage. I got my 2004 in Feb with 65k miles for 8.5k. Sounds like you need a car ASAP so you will probably have to settle for what you can find in your immediate area. Look at Kelly Blue Book to verify prices.

 

+1 on Steve at Autobeyours. His cars are salvage but he fixes them up like new. He also provides excellent support after the sale. I bought my '06 from him and have had no problems. Great guy, great reputation.

 

Just bought a 2005 Prius package six with navigation. It has 116,000 and got it for 9,900. I went cheap and took a loan out with the bank for 60 months LOL. Yeah I know long time but the payments are cheap. I drove from Pa to Va to get it. It's had all it's maintenance done since new. All recalls have also been completed. I think I got a pretty good deal. I found it on the Internet and called the dealership. Feels like a new car. Now just hoping the hybrid battery pack holds up for many more miles, and many more years.

 

You may be able to find a high mileage '04 for $8K. You will have to be very diligent, watch craigslist like a hawk, and be prepared to jump in the car on a moment's notice. There just aren't that many good used Prii on the market right now.

The calling card of a Touring is 16" wheels. 75% of cars advertised as Touring aren't.

 

Heres my recommendations....take these with a grain of salt because I've had mine for a total of 48 hours.

I recommend driving them. Test drives, private party, dealers, friends. Any one you can get your hands on. Drive even those you have no interest in actually purchasing. After a few test drives, you can start to pick out when something is "just not right". You might not be able to pinpoint what, but these drive differently than your typical car and something you might be concerned about ends up being totally normal and something else might throw up some red flags and you find out its a big problem.

Buying from a dealer will ALWAYS cost more than a private party but if you require financing or would like a certified car or additional warrantee, buying from a dealer is an good option. Near me, there aren't alot of used ones so my options were extremely limited. Also the prices were higher- high gas prices plus limited supply= expensive and limited negoitation power. (ie, don't expect to walk into a dealership and get thousands off the list price like most cars, you'll probably get 10% or less if they are willing to be negotiable at all)

I ended up finding a Silver Pine Mica option 6 touring edition at a dealership. Beautiful car, great condition, 76k miles. List price was $15990. After my negative equity in my trade in, taxes, title, fees, etc I paid $17500 out the door. That was steal where I am. It was the very best car for sale in my area. Even the older ones, the ones with extremely high miles (over 150k, some over 200k) and absolutely base models without even smart key were SELLING in this area for $12000. Cheapest one I found was $9900 and was rusted, base model, 123k miles, seat torn, dented. Big piece of junk and it sold within the two weeks I was searching. So be prepared, look around and take your time finding the right one. It might be a big hassle but the cars last forever and you'll LOVE them, and you don't want to have something you settled for when you'll likely have it a long long time.

 

FYI: In many states you can not sell a salvage vehicle so you are stuck when you want to change vehicles. In many other states you have to go through a long and expensive process to certify a salvage vehicle as being roadworthy. The vast majority of dealers will not take a salvage vehicle in trade and I personally am one of the many individuals who would not purchase a salvage vehicle . There are a minority of states who will allow you to register and sell a salvage vehicle without bother - which is why I always carfax/autocheck any car purchase beforehand.

So be aware that the "great price" you receive on such a vehicle might not be such a great price should you decide to sell.

 

In the first part of this post I noticed the link for 2004-09 Prius and option packages. I clicked in to see the PDF. I have a 2005 package 6, car was made in Feb, anyways I have bluetooth. Noticed the option package for package 6 does not list bluetooth so that is an error. Bluetooth was aval in 2005.