Two year wait in Asheville, NC?

Try calling Bob Hecht at Dan Hecht Toyota in Effingham, IL (2 hours east of St. Louis). He got me exactly what I wanted (Salsa Red, BC package 2005) in 30 days.

 

I'm not that up on my NC geography, but I know DanH in Greensboro was quoted 18 months for his Prius.

Your brother's best bet is to go outside the SE Toyota region... like to WV. There is a dealership in WV that is about 3 hours from Durham that I considered getting my car from. This particular salesman just seems to keep a list, and when he gets a car, he goes down the list until he finds someone who wants the car. If he's willing to drive a little further, and wants to put in a specific "order" for a car (or at least have his name in the Toyota database), I bought from a salesman in Nashville that I would highly recommend. I waited 3 months and got the exact car I requested. PM me if you want any of this info.

Oh, regarding this test drive... it is likely that the dealership sold the demo car and doesn't have one to demo (at least, that's what they did at all the Texas dealerships. I was also quoted really long waits in TX.). Or perhaps that dealership is trying to push him into another car by discouraging hima bout the Prius (ie, immediate sale now rather than a possible sale in the distant future). If he wants to test drive one, he might see if any car rental company (like Enterprise) is renting any in his area or if any of the Toyota rent-a-cars in his area have some. Or perhaps pay a visit to his brother ? I vaguely feel like DanH was able to test drive a Prius in NC, but don't quote me on that...

 

betshsu is right. If you are looking to get something sooner look into WV. (Danny also suggested this to me as well.) I have seen several on this board get a Prius in a matter of weeks by just checking around adjacent states. (betshsu's suggestion of the TN dealer is also a good option for your brother. Being on the western part of the state it's not that far of a trip to Nashville.)

I myself was anticipating some wait from the beginning. Maybe not 18 months, but I knew I wanted to trade in about 9 months from when I ordered. They did tell me the 18 month wait was on the conservative side, so I hoping it is closer to the wait I originally was planning for. If it does go beyond my original planned time I will start reconsidering the WV or other option.

You can quote betshsu on the test drive I took. :mrgreen: I was able to take one for a test drive. The dealer here in Greensboro had one they kept for test drives and also I believe rented it out as well.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DaveShepherd\";p=\"50717)</div>

Whoops, managed to miss the "friend" part in your first post. Well... your brother's friend could test drive your brother's Classic and then tell him "it's just that much better." Also, it's easier to rent Prii in certain parts of the country (like CA and actually, here in Austin), so if your friend happens to be traveling in a more Prii-friendly area, he might try that.

 

You can check with some Toyota dealers nearby, like Toyota of Easley, SC. Last time I was there, Toyota of Greer, SC has a very overpriced demo package 0 they might let you drive. Although I am east of you, some of the posters here are correct that WV seems to have a lot of folks uninterested in Prius cars which forces them to shop their cars out of state. Last weekend Toyota of Durham, NC had 4 package 0 cars (they have been advertising they have 10 Prius available), but Try Will Patterson in Charleston, WV at Bert Wolfe Toyota, where I bought one of my cars and L & S Toyota in Beckley.