Pre-N00b: Buy Now or Later?

First off, you only get the maintenance deal if you already have a Toyota car, and you're getting another Toyota. If you do, that's great.

My recommendation: Lease it.

Search online, see what kind of deal you can get. Even if you have to drive a bit. Make SURE they have the 'Prius II' cars (just as good as Prius III/IV, and the radio sounds GREAT with an MP3 player plugged into it) IN STOCK.

Then go in, get 'sticker shock' from the proposed purchase payments...

Then LEASE IT. It's pretty darned cheap. They will try to throw in rugs and nick-nacks and stickers and crap to bulk up the price. Don't fall for it. Those $200 floor mats cost $20 at a car parts store. You'll use the 'cargo net' twice, realize it's pointless, and stuff it in the 'hidey hole' under the cargo area.

Toyota will turn the contract into a sale later, at ANY time, if you ask.

Consider for those three years, almost 100% of what you're paying on a loan is interest PLUS depreciation. At the end of the three year lease, you can go with a two year loan to pay it off just as if you had bought it, or go as long as five more years on your 'used' Prius for low monthly payments.

Or hand them the keys and upgrade to the newer, better 'Plug In' Prius that you can't take your eyes off of.

 

For every car purchase I've found this web-site a valuable tool:
CarBuyingTips.com new car buying guide, avoiding dealer scams, new cars, used car buying
It has tips for every aspect of purchasing a car (new and used).
Good luck,

 

There is no short / simple answer other than the most important factor for pricing is supply and demand. This can vary by region and maybe that is why you're seeing different pricing on the Internet vs dealers in your region. Regarding this I would recommend that you expand your Internet sales search outside of your immediate region. Also deal with the Internet specialist they will give you a better price.
Regarding waiting for the price to drop - I don't have a crystal ball, but I personally don't believe the price of the Prius will drop from "further bad news". First, there has been very minor negative news re the Prius (at least ones that have been verified). Prius remains very high on reliability rating and ownership satisfaction. Where you might see further price break on the 2010 is when there is an inventory of them as the 2011 model is rolled out. This is always the case with any car.
Ultimately you have to balance the different factors with your situation and see what suits you best. Factor in the gas savings opportunity of driving a Prius vs. the current car you own.
Good luck,

 

Build a car & get dealer quotes from www.aaa.com. In my area they are still selling for under invoice. My opinion: Inventory is going to be drying up as production is cut & gas prices increase. The scheduled maintenance is 2 or 3 oil changes. Now is the time to buy as I believe selling prices have hit bottom.

 

Do it!
- You shopped around so you probably have the best available price.
- The economy is improving so prices will only go up.
- It sounds like bafflegab that some financing deal would result in lower total cost to you. It must be *dealer* financing, right, and not through a bank? I'd pay cash per your original plan and be done with it.

 

buy now!!
the price maybe lower due to the media brake stuff trouble and because its not yet summer where the gas prive will go up and so the price for fuel eff. cars.

 

First, California law requires Toyota to warranty the battery for 150,000 miles, so CA prices are a little higher than elsewhere. Second, email the dealers for price. This let's you cast a wide net, then use the best price with the dealer nearest you. I bought a Prius II last week in Northern CA. Using this method, best price I obtained was $300 below invoice price. Email dealers everywhere... Fresno, Vallejo, Modesto... Their Internet sales guys will email you quotes.

This month (March), Toyota is offering a $750 rebate, OR you can get 3.99% financing. When you get the low quote, write back to ensure you'll get the $750 discount on top of their price.

 

There's no magic just preparation. You can expand your search as far as you want - there are two purposes:
1. knowledge of prices ... use it in your negotiation
2. taking the offer. How far (distance) you're willing to go depends on cost/benefit.

When I bought my Prius first I searched locally then all over including Florida (some people fly there take a few days of vacation then drive back); NY state and even California (where to my surprise I got the highest prices in the US). I ended up taking the best offer from a dealer in Buffalo but the car actually came from Syracuse NY (they had the exact colour and package I wanted). I paid the dealer an extra $124 to get it from Syracuse.

Good luck,
Gabe