I think I just sold my Prius, sigh (sad face)

Congrats on the sale! I too can relate to this sadness as I felt the same when I sold my second generation touring model. Buyer paid above market and its one of the few times while selling a car that I actually drove the vehicle for two years and made a profit - all things being considered. I ended up passing on the frenzy surrounding the roll out of the third generation and waited on the 2011. Took delivery and life was once again good. I often drive like yourself and still average 43-45 which I'm comfortable with as I do have those fill ups where I challenge myself to achieve 55+. Word of advice, your Prius withdrawal WILL bring you back, eventually. The bike is great but the drawbacks are greater. The Prius gets even better mileage than the bike with creature comforts and security. I've been there too..... Good luck on your sale!

 

Nice Bike! Here was what I made the decision to give up after seeing two friends go down in accidents.

 

Congrats on your Prius sale. If for no other reason, it's good to get out from underneath a lease! In my opinion, leasing is not a viable alternative to ownership for most consumers.

 

Surely if you knew what some of us leased ours for last year you'd have a different opinion

 

You'll be back.
Once the Prius grabs hold, it doesn't let go...

 

Congrats on your sale. I sold mine last week. Got full asking price of $26,500. I always wanted one and held off for the body design. However the small cramped, hard seat and lack of lumbar made it increasingly uncomfortable. I miss her and hope to one day get something similar but definitely more pleasing to my body. And like you, the Ninja gets some love this summer.

 

Congrats! You are in the drivers seat now and time is on your side. Lots of new offerings coming. Personally, I would pass on any of the plug in varieties and await a 7 seat offering or a possible hybrid pick up Ive heard whispered. Good luck!

 

I've heard lots of sport bikers love the CBR and GSXR the most. At least, those that I've talked to. I went from a Sportster to Street Glide. Looking at an 09 Suzuki cruiser (apparently they didn't sell well, as a place here has NEW 2009s left!?!?) for the more localized riding - the SG is mid 30s around town plus premium fuel.

My friend's brother was killed last summer on his bike in AZ. Don't believe he wore a helmet, though. That's one thing I will ALWAYS ride with.

 

Thanks for the suggestions. I've got a 1600cc (roughly, HD uses cubic inches) big touring HD. It weighs over 800 lbs I believe and is a very nice ride. Sounds great with the Rush pipes I had put on, too . But, it's hard to justify riding at 35 mpg and premium fuel vs what the Prius does on my local commutes.

My budget is under 8k. The suzuki's aren't as powerful, but around town, don't really need it - heck, I could get by without it on the highway to an extent. I think the Suzi's are like 800cc but only weigh around 600lbs. I figure I can pull 40s around town on them, easily. I figure if the place still has 09s on hand that are new, they may be willing to bargain pretty nicely just to get rid of them. Cost of carry for old inventory isn't exactly good for a business.

 

That is brutal. $4 in foam could have made the front seat way better.

 

Im about to do the same but its to get the Lexus CT200h!

 

Skoor...In my area Toyota had a $165 per month lease deal which is fabulous as far as payments. I don't think that deal is not around any longer? My objections are about lease-end equity as far as open/closed end lease liability, mileage restrictions, lessor inconsistencies for assessing wear/tear charges, and the lease end hurdle of either leasing again, or needing a big pile of cash to buy out the lease or get out of the lease cycle and into a purchase.

Now, with all that said, if a buyer finances for 48-60 months and is buying a new car every 3-4 years, than ownership was never an issue, so why not lease and pay for the use of the car? I know the advantages of leasing, and how it works for some people, but I just don't care for it.

In the final analysis, take a Prius any way you can get it: lease or buy, but if the choice is mine, I prefer to own.

 

Own vs. Lease? No question... lease is better! Especially with the Prius which is often worth more at the end of the lease than the buyout price. Monthly payments are lower with a lease than with financing, and after three years you have the option of leasing a new car again. The value of the car easily offsets mileage overruns if you decide to turn the car in.... I can go on and on.

I leased a new Prius for $1999 down and $189/mo. Love it. Oh BTW, my company car allowance pays for the car, and after turning in my Scion TC after it's lease expired, my car insurance dropped $400 annually.

 

As dead as the do do bird. If it were still around I assure you my signature would show a 2010 Prius II and a 2011 Prius II. There are definitely many factors to consider. I no longer care about equity in a car. The moment I had a switch in my head away from seeing them as anything but an expense I no longer cared about equity (they aren't an investment), so cost per month or over a certain number of years is all that really matters.

We got ours for $1500 out of pocket to cover various fees and then about $170/month for 36 months. We literally save that amount of fuel in gas each month. I spent a week mulling over the decision to get the vehicle a year ago when gas was under $3. You can imagine how I feel about that decision now.

Many complex parts to the math, though, such as what are your tax rates, is it a new model (e.g. do you really want to buy a 2011 if 2012 represents a new model year of a car), etc. And of course what are the lease rates at the time. Is there an incentive or not.