Buying Used Prius Agonizing over Details : }

Yikes! Thanks so much for talking me through all of that!!

If I really wanted the 2010, I gave them too much time to think about price. The only attraction for me was warranty and of course lower miles was a huge bonus. I probably could have driven it for a year to see if I could deal with everything and then sold it but I need a few years to recover from this adventure. : }

I'm great at showing my disinterest in a car. My anxiety and undiagnosed OCD was really kicking in on this one! Beaded water under headlight lens, what looked like paint marks on interior and seat and a gross ziplock bag filled with something that looked like cat poo. Yuck! : )

What excited me initially was Prius II that actually had softex. I'm saying softex but this one actually looked more like leather to me than softex I've seen in other cars. The console really stuck out like a sore thumb not only because of it's shape but because it's color was a brownish black when dashboard was pure black. I did NOT point this out.

When they did a price sheet dealer fees were a bit over $400 when RI mandates a cap of $220 on doc fees. This dealer must add an additional fee to match their dealership in CT. Considering this and my need to add aftermarket back up camera and gps, the $$$ was adding up quickly!

I'm unsubscribing to internet car sites so I will no longer see the great deals. : )

Another car popped up this morning at a really cool Subaru dealership. "Planet Subaru" in Hanover, MA. Building has solar panels and goats mow their lawn. They only hire people who haven't been in car sales before. The internet saleswoman's previous job was delivering babies! Maybe I'll buy a Subaru next time. Ha!

 

I suppose this is why Matrix no longer exists. I thought it was a great seller but apparently not. It wasn't the most attractive little car. I wish I could take part in designing cars. I chose Vibe over Matrix because I liked look better. Seats are so comfortable. Equal to my old cozy Saab seats. I really learned to love everything about Vibe except for gas mileage, quality of paint and need for bigger hatchback which I guess are pretty important things.

I went through same struggles when shopping for Vibe. I liked 2008 body style not 2009. I liked plastic bumpers rather than painted. I wanted full package air bags because I was transitioning from solid tank Saab to tiny hatchback. It took 3 months to find the right combination and then still had to compromise on color. Learned to like dark blue except for scratches.

I'm going to be sad letting go of Vibe on Monday. Not as sad as saying goodbye to $5000 1993 Saab 900s but still sad. It's so darn comfortable.

Buyer wants me to leave buyers name off Bill of Sale and I guess possibly the title. I can't do that! I need to walk away from transaction with proof of ownership transfer. He's supposedly buying it as a present for his daughter and fixing it up for her so was hoping to put her name on it. He's a nice and patient guy so I feel badly. I need to follow the rules to cover myself.

 

Thanks for correction. I knew head rest didn't sound right.

 

The universe is playing tricks on me. I didn't go looking for this . Was notified that Private seller 10 minutes away is selling 2007 gray pkg 6 with 63k miles. It's in about as good shape as the 2009. It's a matter of price, 1.5 yrs left on hybrid battery verses 3 yrs and color. He's an antique car enthusiast so car is well taken care of despite typical cosmetic issues of a 2007. He's attached so it's not going to be a steal of a deal. I have limited internet access and trying to come up with a fair offer. He's asking $9900 but I know it's probably worth about $9k max.

I think car looks better in gray but even this guy says it looks pretty dirty quickly and shows every scratch.

The greatest news is I'm so happy to be sticking with gen ll pkg 6 no matter which one I decide on! Love the cockpit area even more after trying the 2010 yesterday!

Obviously if he was eager to sell this could have been the one.

 

Right they are both CA carb cars. 10/150,000 on battery

This guy is amazing. He's owned several Prius. Didn't like 2010 and sold it. His wife has 2005 with new hybrid battery so they are keeping that and selling this one. My super thorough Toyota service manager knows him and I was able to have him test drive and talk to me about car. This manager remembers every car I've asked him about and their locations. : } He's very patient and I've only asked him to look up 4 cars.

Main attraction to 2007 is color. Of course this one has been polished with enthusiasm. Told me how many layers of wax were on it. : ) Driver seat is more worn and a slight jiggle sound from back area may have been a tool or sport equipment.

I asked owner if he'd buy this color again and he said no. Looks dirty and every mark shows. He even has a bra and mud flaps on it although he's keeping bra.

Ball is in my court to make an offer but I needed to come home and look at pricing. Maybe I'm afraid he'll accept and I'll have to take care of mess this will cause. Not as good a loan rate with 2007. When I check pricing online 2009 is valued at about $900 more than 2007 assuming good dealer retail. To spend that much more for newer car despite color preference is probably worth it. Manager did hint that 2007 has obviously been accumulating very short distance miles whereas 2009 was consistently driven.

Thanks for listening to my inner dialogue.

I loved his amazing 52 Ford pick up in garage!

 

The color mismatched part I was referring to was the huge plastic piece that attaches to dashboard and incases radio and everything else. Not the arm console. What ever it's called it's UGLY in the 2010. Sorry for confusion. I noticed they improved the look with 2013 or maybe 2012.

The guy I'm selling to is neighborly ish but not someone I know and lives a few towns over.

 

Thanks so much you faithful followers!! I really needed a good laugh and reading your posts has helped. Should I wait until tomorrow for the huge Prius reveal. : )

Should I keep you guessing? Maybe I should have opened a Go Fund Me account so you could put your votes in. Would help me pay for my next major service. Oops had to delete the miles. Almost gave it away.

I may have even fooled myself with this decision. I need to send a thank you note to that service manager. If I could afford it, I'd take you all out for a drink. As it is I may be eating beans and rice for a while but at least I'll have a reliable car.

I've never felt so supported when purchasing a car which happens to be a pretty scary endeavor for me.

Funny thing regarding photos. I showed you pics of tops and bottoms of some of these cars but never posted these last two.

There are online pics but figure at this point I should wait until it's mine. : }

Should I go ahead and tell you? Your guessing might make me worry about my decision. Ha!

 

As my negotiator friend says "one can get used to anything". He's right and likes to prove it. : ) I was actually pretty excited when I saw the design change for later Gen III models. I can look forward to purchasing later model some day but will enjoy my....oops almost gave it away again.