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the 2016 Prius is way overpriced, looking for incentives to start showing up

 

It is common for manufacturers to offer discounts to move old inventory off of dealer lots. It is called the model-year, clearance sale and happens all the time. But the author who started this thread seems woefully ignorant of actual sales:

• May 2016 Dashboard Summary | PriusChat

• 9,500 - looks to be the most likely, June 2016 sales

Bob Wilson

 

Source: Auto Sales Disappoint in June After 2 Strong Months - Yahoo Finance



Amazing, Toyota Motor Sales down "-5.6%" or "-2.7%" yet this reporter finds a mote, Prius hatchback sales, and gets it wrong. If any Prius is at risk, it is the Prius v, the wagon version, since the RAV-4 hybrid came out.

Bob Wilson

 

just read article i hope is wrong,, said prius dropped by toyota | PriusChat
Seems to me that not just Prius, everything is going down in the USA since 2015...!

 

I've never heard of that news site. Just because it has "wall st" in its name doesn't mean it's credible. I mean for God sakes, learn how to spell "Mirai." I wouldn't trust it more than I trust the Onion News.

 

how can we read more, when you have posted the entire article?

 

You can go to inside ev, and find that there was a record month of 15,040 plug-ins in june, with the tesla S and X commanding 5845 units. Who would have thought 5 years ago that the tesla family would be more than half of the prius family (11,027). The v and c are doing much worse than the liftback, which is "only" down 10.5% this year, but .. last year was a bad year too.

Toyota city, we have a problem.
June 2016 Dashboard
Monthly Plug-In Sales Scorecard

But of course this is click bait. Toyota is probably still making money on the liftback and c. I think they may be bleeding on the v. Moving production to the US for us sales might help on the cost side, but then there would be laid off workers in Japan, and the Abe government might stop pumping up toyota.

 

or click on one of the 'tesla is going bankrupt' or 'tesla auto pilot is deadly' articles.

the point of the article is pointless.

 

That doesn't concern most since the event will happen so slowly ... meaning not for at least a couple more years. Scarcity breeds high(er) price - which means less & less of society can afford to run all the stuff (cars, industry, recreation, etc). Just think back how badly $4+/gallon fuel effected the economy. When things start to grind to a halt, less fuel gets used. It's kind of a weird self regulating phenomena. Ironically, the bad times bring back higher desire to hybrid acquire. Quite poetic.
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a couple hundred years.

 

The Prius is for the 6th month in a row the best selling car in Japan.

 

There were times back in the day when the Prius was the #1 selling vehicle in California too. Considering the number of drivers in California - that was a huge statement. Sadly that doesn't seem to be the case now.
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Do we have stats for this? Do we have updated sales number of Prius in USA? or CA?
Not to mention that in the USA since months the most sold "car" is the F150 truck - when fuel prices will go up, if ever, Prius will go up as well I am sure. Plus there is also the RAV, which was #10 in the world most sold cars last year, now also available in Hybrid - let's see how much that will sell.

 

Yes. I track Jeff Cobb's monthly "dashboard" reports. Use the search function to get a list.

Bob Wilson

 

Found it - based on what it says for June, if it sold about 8-9k/month average since launch (December), that's about 50k. Considering that Americans buy cars based on the daily price changes of fuel, and more competition than there is in Japan, and that the F-series from Ford is the undisputed market leader, Prius is selling really well in these 6 months of "cheap" fuel...
I need to find sales numbers of Prius and all Hybrid vehicles for EU. I found a website that shows that the Auris Hybrid sold about 15% more than last year so far... The Prius is in general considered a "big" car compared to an Auris (big more or less like a Golf) and surely huge compared to the Yaris (one of the most sold compact cars in EU, a third of which is hybrid).

 

I believe the number for prius family sales in the USA is 2.0 million. Here are US and canada prius family sales from 2002 through june 30, 2016.
Toyota Prius Family Sales Figures - GOOD CAR BAD CAR
21,118 were sold in 2000-2001 before that chart starts. This includes 1.65 million prius liftbacks.
Toyota Prius Sales Figures - GOOD CAR BAD CAR

The prius was never the best selling vehicle in california, the prius liftback then prius family were the best selling car (excludes pick up trucks like the ford f-series and SUVs which outsold it).

 

Thanks for the very good links!

It seems to me that yes, the Prius liftback and its family are not selling as well as in the past. About 1/3 less than average.
But as I said, I would like to see this in comparison to average fuel prices, and in comparison to the number of available hybrid/EV (including Toyota's own) models available in each year and how *they* sell. This would give a more comprehensive picture of what is going on.
For most of the past, the prices of fuel were higher (if not much higher) and Prius was the only real hybrid car available vs conventional drivetrains.

Were the above-mentioned data available, one could say if the Prius is having sales issues because of the fuel price, or competition.
It would also be useful to see these numbers in about year from now when the Gen4 has been enough out there to be known and deliveries for most Gen3 owners might have happened. That could give some interesting perspective.
It is unfortunate that introduction of Gen4 happens exactly when a lot more models were available and with fuel prices so low in the USA.

In EU, fuel price is still around 5-6$/gal (and now it is relatively cheap!), most people buy diesel (50% of overall volumes I think) and a car with such a "weird" design has a hard time against other local players and national pride in buying e.g. "german" "italian" etc. even if the cars are not necessarily more efficient. A lot of people buy cars in EU for looks, or status, etc. And a lot use it only on the weekends or long trips, and use public transportation in the weekend (at least in Germany). Hence the car must be "fun" to drive. And a Prius, can be fun, but never fun enough if its main objective is to save fuel (which does really well).
I am waiting here also that the prices of fuel go up again, e.g. to 6-7$/gal and then all of a sudden I think a lot more hybrids will show up on the streets of Munich too...
PS: again in EU, Auris and Yaris hybrid sell comparatively well, and Toyota wants to sell cars and mass produce the HSD, so it doens't really matter which body they end up in....

 

my bad - jeez - I DID say vehicle - but meant car ... that's what I get for wasting extea letters ;
Prius Is California's Top-Selling Car - Business Insider
Maybe when the next gas price explosion occurs we can hopefully/actually change that stat to 'vehicle' - because many of the pickups around here are lucky to see the backend actually used for stuff more than once a year which could easily be accomplished with a rental.
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My thinking is weaker fuel prices means the Prius needs to have more options to attract the multi-use buyer:

• TSS-P - missing from the 2016 Level 2 ECO (dummy!)
  
• 1.5 kW inverter - missing from all USA models
• tow option - missing from all USA models and an excellent 'Port' addition
• rear-wheel drive - missing from all USA models

These are the options that mitigate the low gas prices by making the Prius more functional. It won't be an SUV or minivan. Just put sliding rear doors on the Prius v. These options moves Prius to approach the most popular segment SUVs and pick-ups. Capture these marginal buyers and keep the factories building more Prius.

Bob Wilson

 

The inverter option is a no brain considering it was available in Japan.

Ain't going to see rear wheel drive. The majority of car's available in the US, including the popular SUVs, are front wheel drive, which has traction and efficiency benefits. Rear wheel drive is only seen on full frame trucks and SUVs, and performance cars. Most car buyers in America don't really care one way or the other, or more likely, don't even think about it.

Advanced safety features will show up as standard sooner than later as standard equipment. With the Prius being the technology showcase, I am surprised the gen4 didn't come out the gate with it standard, or a package available on the base trims.

I'm surprised you missed this thread, Bob, Why Tow Ratings are Different in the EU vs. the US | PriusChat.
That explains why we won't see a tow rating on the Prius or any other smaller car. We can still hope for it on the full midsize ones and larger. In short it comes down to regional differences in tongue rating and trailer design. In Europe, the Prius can tow 750kg with a tongue rating of 4% to 7% of the trailer weight. To comply with US standards, the Prius would only have a tow rating of 375kg, because trailers here have a tongue rating of 10% to 15%.