Should I wait to buy?

Geez. Its only 9-25-2016, and you are looking for a used model year 2016? Assuming the typical new model year being introduced during the Fall of the year before, the MY2016 was introduced in Fall of 2015. People who leased the car for two years, Fall of 2017. Dealers will likely get rid of their test models 2016s before they hit too many miles. Then there are those bought the car and want something newer, so you could buy theirs.

Mileage depreciates a car faster than time. Play with KBB and you see what I mean. Plug your 2007 w/ current mileage today. Pretend you have a 2006 and add a years worth of miles to simulate your 2007 a year older w/ a years worth of miles.

Normal cars are depreciating assets no matter what you do. Rare vintage cars appreciate no matter how old and how many miles. Drive the current car until you absolutely get sick of it, or the 2016 is at a price you like. It will probably be awash no matter what you do: sell Camry now get more now, but pay more for the 2016. Sell Camry later, get less, but pay less for the 2016. Future of gas prices at the pump could drastically affect your 2016 purchase price. If gas somehow shoots back-up to $4/gal, that 2016 will be expensive; unlikely according to various petroleum experts, but no one can predict the future. Since gas is cheap right now, Hybrids don't command the price premium they did when gas was high.

Very few people want a manual car in general. If you were driving a manual Honda Accord or Civic, or Acura Integra/RSX, these cars would have a sizeable market b/c of the teenagers and the large import tuner crowd. I can count on one hand the number of Camry's that have been tuned/fixed-up. And arguably, California is the largest import tuner market for the US, if not the world. The number of Civics, Accords, Integras, RSXs, that I see fixed-up are too plentiful to even bother counting. A fixed-up Camry sticks out b/c you rarely/never see it.

 

NO dealership will give you anywhere remotely near KBB (Kelly Blue Book). KBB is for consumers (think retail).

Dealers used the Black Book. It is far lower than KBB, b/c they need/want to make a profit (buy low sell high). Your 2007 will likely be accepted as trade-in, and quickly dumped off to an auction, appearing on a lower tier used car lot.

Internet search "dealer black book" to see if you can find a site to give you free pricing.

Check out My Car Value Estimator - Black Book Value - Used Car Values | Cars.com to see the depressing low price you will likely get.

Selling private party is the only way to get in KBB range. But, it can be a pain to sell private party and poses risks. Trade-in is convenient, and you pay for that convenience w/ a lower dollar value given for your car.

You should read Edmunds and Consumer reports buying guide and suggestions on buying new/used cars. NEVER let them know you plan to trade-in your car! If you were playing poker, you just revealed your hand. They will price the purchasing vehicle higher, b/c they know you will want more for the trade. Think two separate transactions. 1) Haggle for the vehicle you want, get price finalized and in writing. 2) Before signing anything, let them know you decided to trade-in your car. You need to haggle a higher trade-in value. They will haggle lower. You have the upper hand, as you can say no thanks and walk out. They just spent time and know they have a vehicle sale in front of them. It just becomes a question of if they are willing to give you a few dollars more and you being firm in walking away starting the whole process somewhere else. If you are persistent, you will get more of what you want: lower purchase price, higher trade-in value.

 

welcome! there have been a couple unhappy owners who have traded in, maybe you'll get lucky. but they are discounting so deeply now, i'm not sure there's any depreciation left. all the best!

 

ktofu88,

Nothing wrong in buying a newer model used car.
I bought my 2013 Prius from Toyota dealer. It was in a rental
fleet with 20K. Still under factory warrantee.
If you can wait til end of 2017, you may have some used 2016s coming
off the rental fleet. If you can't wait that long, look for a dealer demos for sale.
Only thing is that you will not have choices of color, options.

I enjoyed driving a stick in my youth, but in stop and go traffic now, my
calf would cramp up.

good luck, you will really enjoy your 2016! 50+ MPG!

stt

 

ktofu88,

My oldest daughter went to BU 1 year in 06. The Big Dig era!
Boston not too easy driving for me! Big snow storm came, she transferred to
a West Coast school. Saw a Red Sox game, never had a chance to return.
I also had an 09 Camry Hyb. A smoother, bigger car cruiser with 40 mpg. I got 181K miles
with no battery issues. If you decide on the Prius, get the Soft touch leather, with heated seats.
A plus for the cold Boston winters!

stt

 

I came out of a Camry se, it was quite a transition to the Prius, wife drives the Camry now but when I drove it the other day I was shocked at how fast it was lol. You can pick up a new 2016 now at great deals, oil is down, lots to choose from, get 2k back or 0apr, and everybody wants to see the prime before they buy...perfect time to get a deal, negotiate well got a Prius 3 touring 23,800 a month ago and I'm sure you can do better, I would definitely sell my car on Craigs screw dealer trade ins.



iPad ?

 

Rental companies and fleets shed their vehicles between 12-24 months, often miles are a factor. Since the '16s have been "out" for 12 months, they should start appearing on dealer lots ANY DAY, if not already.

 

VERY WISE!

My grandpa used to say "Son, if you can't put down dollar bills for it, you simply can't afford it".

35 years of purchasing stuff and I can attest that he was right!

 

Drive PWR mode. It's aweseome.
Also, I think I'm getting slightly better mpg. I've heard others on this board say the same thing.

 

I get better mpg in PWR mode in my 2012. If you're one that gets used to the feel of a gas pedal of a car I would recommend trying it

 

Enjoy your Pri.

Consider upgrading to a magnetic drain plug for the transaxle (assuming the Gen4 don't have one like the Gen3) and performing an early drain/fill. Also regular drain/fills of the transaxle are always a good thing.

Read Post #473. Good pictures and a link to the ATF-WS oil analysis study is in the post.

 

Congrats. I have the silver color of the 2. I love it, i have yet to get a tank that averages less than 60mpg hand calculated! Enjoy your new car

 

$17,500.? wow! did you add it to the best price thread? you must have gotten it just before the quarantine. all the best!

 

ah, gotcha, thanks!