TDI Refugee to Prime?

Hi all,

Been lurking awhile as I am one of those VW "clean diesel" people who is in the midst of the big VW scandal settlement after discovering my Jetta TDI wasn't quite as clean as it was purported to be. And no, I have no idea when VW will buy my car back, just that it will probably be in the next 60 days. I thought I'd be driving it into the ground, but now that is not the case.

In any case, I'm looking for a new-to-me vehicle, and the Prius is now pretty high on the list. I test drove a Gen2 about 5 years ago and didn't like it, and I'd driven a Gen 3 on a whim and found it not bad, but a little weird. Until I actually drove the Gen 4, I wasn't convinced it was for me. I'm certainly not a gearhead, but I've always enjoyed my manual transmission. That the Gen 4 drives like a car and not a spaceship was a pleasant surprise - I really, really wanted to love it, and I did.

And FWIW, even though I love the torque, I have a spreadsheet of every tankful of fuel since I bought the car, and think the mileage game is an equally, if not more compelling, challenge. And I hate going to the gas station. I just hadn't found a hybrid or EV that really grabbed me until now. The federal tax credit is icing on the cake and made the price more mentally manageable. (Manageable being a principle-of-the-thing. I've never bought a new car before.)

I stumbled across the Prime a few weeks ago and am seriously considering it rather than a Gen 4. There are only a handful in my area, but I was able to test drive a Plus and play around in a Premium (that was inside the showroom, so no driving... but they also wanted $6000 over MSRP so I wasn't seriously looking at it.) There are 2 red ones in a 500 mile radius (one of which has already been mentioned in another thread), and I figure if I'm buying a new car, then I might as well get a color I want. (Black cars are soooo hot in Florida, I'm not doing that again.) Also mostly looking at the Plus, as I thought the 11" screen was, well, a bit much. But I really liked the Softex. Oh well.

I posted here rather than in the Gen 4 forum because I, well, want you to convince me. Not that I probably need convincing...

Thanks,
Danielle

 

...aaaand VW sent me the email to schedule my buyback today, so it could be as soon as the end of the month. And part of me doesn't want to wait too long... My check engine light has been on for 6 months, and even though I know it's the intake manifold (a common VW problem) and they recommended I fix the electric ignition switch (sort of risky there), I don't want to spend any more money on it when all it has to do is make it to the buyback and they'll give me far more than it's worth.

I don't need that much cargo space, and I briefly (for a weekend) flirted with a Miata - except I do need a wee bit more than that for a daily driver. Two seats in the back is plenty. Yeah, the trunk is small, but not hauling around kids makes a huge difference.

Now, I do believe that the tax credit has to be taken in the year in which the car was put into service - which means buying before the 31st would be more advantageous as I pay estimated taxes and could essentially take the credit right away, rather than wait until next year.

Lots to think about.

And anyone happen to know a joint Toyota/VW dealer? I have a VW dealer card (part of the scandal fallout) that still has $400 on it that I have to spend before April, and since I won't have a VW anymore... well...

 

The dieselgate forum at TDIclub seems to believe you have 90 days from the receipt of the offer letter, but I'm not entirely sure, since VW has been a little less than transparent regarding the situation. That's where I've gotten most of my information.

I just don't know if I should pull the trigger before the end of the year or not.

 

Wait, let me clarify. After you submit the title and registration, they eventually send you a 7 page offer letter to sign and notarize. When they accept that they send you a link to schedule your buyback appointment, and the 90 day clock supposedly starts. If you haven't sent anything, the process takes a couple months.

 

The thing is, if I buy before the end of the year, I can knock $4500 off my payment for 4q2016 in January. And that right there is quite tempting. I know it all works out in the end, so it really doesn't matter, but psychologically I'm still grappling with the "new cars depreciate so much" mental block.

 

There's a joint dealership in Lawrence, KS as well, and I'll probably use them.

I think I'm going to pull the trigger on a highly discounted 2016 liftback this weekend rather than wait for the Prime.