Outrageous Price .. prius over MSRP

A Jaguar is $75,000. How long would you have to drive that to make up the price difference?

 

That's not really what I meant, but I know I made my point badly. I love my 3-month old Prius Package 06, but I don't know if I'd buy it for $2000-$3000 over MSRP (it was $26K even). Before I would pay such a premium, I would look at alternatives or, if I was able, get on a waiting list that didn't involve a premium price. But then, I'd probably wind up going Prius-less.

 

I hear ya. It depends on what you're looking for in a car. I for one think a package 6 Prius is a good (I believe I paid $28k OTD 6 months ago for my '08) car regardless of propulsion. I believe even if it had similar fuel economy to another $28k mid-size car it would still be a good car. The fact that it gets double the fuel economy is a bonus more than anything in my eyes.

Mike

 

I think even a slightly intelligent person would realize that we're talking functional equivalents. I mentioned the Xd because it is very close to fulfilling the same needs as a Prius. The Jaguar is marketed towards a different demographic i.e. someone who wants a certain amount of luxury and driving performance, and in Jaguar's case, someone who is after a certain look or style as Jaguar cannot compete in performance and luxury when compared to other similarly targeted makes/models.

It can't carry what the typical 5 door hatchback can so it cannot meet the needs of someone who needs utility. I didn't think that in my previous response that I'd have to actually explain that to someone here, but here I am, wasting my time doing so for the one person that doesn't understand.

BTW, Jaguar prices range from $35K to $77K.

 

Purchased mine new in 2005. Sticker price was 22,500 and when the dealer came back, it was close to 25k. He said it was because they were hot cars and they needed to mark it up. No problem. Show me a used corrolla with about 35k miles on it. I'm interested in that. Sales person said he'll talk to the manager. Sales person asks how much I would be willing to spend. I respond a grand under sticker. After going back and forth and letting them know I was ready to buy a car that day, they let me have it for 21,500. I was never rude I just kept politely saying that I would never pay sticker price for a car and that I would be interested in another car off the lot.

Anyways, on a different topic. It costs me 44 dollars to drive 260 miles in my Acura. The Prius? Costs me 35 dollars to drive 420 miles.

 

o rly?

How much do the following features cost on the xD?

- Bluetooth
- Integrated Nav
- Factory Leather

 

I like to compare my new 2008 Prius to my 2004 Accord (long sold). I paid $1000 under MSRP in April for the Prius. That came out to $2000 less than I paid for the Accord back in 2004. The Accord had Nav and Leather and that's about it. The Prius has Nav, Leather, Bluetooth, Backup camera, Aux Jack, Auto A/c and lots of other features I'm forgeting...oh yea...100 percent better MPG too. I think the Prius is an outstanding value if you think about everything it has. For me the "Payback" was immediate considering what it replaced. My car payment went down $150.00, my monthly insurance went down $35, and my monthly gas bill went down $250.00.

For me it not only saves gas, it saves lots of money too. I think the phrase is "having your cake and eating too."

 

Less than they cost on the Prius. All the bells and whistles on the XD including nav and true ipod integration(standard) add about $2K. To get nav on the Prius, you have to go to package #6. Now the gap is even wider and the payback time even longer. The Xd comes standard with many things you have to pay extra for on the Prius.

 

Yep, for no extra charge the Scion XD gives you "awkward driving position, choppy ride and high noise levels" (Consumer Reports - Jun 08). Also, an EPA rating of 26/32 mpg (city/hwy - auto) is not even in the same area code as the 48/45 mpg rating of the Prius. As the old saying goes..... "you get what you pay for!"

 

The point was that even at the rated fuel economy, you'd have to drive an extra 160K miles before you're ahead on fuel costs with the Prius. And of course, if you visit the Xd forums, you'll see that just about everyone universally reports much much better fuel economy than EPA estimates in the 40ish range. But even if you don't believe it, then you still have to drive 160K extra miles on the Prius.

Unfortunately, neither the Xd or Prius have optimal driving positions. They're both awkward and neither have telescoping steering wheels or seat height adjustment.

The overall point is get the Prius because it's what you want to get, but it's not the way to save money over something else that is functionally equivalent. On top of that, if you pay the markups, then you'll have to drive 2 to 300K extra miles to make up the difference in the example above.
Oh, and the Scion's stock Pioneer completely blows away the Prius's JBL system. The Prius stereo isn't even in the same league.

 

Got my 2008 Prius - package 2 with mats/net back in March for 21,500 and got them to take my trade for 7,500 (2003 Acura RSX-S).

I had to really haggle for it, and it took 3 hours.

 

A Rolls Royce only gets 11 MPG and costs $350,000. So you'd have to drive that, what, SEVERAL JILLION MILES BACKWARDS for it to pay for itself!

 

The problem here is this isn't ACTUALLY based on supply and demand, and it ISN'T how the market works.

If this were about the market Toyota would be charging the dealers $5,000 more for the car. They aren't. "Inflating the price because you can get away with it," is not the same as, "An increase in demand shifting the price point."

 

Exactly, so you wouldn't buy the Rolls for economic reasons. *If* you were buying a car for economic reasons, you'd buy an Xd or some other functionally equivalent car over a the equivalently functional Prius if you wanted to save the most money.

Buy the Prius because it's a cool car and you want to be greener, or you want to have the most reliable car on the planet, but it's not the way to save the most money.

 

You are dead wrong. This IS a supply and demand issue and it is how the market works in nearly every country in the world. It's just that simple. Dealers aren't greedy, crooks, cons, etc. when it comes to pricing issues (but they may be in other areas ;-)). They are simply businesses selling a product based on demand in any particular area of the world.

If you still insist they are crooks or con artists because you feel their price is too high, then I suggest you call the police and have them arrested. Else, buy another car or better yet, start your own dealership and give the cars away at no profit.

Toyota corporate cannot arbitraily raise the prices willy nilly. They have long term pricing agreements with the distribution points and the dealers themselves. The dealers need an incentive to stay in business. To simply erode their profit margin on any given day based on demand would undermine the dealers and shrink/discourage Toyota's all important dealer base. If Toyota corporate sees a problem with the pricing on any particular automobile, then they will adjust the pricing accordingly for NEXT years model, not the current model.

Rick
#4 2006

 

My wife and I looked real close at the Xion XD while looking at the Prius. I wouldn't try to justify the price difference between the XD and the Prius, they are very different cars. The XD was basic cheap transportation. Toyota did a good job of features and price in the XD, but I felt the Prius was closer in features to a Camry, and therefore not such a price leap (at the time we bought in May'08). Although looking for good gas milage was high on the list, we also needed a car that could seat 4 adults and travel cross state in more comfort than the XD presented. We paid $558 under MSRP and waited 1-week, guess we got in just before the long waits.
DOES ANYBODY have the answer to WHERE DID THE PRIUS' GO, why the drop in shipments. I've heard lots of rumors, but no good facts.

 

I don't think a single person on this board bought a Prius to save money. Yes, saving money on gas is a nice fringe benefit, but it mostly means I'm giving less money to Big Oil and/or terrorists.

 

I got my prius in Aug 06 for less than Manufacturers retail price after waiting for almost 3 months. Paid cash for it which everyone says is a stupid move, but the wife doesn't like payments. Now for the icing on the cake. I got a call from my dealer last week, or the week before that, offering to buy the car back from me for more money than I paid for it two years ago. He didn't even inquire about mileage which is relatively low. I only have 20,000 miles on it.

So, the time when our cars are worth more than when they were new is already upon us. I of course said no.

 

Ditto what Stev0 said,

The savings in gas cost due to the highest mileage presently available in a car IS excellent, but it is really a very nice fringe benefit. As a mechanical design engineer I can appreciate all the cool techy stuff that you normally wouldn't find in a car priced in the mid 20's (or should I say mid-30's lately?). Being a green car is also a nice benefit, but for me the best reasons to get a Prius are the high-tech features, reliability, mileage and "Green-ness" in that order.

And hey - everyone's different...we all make choices suited to our individual preferences and needs. But I do think that in spite of the current cost situation for the Prius, it is probably the best car you can get when you consider all the ramifications - especially over the long term.

 

I just got a call earlier from a fund raiser for my Congressman. She got a piece of my mind about gas prices, oil futures out of control, and the crashing stock market. I asked her when the do-nothing Congress was going to do something about oil commodities pricing. She said she didn't know. She's only trained to raise money.
Politics sucks.