My brother took my dad shopping for a new car yesterday here in Albuquerque, they weren't even looking for a Prius (my Mother hates them because no key/round start button ). A local Toyota dealer informed them they could take their pick from 10 used Prii just in from Washington State, only $31,000. I wonder how hard it will be for them to sell at that price? I don't look at it as gouging, just supply and demand. But I think somebody would need to be pretty thick to buy a used one at that price, no matter what package number it is.
Wow! That's crazy. When I went and picked mine up at Karl Malone a few weeks ago, they told me that the wait list on the new ones there is at 6 to 9 months. Beaver Toyota in Santa Fe said that they're now adding $3000 onto MSRP for new waiting list signups. Glad mine arrived relatively quickly and at MSRP.
tempting to sell mine, but waiting for more advanced EV options to be available (supposedly by fall of 2009) first before making any decisions. that is pretty much the only other option i will take other than another Pri. right now we have the Zenn and the Pri and the F-150. since the F-150 will never be primary transportation for either of us, we maybe in a situation where my limited range Zenn may not cut it. fortunately that does not appear to be likely in the near future since we both work close enough that the Zenn can more than handle the commute and it would be unlikely that both of us would change jobs to one farther away (i am not going anywhere but she is a temp med worker who generally moves around somewhat although she has been in this 8 months with no sign of moving anytime soon)
Hey abq_sfr, You appear to be making an attempt of applying common sense and reasoning to the subject of "buying and selling automobiles". A large percentage of people that go into an automobile showroom make their buying decision based upon emotions, not logic. Personally, I think that asking $ 31,000 for a used Prius with a fresh coat of wax is asking too little. They should be asking at least $ 50,000 and throw in one of those air fresheners that hang from the rear view mirror.... Keith
With the credit crisis and tightening, I doubt people who are willing to buy a $30k+ Used Prius can get a loan that easily....let alone asking for $50k range.
I agree with you... The gas panic is over. Gasoline prices are falling (for now). The demand for instant delivery of new Prius's will subside. Hopefully Toyota will solve their parts shortage problem. And finally, the price for a new Prius will fall back to "normal" as it was earlier this year. Being patient and calculating does have its' advantages. Keith
Yes, I agree. I think that in addition to the spike in gas prices, the recent spike in Prius demand (and thus premium prices over MSRP) was probably driven by the peak car buying months of April-June. Having the gas spike at the same time caused people who would normally be out shopping for cars to shift their interest to the Prius. I think with entering the slow car-buying season, plus the drop off in fuel prices, people who are patient will be rewarded with more reasonable prices. And those hoping to get $30,000 for their used Priuses will be disappointed.
Does anybody know of anybody that was silly enough to actually pay these ridiculous asking prices??? Keith
Anybody who did probably wouldn't admit it. You know, kinda like most of those who voted for a certain politician...
You are probably right. But now that I've had some time to think about it, there are probably plenty of people who would pay $ 31,0000 or even $ 50,000 for a Prius. It would most likely be the same people who bought houses that clearly could not afford them. Blame it on the salesman & lender who offered a sub-prime loan. After all, with most people buying a car, it is not the agreed upon sales price they are interested in but the monthly payment. Anybody want to buy a bridge? I'll throw in the Prius for free. Keith
When you at some the internet prices $31,000 seemed in the ball park. Customers hopefully will not forget those dealers who are trying to really stick it to them. I would not trust or go back to those dealers for nothing. We should make a don't buy list and post it on PC. It may help control those dealers.
That might work somewhere, in Albuquerque there are 2 Toyota dealers... different names but owned by the same owners. Not much competition here! AFAIK the Santa Fe dealer is different, and I think a lot of people shopping for a Toyota drive up there to buy.
Hi Keith, is that bridge still for sale and can I get it in a gold color? OK, here is a confession from another idiot who needed it now. Duh! Here is a Sacramento tale of being taken to the cleaners. They are located on Auburn Blvd if that matters to some of you. After the $500 for permission to see one in 3 to 6 months, and even asking if they had any used ones in stock, was taken out to their lot and shown a 2007, with 16k miles, with zilch for add-ons, ugly black. Was told I could have it for $30,000. I left with tears running down my face. They knew I had the hots for one and I was talking cash, (even dumber yet). I get a call from them after a month wait and they have a gold one with Pkg#6 just in and wanted to know if I was interested. To end this sad tale, I paid $33,500 out the door in cash (please note that vaseline would have been extra). Did I mention that this was at a dealer here in Sacramento, California on Auburn Blvd, near Fulton Ave? Oh!!! OK. I really like the car, but they will never get my business again. Did I mention that this was in the North Sacramento area? ;>)
Rayxoxo, as long as you like the car the money is secondary. FWIW the MSRP was reported as $29375 in one of the forums.
timing is not the best, but if you had done the same thing a year ago and sold the Pri, you would not have thought you had done so bad. sure it would be nice to wait 3-6 months, save what?? $2000 or so...
Maybe I am being too hard on the SOBoy at the Toyota dealer. And other funny note is that after having it for about a week, I put it up for sale on Craigslist for $35,000. I got no takers. So I guess I am as bad as they are. But I mainly did it as a joke. If some one would have wanted it for that price I may not have sold it but I would have felt better about it.
When I bought mine (basic model) right off the lot in Jan., I had a choice of 4 to choose from. Besides the new ones, a red '07 Touring model with 4,000 mi. was selling for $2,000 more than my new one. Was tempting, but ... I'm thrilled with my descision.