New to chat. I know this is pretty subjective question. But why did you pick the trim and options you did? Was it purely cost? Did you regret getting a base II without any options? My dad looking to buy and is not to tech savy, so was looking at a base II. maybe III with the better stereo and bluetooth. Also considering a IV with solar package (mostly due to the leather seats, and heated seats). Any thoughts would be appreciated.
I bought a II because of budget. Don't regret not getting anything else. I did up grade a few things though. See signature.
I bought the II also. About the second one off the truck/boat, so I bayed full sticker price. You add a thousand here and a thousand there and it not an economy car anymore.
Best value for your money is probably version II. If you've got money just burning a hole in your pocket and want more toys to play with, go for a III, IV, or V. Good Luck. Keith
Same! I like the leather,Heated seats are nice!! Really don't use the NAV. But its there! I think the 17" wheels make it look like not such a cheap car!!
V w/ATP - I wanted the leather, plus the fogs are a nice addition. I was actually shopping for a bare V (no package), but this one came along at what I thought was a great bargain. I always thought ATP was a great safety enhancement but the 5K+ markup felt excessive. The actual markdown on what I eventually purchased made it worthwhile to me.
I drive far everyday (at least 70 miles per day; sometimes 140 miles/day)...and more than a few times in pitch darkness on the highway. LED headlights was a must for me. So, V was my only choice. Since i drive a lot, i also decided to spend a little extra to get ATP for safer motoring on the highways. Never regretted it one bit...love the LEDs, JBL system, and all the ATP stuff (even use the backup parking feature!).
I got the V because of the adv tech package -- I knew the dynamic cruise control would be great on my commute and it has proven to be so. It doesn't hurt that it has all the other safety features that are unique to the V.
Another V with ATP here. LED headlights, heated leather seats, and bluetooth were huge factors to the version. Radar-cruise-control sold the package. Had my first longish trip yesterday at 300 miles and used the cruise for at least 2/3 of the journey - wouldn't be without it now. Previously I've very rarely used standard cruise for more than a few miles to rest my foot but this is a different beast altogether. Toys.
I covet the V with ATP, but just can't really justify the $5K+ difference for my needs and don't want the Toyo Nav. So I'm buying a IV with no Nav, No Solar.
I think that you are on the right track. For us, it came down to a II or a III. We opted for the III primarily because of the upgraded sound system. We don't need GPS - we have AAA. We don't need 17' rims. We don't need solar -- although we did install solar panels on our house. Leather? In Arizona? We prefer cloth. Did it come down to financial considerations? Doesn't it always?
I got the V with ATP. Adaptive Cruise Control is a huge dfferentiator. In retrospect, I would have been happy with a II, adding my own NAV/Bluetooth/Backup Camera and saved a ton of money. But now that I am addicted to Adaptive Cruise Control, there ain't no going back.
We got the last one on a local lot during Cash for Clunkers. It happened to be a IV with leather (standard on IV and V) and nav in Barcelona Red, we just got lucky. Given a choice it would have been a IV or V for us, mostly to get the leather. The nav is panned by many people because they think it's operation is clunky and that the portable GPS's offer better technology. Both true, but once you learn to operate the nav it works just fine, and we didn't want the hassle of hiding the portable every time we parked the car. The ATP might be nice but this is the wife's commuter car and she never uses cruise of any type, it's also very expensive (I've heard the radar cruise is very convenient for people doing a lot of highway driving). The Solar Roof would be useful in hot climates where the car is parked outside a lot, ours is garaged at either end of her commute so we really don't need it. The 17" wheels on the V do look a lot better. If leather and nav are not important, then a II or III would suffice. If Bluetooth is important, I guess it would be the III. All prices list (there are good discounts currently available on 2010's): III (Bluetooth standard) $24,760 IV (nav and leather are standard on IV and V) $30,040 IV (w/solar) $31,840 V $31,510 V (w/ATP) $34,210 BTW, all this info is available at the Toyota website, I did it for you because I wanted to see what the current pricing looked like. "Loaded" cars due tend to have better resales and sell faster. Your choice depends on what you want/need and how much you want to spend. For us, it would be a IV or V (we prefer leather). We don't really need Solar or ATP. We lucked out in the C4C and got the car we probably would have chosen, and Barcelona Red is the absolute best color.
OP, I was in the same boat. Bought a Prius for my father. He's not tech savvy in the least and will drive the car 30k miles a year. I figured the best choice would be the III because of the upgraded sound and Bluetooth. He doesn't know what Bluetooth is but I set his phone up for him. So that's much better. He has no need for anything. The nav would have been nice but OEM ones are so garbage. I'll fix in an aftermarket one but for now he has a standalone unit. No point to upgrading a higher trim due to larger wheels. That's pretty foolish, IMO. You can always go aftermarket with those. I make more than enough money so financial costs don't truly factor in. However, just because I have the money doesn't mean I'm going to spend it. Foolish. I felt, and so did he, after speaking with him, that the III was the way to go. No point in paying $30k for a Prius. But if it worth it to you, go ahead. I just didn't see value in it. His only requirement was that the car was Blizzard White
Technology Package for me (similar to V w/ AT but substitute the 17" alloys, LED headlights and fogs for the solar panel moonroof. No LKA here). I bought it because I wanted radar cruise control. It works well in the US with all your highways. Pre-Collision is also a good safety feature too. It's also the only model with power lumbar support which I felt was lacking in the Gen 2. Heated seats are a blessing in this weather (although they're only packaged with leather) and bluetooth audio streaming is cool ( saves me from needing an iPod/USB adapter immediately... i can hold off that expense) . Everything else is just gravy (APGS, leather, nav, water-repellent front glass etc etc). Backup camera is on all packages except the base model.
My choice was between a Classic Silver Prius III with nav and port installed leather (light grey interior). and a Classic Silver Pruis IV with darker leather (ash grey interior) and no navigation. My main interest in the navigation was the rear view camera. I finally chose the IV because of the darker leather (less maintenance) and the heated seats. Even in Florida, you can appreciate the heated seats during this time of the year. Other bonuses with the IV (vs the III) is that it includes a homelink, smart key on 3 doors, and nicer interior finishes on the door panels and front dash. Overall, the IV just felt more luxurious than the III with the leather. I decided I could do without the navigation, but I really wanted a rear view camera; so the dealer replaced the factory rear view mirror with an aftermarket (genk3545) rear view mirror which inludes a 3.5 camera monitor, homelink and compass. He also installed a chrome bar Boyo camera. This is the perfect combination for me.
I chose the V because I liked the feel of the drive better, and the standard options were must haves for me (leather, homelink on the mirror, headlights ). Also, I wanted Safety Connect and the SOS button, not sure if all other models have that or not. My only 'optional' option was the navigation, as much for the built-in screen as for anything else. I love the system and can't imagine not having the screen. In addition to the backup camera, it gives me the ability to see phone contacts and my Ipod playlists and songs onscreen. Plus, I don't understand others' dislike for the mapping function -- for me it is intuitive and works perfectly. I actually much prefer the Toyota nav over the portable TomTom I used because the notification 'chimes' seemed better coordinated to the turns than the TomTom was. Laura 2010 Prius V w/nav, Blizzard Pearl
We went with the Canadian Touring package. I believe it's roughly the same as US package III, but with additionally: the 17" wheels (and supension mods?) and LED headlights, no sunroof. So, like the US V package, but without a lot of the luxury interior stuff: no leather seats, navigation, radar cruise, lane assist. Radar cruise is one feature that really does interest me though: in the event of immiment collision it can automatically apply brakes, tension seat belts, and so on. Not sure if this is constantly on, or only while the cruise is on. Regarding the 17" wheels, about one week after purchase I swapped the tires to 15" steel rims and snows. Not a big difference, obviously some, but not night-and-day. Ours come with the back-up camera (in the mirror), Homelink (garage opener buttons in the mirror), Blu-Tooth (hands-free, voice recognition phone, controls in steering wheel), lessee: that's about it I think. In retrospect, would have been just fine with (Canadian equiv. to) US package II. Really didn't want sunroof, would rather have more headroom. Blu-Tooth, back-up camera, Homelink: can take or leave it, but nice. The main reasons for going with Touring: it was on the lot, and we could take advantage of $3000 Toyota rebate. And: just looking at the Touring and base model: base model wheel covers over alloy (??) rims did not look good. Funny, but that was the deal breaker in our case. We had a moment where we just stood, looked at one, then the other, back and forth. The base wheel package was definitely the weak link for us. I don't think there's anyone enamoured with those wheel covers.
