2008 Touring Wheel Question.

Yes, definitely false advertising. For whatever reason, places think that they can pass off leather as Touring. Go talk to them. They can pull up the option package on the computer.

 

the touring package comes with the 16" wheels, HIDs and fogs standard....if your car doesn't have fogs or the 16" wheels you got sold a bag of goods

 

look at your car from a side profile....is the wing on the rear trunklid bigger than normal?

thats the only other tell tale sign...

I think the touring even in "base" mode comes with a leather wrapped steering wheel as well but since u have the leather package, you should already have that

 

The previous owner probably changed out the 16" for 15" in order to improve FE. That can happen when purchasing used. Sin. # should tell you what your car was. Have the dealer give you a print out. Hal

 

Dealers being either ignorant (only some 8 or 10% of the Gen IIs
are genuine OEM Touring models) or outright deceptive as to an
authentic Touring model designation -- there was not a touring
badge -- on a used Prius is all too common. Here's a thread with
links to other threads on this:

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...dealer-misrepresented-base-model-touring.html

Note that one of the linked threads identifies all the bits and pieces
necessary to convert a Standard model to a Touring. It can be/has
been done. The Touring rims, spoiler, and pretty much useless "driving
lights" are pretty much cosmetic. The important stuff is suspension bits
under the car: rear shocks and sway bars. Having these bits is almost
as good as running the VIN for determining if the car is OEM Touring
model.

FWIW, I would agree that if the car is a Touring model -- which I
doubt -- the previous owner may have switched out 16" for 15" wheels.

But why? Two probable reasons:
* to get a better selection of replacement tires -- a good idea
* to get better FE, but this would be about 1% improvement --
a bad idea

 

you can ask for the difference, maybe a free extended warranty or if you are truly happy with the car, just drive it and enjoy it!

 

I had this same issue when i bought my car. The dealer offered to take the car back, but I decided to just keep it. It's to much of a hassle to take the car back and then find another dealer with an actual touring model. I also found that there isn't much difference in the value of a base vs a touring model to the general public.

Please keep in mind that I'm not likely to ever leave my car in its original state. I found that there were more options for aftermarket springs for the base model. My plan is to upgrade the springs and sway bars and eventually buy some 16"or 17" wheels and tires. I'm also planning to upgrade my lights to projector HID's.

It's just a shame that a Toyota dealer knows less about there product than we do. Good luck with your purchase.

 

i think this person is new to the prius community so he won't be able to tell a larger spoiler just from looking at it.

since 98% of prius is not touring, just park next to another prius and compare the spoilers, if your is about 2 inches longer than you have a touring that got the wheel/tires swapped. if your spoiler is the same size you got taken, buyer beware, car dealers are sort of crooked, used car dealers are extremely crooked, just a fact of life.

 

For future reference and buyers who are being shown "touring" models, http://priuschat.com/forums/knowled...andard-optional-equipment-some-countries.html might help.

 

You have a well appointed car and it should give you many years good performance. Won,t be shelling out big bucks for gas at least! Good luck, Hal

 

Before you decide to do nothing, you should drive a real touring model and compare it to the standard. The suspension differences are very significant.

 

I disagree. IMO, the Touring and standard Prius suspension both suck. For me, Touring was mostly a waste of money since I upgraded the springs and rear sway bar anyway.

I bought the Touring cause thats the only one that was on the lot, and I liked the color. I simply didn't know any better. However, I do like the bigger spoiler and 16" gunmetal rims, which I have yet to replace. But most of the time, these "special" models usually aren't worth the extra cash. It's the same thing for Lexus w/ F-Sport suspension/parts. I would just upgrade everything myself. Doing it yourself usually comes out cheaper, with more and better options.

 

agreed but sometimes the factory "sport upgrade" is just enough for some while full blown aftermarket sport kits become a bit overbearing...


Case in point- When I had my 2000 Lexus GS400 I was all about getting every L-Tuned factory upgrade possible...why? because the aftermarket just ruined the luxury of the car.....I wanted the L-tuned suspension so bad but was impossible to source (the company went defunct in 2003 or so I forget)The drop on that was maybe an inch.

I went full blown and bought eibach springs with bilstein HD struts...BIG MISTAKE! the car went from luxo-boat to full blown race car in 3 hours. The car drove like complete shit yet had a very aggressive stance. For me the L-tuned factory upgrade meant a slight drop with still some semblance of comfort.

I am willing to bet the touring suspension is more comfy than a set of Greddy or Tanabe lowering springs even though the touring suspension is no lower than a base prius suspension

I hope you're getting my point here lol