Re: waiting my whole life The way they describe the car being equipped, I'd guess at $36k-$38K. If they offer NAV and entertainment system, it's got to be $42K! The AWD loaded, leather, side airbagged, Limited with the works - even seat heaters etc is $39K at MSRP now. Dianne, Just out of curiosity, would you happen to know approximately what MSRP will be on the 2005 HH? I recall reading around $29k but I can't quite comprehend how that could possibly be for a "very well-equipped", 4WD, Highlander Hybrid. I mean, the MSRP on a loaded 4WD 2004 Highlander pushes $40k.[/quote]
Re: waiting my whole life Geez! 42 large for a loaded AWD hybrid Highlander! That's starting to push right into Land Cruiser territory, isn't it? One point on which I'm confused is the purported gas mileage. I believe I read they were estimating around 28 mpg for the 05 and I was under the impression that the mpg for the AWD 04 is around 22. That doesn't seem like a whopping difference, although every bit helps, unless I misapprehended something.
Yep, you got it. I was using the base price of the LC (doh!). Anyway, if a loaded 05 Highlander is going to run $42k, I'm not sure I even want to hear the MSRP of the RX400H. But those prices just make the (already great) value of Prius even greater, IMHO.
I like this topic a lot better than the mileage topic. I read all of those posts and decided that while I'm WAITING - like everyone else in the known universe - I will stay busy tending to the study of aerodynamics, wind sheer, brake energy recovery and all of the other techno geek that is required of a Prius owner. ..."How was your ride to work today? "Very troubling. An unexpected cross wind reduced my mileage potentiality to 43.7mpg. I'm contemplating suicide"...Jeeeeze, grab a life. Oh, back to waiting. Perhaps if I wait long enough, they'll deliver an 06' or 07' model. Maybe the technology will have evolved to the point where I'll get 255 HP and a sleek smooth ride. Wait a minute. I get that now with my Volvo. I guess it's the buttons, quirkiness, technology and mileage that made me put down that deposit. :roll:
You're correct, Dianne. I screwed up badly here. Regardless, I suppose there will be an unbelievable number of folks standing in line with fistfuls of yen waiting for dealers to fill their orders for both the HH and 400H.
You probably already know this - but they already are! For Sienna, Highlander, and the new Lexus. I even have a list for the hybrid trucks.
Wait Dianne, GM says nobody wants hybrid vehicles. Surely you must be making up these 'lists'. Is Toyota paying 20,000 people $10 a piece to get on these ficticious 'waiting lists'? When I get to Detroit auto show next week, I plan to confront some of the GM people about their hybrid stance......and offer them some lemonade to ease the taste of Toyota's dust in their mouths. ukeleft:
Uh oh! So, next year are we going to hear Highlander Hybrid owners saying, "I ordered my 2005 Highlander in January of 2004 but my dealer didn't deliver it until March of 2005! This has gotta be a new record.....I waited almost 15 months!"?? :wink:
But, according to your dealer, you're exaggerating your wait time. Instead of fifteen months, you have waited only one month because Highlanders were available only to special people before February of 2005... and you just aren't one of the special people.
Is Anyone Getting their Prius? Has anyone taken delivery in the last few days/weeks? I ordered mine just prior to New Year's and i haven't heard anything. :guns: i don't know why I just put that there...I hate guns. Guess the wait is gettin to me.
Ya beat me by one day. Should we start a pool for when we'll get ours? My guess is March 12th (2004???) BC in waiting - 82 days and counting
Ordered first Tues. in November; took delivery November 30, 2003 in my own city, Madison, WI. The story from the salesman was that the Salsa BC that was my first choice had been ordered _and then declined_ at another Wisconsin dealership. From discussions here and elsewhere I can appreciate my good fortune. My faithful 1991 Corolla wagon was still running, but did not know how it would endure another winter. :roll:
Many of you have been here already, but I'm sure there a lot of folks like me who are recently on the list. I never wait more than 30 minutes for a movie and I would never consider camping out to hear some celeb rock concert. So, this is my first experience "in lines". There is a lot of rumor, hype and suspicion about what's going on. I went to a downtown Seattle Toyota dealer, my second dealer, to ask if it made any sense to put my name on his list in additon to the one I'm already on. I am 3 weeks down the list with another dealer. The guy told me, quite honestly, that you can hear lots of rumors and multiple versions of what's going on with the waitling lists. Bottom line, he says, is that no one really knows when a car, "your car" will arrive. He also said that people listing themselves with more than one dealer are complicating things as each order is tracked and the duplicates take time to process. Like overbooking airline seats to make sure you get one; difference is that the airlines factor this into their planning, and Toyota probably has not. Since my first dealer has a three week headstart, the car will likely show up there before Mr. Downtown can get one. He added that he has never seen a car phenomenon like this. The new Beetle created something of a stir with people paying much over msrp to get one, but, eventually VW cranked up the production and now they're easily had. Toyota is weighing all it's options as they introduce what is essentially a new type of car. The solution, according to the dealer, IS NOT for Toyota to simply crank up the production until the market is firmly established, and apparently it's not in spite of the rush. The orders will be filled; the question is time, not whether there will be a car for you. If the orders go beyond a certain production number, he says they will be carried over into the 2005 model year. Price may change, but he didn't think it would be much more, if any, than what you agreed to when you put down your order. His dealership would cash my deposit check which would then force me to go through some several week process to get a refund if my first dealer comes through with the car. He said there was no reason to believe his own dealership would do any better than the one I already have a deposit with. That surprised me, both for his honesty which meant he didn't get a chance to sell me a car, and the fact that it will take about the same amount of time for all the dealerships in the area to fill an order. None of them has a letter from God requesting a Prius.
