I have been bugging my husband for a year now about getting a Hybrid and was doing tons of research. I finally gave up late last year. So Saturday when we were out running errands and he asked if I wanted to go look at a Prius I was like, YES! We ended up buying one. We didn't try to haggle the price because based on all the previous research I had done last year that because of the demand there was just no way to haggle. So we ended up paying sticker, $28k for a package 7. Now I read about a $2k rebate on Prius? Did I just get screwed? :angry:
Where did you read about a rebate? Last year there was a $2,000 deduction and this year a $3,100 tax credit, but a rebate!? Do tell... Please post your location, as that is certainly a factor as to whether or not you should expect to pay MSRP. Patti '06 Silver #7 SW VA.
I paid MSRP. I think it depends on your location. In come places, people are reporting Prii on dealer lots waiting to be claimed. In those cases, perhaps the dealer with haggle. On the other hand, the car will sell whether you pay MSRP or the person standing behind you does. I don't think you got screwed. In fact, I think you got one HELL of car! Congratulations!
I am not sure what you mean by 2k rebate. But there was a $2k tax deduction if you buy a new Prius in 2005, and $3000 something of tax credit if you buy a new Prius in 2006.
No, feel lucky that your dealer wasn't charging a "premium" for the car. Many dealers charge $2000-$5000 above MSRP. As far as I know, there is no "rebate", just the $3150 2006 Tax Credit: http://priuschat.com/page-1-t15590-s0.html
Again depending on where you're located it may matter, but I don't think you got screwed. I paid MSRP, but I had to travel to NV (I live in LA, CA) since a lot of dealers I talked to wanted to "offer" me "market price" to the tune of 3-7k over sticker. I think the demand is such all over the country that MSRP is a good deal for this car. The only place where I can think of that the price might be lower is Houston (big oil HQ) or someplace like Iowa or S.D. where the pickup is king.
I bought my Prius in Fredericksburg, VA. When I was doing a search on Prius I saw a link to this site Prius Chat where Miller Toyota (I believe it's in Mannassas, VA) was giving $2k off MSRP. They currently have a 2006 package #6, invoice $26,380, sale price $24,230 OK, you guys made me feel better, at least I didn't pay a 'premium'. I do love the car though! I drove in on HOV and cut 30 minutes off my commute! SO HAPPY! It was funny that at around 8am on 95N the majority of the vehicles in the HOV lanes were hybrids, most of them were Prius!
If you go on Edmonds.com or kbb.com you will see that the Blue Book Value is actually around $700 more then MSRP. They say that the average person is paying around $700 more then MSRP. I knew someone who got me MSRP and to the front of the "List". MSRP is pretty good in my book...and as soon as I started driving it, my love for the car overrode my disgust about not having any bargaining power!
local market will definitely define the standard price, but MSRP is still considered a good deal 99% of the time for the Prius.
I must say; you're in the one place in the US (VA) where I've heard more than one instance of someone getting significantly below MSRP. So, I think you may have been able to haggle a bit, but it may have come to nothing. That said, most of us paid MSRP or more (I think I remember hearing from someone a while back who paid $6K over MSRP), so you came out all right. I think that the general consensus is that these days only suckers pay over MSRP, but you still have to be fairly lucky to pay below MSRP. I'm a little confused about the HOV lane. Did you already manage to get your stickers? Or are there no stickers for the VA-area HOV? Just want to make sure that you're not going to get a very expensive ticket for not having the proper HOV registration on your car. . .
Most everyone around here is paying MSRP plus 395-595 doc fees. I was on a waiting list for a package 8 in Virginia, and they offered me $500 below msrp plus $200 doc fee. I was able to get mine (#8) for $600 over invoice plus $595 doc fee (N. Carolina). But I had to wait 3 1/2 months for it to come in.
I paid $700 off MSRP for package 3. The dealer still made about $1,300 off me I used Miller Toyota internet price to negotiate and it was a big help. I also paid $374 for processing fee. One little off-topic question about the tax credit. Since I bought the 2006 model last week, I file the tax next year right? I know, I havn't done 2005 tax yet. I will be doing it this week/end. Dennis
In SE Toyota territory, I think there must be some agreement (probably unwritten) between all the toyota dealers about padding there profit with these outrageous doc fees. They all have them, they're printed on the sales contracts, and it's nearly uniform amongst all the dealers. They're almost always $595, and the cheapest I've seen is $395. Its seldom, if ever, negotiable, particularly on a high demand car. When I lived in California, I don't even recall a doc fee on the 89 Landcruiser, the 91 Forrunner, and the 92 Camry I purchased. When I cam to North Carolina, I purchased a new 96 Avalon. I negotiated the price, and when I was about to write a check, they came up with that (at the time) $395 doc fee. I was outraged, and said if they didn't take that off I was leaving (and I would have). They did then, for the Avalon. I very much doubt I could have done this with the Prius. The doc fees are way cheaper outside SouthEast Toyota territory. I know alot of people who drive up to Virginia to purchase for just this reason. And yes, you will file for the tax credit for your 2006 return, due April 15, 2007. I forget which line its supposed to be, although.
Screwed? No! We pd. full sticker price for our 2006. There were 10 of them on the lot that Sat. As far as the paper shuffling, this dlr. used an outside sve. to go to MVD. We pd. about $55 to transfer our plate and pay for the new title fee. The only screwing we got was trading in a Hyundai. The dlr. nailed us bad on that part. Look at it this way- Whatever you pd. come next year you will get a tax credit of $3,150.00 off of your federal tax bill. This is in addition to whatever refund you would get. Also, you now own a car that will hold its value, and as I see gas prices shooting up again you better get an alarm if you don't already have one. On a side note: Our next door yuppie neighbors are selling their monster Ford expedition. It's the biggest SUV I've ever seen. Last year they bought a BUS RV. Perhaps the money train is ending due to the gas prices. You did great. Welcome to our forum. B)
I signed up for a package #7 at about $2,200 off of MSRP from Miller Toyota (Sarah Baumgartner 703-396-5026 - someone I found to be great to work with). It is my understanding that she has more 2006 Prius available with about $1,700 off of MSRP depending on the package #. Miller Toyota is located in Virginia, about 25 minutes from Dulles International Airport. Flying via Jet Blue can cost as little as $99 one way from California. I posted this same info under a different thread and I have heard from many folks who have been having a good experience purchasing these Prius without a wait and below MSRP. Some flew in and drove the Prius home to states other than Virginia on tags arranged by the dealer. The charges for me were $2,200 off of MSRP, plus $198 processing fee, plus tags + tax. No other fees were required. No hard sell for stuff one doesn't need. No outrageous doc fee as described under this thread as associated with other dealers.
It really depends where you are and how much your time is worth. I wanted a black Package #8 with gray leather interior. After about a week I got a call from Peter at Whittier Toyota for $500 over MSRP. I drove out, paid for it and the car was delivered 5 days later (counting the weekend.) It was a pleasant transaction. I overpaid for the extended warranty (at $1500,) but didn't really mind since I was getting what I wanted. Most other places in Los Angeles I tried were quoting considerably more than MSRP (except Miller in Culver City,) and gave me estimates of 4-6 weeks. The bottom line is, if you like the car you got and the idea and the technology behind it, and if you plan to keep it for a while, MSRP or a bit over may be a fair, and in parts of California in effect truly "market," price.
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Eric Nothman @ Mar 20 2006, 09:55 PM) [snapback]227700[/snapback]</div> Do you mean you flew to VA from CA to buy a prius to save about 2k then drove it to CA? Was that worth it?
