For me, anyway. Being a detail-oriented engineering-type, I used the attached spreadsheet to calculate total cost of ownership to justify buying a second Prime. I found that buying a 2017 Prime would be one cent per mile cheaper than keeping the 2010 over the next 5 years. The main factors were the Toyota rebate, the East Coast dealers being willing to deal, the Federal tax credit, and the lower operating costs. Your Mileage May Vary (literally). Plug in your numbers to see how you fare...
Thanks so much for putting this together! I've been looking for such a detailed spreadsheet - none of the online calculators take into account all the rebates, and the state laws very so much about what is taxed, etc. Very much appreciated.
Good luck with the 2010. Seems like they can't even be given away around here. My friend had a 2010 for sale that he had bought for his daughter to use for college. Car was great shape with <150k miles and he started it for sale at $8500. A year later still was trying to sell it at $6100 and finally gave up and just kept it. The thing about spread sheets is they're just like statistics. You can make them show whatever you want. Change that trade-in value to 7k and see what happens. Would that have stopped you from buying the PPA? I'd bet not. Buy what you like and enjoy it. We're all adults. We don't need to justify a dang thing. It's our money, we can spend it however we want.
Luckily the Pacific Northwest is a hotbed for Prius sales, so I shouldn't have too much trouble selling it. If you ever fly into SEA airport, be sure and walk by the ridesharing area - it made me actually LOL watching how many Priuses there are constantly driving through. You are correct that spreadsheets are models, and I based this one on the best knowledge I have at the moment. And you are correct that other factors are in play as well. Plugging in values for a Plus or Premium might also yield much different results, but my wife really feels safer with Blind Spot Monitors, etc. Overall, I do feel I managed to take advantage of a sweet spot in time.
No doubt about it, Prime is absolutely fantastic value and you got great deals on top. That said, presuming that the Prime value will be $16k in five years is .... optimistic.
Can you make a spreadsheet that shows that I will save money trading in my 2006 Gen 2 for a Model S? If you have to fudge the numbers a little I don't mind
I actually tried that, and it was so far out of line that my hopes and dreams were dashed against the rocky shore of reality....
Looking at the end value, you have to spend 14,000$ to own the prime at the end of the 100,000 miles, yet, at the end of 100,000 miles with the ‘10, you wouldn’t have spent 14,000$. I see the 1000$ saved by driving the prime per mile, so the 14,000$ spent can be fiddled with, yes the insurance... Hey, I traded a 16’ #4 to get into a 17 advanced, the Tax beak takes away the misery, I really, really wanted a heated steering wheel
Thanks for the spreadsheet. Great analysis. I did similar calculation when I purchased my 2017 Prime last year, but with trading then less than 3 years old 2015 Prius Two. The price of the car became cheaper than Gen 3. One thing I may point out is that, although PRIME is a extremely good value, and you showed to us the cost of owning it may be small, you can never SAVE money by purchasing a new car. Say, if I did not purchase PRIME and kept driving 2015 Pri Two, and invested money used for PRIME purchase, that would have been a real saving. Same goes with you, I think. But, owning a new PRIME is such a good feeling. Enjoy.
Good point about the time value/opportunity cost of putting the funds into savings. Also, I did not consider the value of my labor in doing my own maintenance and repairs, which did add up this summer on the 2010. Maybe I'll add them next time!
