If you still want that Prius

From that link:

Toyota aims to rev up Prius sales 50 percent this year. The automaker hopes the incentives will help them reach that goal and one other. It wants to reshape the Prius' image as a vehicle for all Americans, not just tree-hugging, latte-sipping Coasters.

The shortage of Prii is over, at least for now, while gas prices have plummeted thanks to Saudi Arabia's efforts to lower oil prices to throttle back Iran's ambitions.

As far as terms go, I bought my 2003 BMW motorcycle with 0.9 % financing, no downpayment required, and BMW made the first 5 payments for me on a 4-year loan. Now that was a deal that I couldn't resist.

It is a very positive thing that Toyota is trying to make the Prius a mainstream car. It should be!

Harry

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(bigdaddy @ Feb 8 2007, 09:07 PM) [snapback]387239[/snapback]</div>

I didn't really care for the tone of the article "quite a bit of a turn-around", "Toyota willing to go that low" (on interest/pay packages)...

The fact of the matter is, Toyota finally has Prii available on dealer's lots instead of on waiting lists, some 2.5 years after the latest model was introduced, despite no advertising and significantly ramping up production every year. People have gotten used to runaway success, and now that it's almost down to a normal well-selling car (average car has about $2000 in incentives), everybody is saying the demand has dropped like it's going to be the end of the car. Approximately 600,000 Prii have been sold world-wide, half of those in the U.S. so it's about time for it be considered mainstream. I actually saw my first-ever Prius commercial on TV last week, altho it had gotten a cameo appearance in some general Toyota commercials about a month ago.

I'm waiting for a competitor to come out with a hybrid as good as the Prius for mileage and interior space, fit & finish, and price. That would reduce all this consternation and attention by the media about the future fate of the Prius (will people want to buy it? what about those batteries?).

 

I've been thinking about a Prius for the past couple of years, and finally decided to have a look last week. I was pleasantly surprised to see that it is a great time to buy. The 3 dealers withing 25 miles of me had a combined inventory of 70+ Prii. Besides the financing I found a dealer that was willing to negotiate on price -- I never expected to see that! So I'm now the proud owner of a '07 red Prius, package 4 -- the best video game on wheels.

Lucky for me that so many Americans have the attention span of a gnat! Gas prices drop back to $2.30 & the SUVs make a rebound. :lol:

 

Here's what hybrid sales looked like in Jan:

Jan Sales

Hardly a slump in Hybrid sales... particularly for the Prius.

 

I live in California and with lower gas prices and no HOV lane stickers available, its shaping up to be a great time to by a Prius.
While I know many Prius owners are very green minded, there is a great number of them that bought because of the HOV lane incentive as traffic is so crowded here and it was basically a way to buy time.

Is it possible to get one below MSRP now?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(joe hybrid @ Feb 12 2007, 07:59 PM) [snapback]389222[/snapback]</div>

Check the thread about pricing. Everyone is buying below MSRP. Some are buying below invoice. Check out www.carbuyingtips.com and good luck finding exactly what you want.

 

aint that much incentives around here. just checked with a few that work in the new car sales biz. Priuses are still going for more of their sticker than any other car and its not a close race.

sure there are some going for 1,000-1500 under sticker, but that is hardly giving them away. to me, its not doing anything but compensating for the reduced tax credit.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(joe hybrid @ Feb 12 2007, 04:59 PM) [snapback]389222[/snapback]</div>

Depending on where you are, it should be possible to get one around invoice. I'm in the San Francisco area, and I paid 25.3k for mine, which is just under invoice, but they included the cargo and floor mats with it, so I guess I came out about 100 under. I had to do some back and forth with multiple dealers, though.

Reading through the posts, I see someone in SoCal was quoted 25.1k, and various people have bought anywhere in the 25-26k range, though others have been not as lucky (27k or thereabouts). So it should be fairly easy to get one for a healthy discount now.

(EDIT) Edmunds reports there's a $750 rebate on them this month. I wonder if it's too late for me to go back and demand it....

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Earthling @ Feb 9 2007, 07:59 AM) [snapback]387397[/snapback]</div>

So toyota announces they are putting an incentive on the Prius to make it a "mainstream" car and you buy that? Let me tell you there is only one reason to put an incentive on a car and that is too much supply. I think they put the incentive on it after the US governnment incentive on the Prius ran out at the end of 2006.

 

>I think they put the incentive on it after the US governnment incentive on the Prius ran out at the end of 2006.

It didn't run out - it got halved in October, and it'll be going down again in March, and run out sometime in July.. or somewhere around there.

Let me tell you...

I bought mine the other day, after pondering it for a number of years. The rebate, and 0% finance, and *availability* all came together this month to push me into buying one. Previously I couldn't even get one to test drive...

S.

 

Hello everyone!

This is my first post, just got my Prius last saturday...and it drives like a dream!

I got Package 2 (for some reason all the while I thought I was buying/negotiating for a package 3) and got it for $23550. Sticker price was around $24000+. Another dealer offered a package #6 for $25888 but it wasn't the color I wanted. Overall, I'm happy with the buying experience and very happy with the car!

btw...I'm in SoCal.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(malorn @ Feb 13 2007, 07:51 AM) [snapback]389434[/snapback]</div>

The average car has $2000 in incentives (wish I remembered where I read that, but it was in the last couple weeks). Now that's for mainstream vehicles. It's just a trick to make people think they got a good deal - "the MSRP is 30K, but for you, it's $28K".

BTW, more Prius were sold last month than Expeditions. So why is the first a niche vehicle and the second mainstream?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(malorn @ Feb 13 2007, 08:51 AM) [snapback]389434[/snapback]</div>

Malorn, I'm sure you'd know all about that after the desparate GM "fire sale" Employee Discount for Everyone Pricing Program in 2005. :lol:

The tax credit on Toyota Corporation hybrid vehicles was only cut in half at the end of September as they had exceded a phase-out trip lever of 60,000 units delivered in the second quarter of 2006. That means that it's currently $1,575 for deliveries through the end of March. At which time, it will be halved again. It will then "run out" at the end of September 2008.

So, how many hybrid units has GM delivered under this program to date? When will they hit the phase out of 60,000 units? :lol: :lol: :lol:

The phase out, of course, was a gift from the US Senate to the US auto makers who, other than Ford, had better hurry up because the entire tax credit program on hybrids as currently written ends in December 2009.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(TonyPSchaefer @ Feb 9 2007, 10:38 AM) [snapback]387569[/snapback]</div>

One of my friends (old time friend's husband) is on the Bay Area Air Quality Managment District representing San Fransisco and I am very interested to hear what they have planned for California. They seem to be trying to figure out how to reduce emmisions from personal transportation. I have a feeling whatever they propose will have more people looking into purchasing hybrids. I can only pray they get their ideas implimented. I'm hoping to gain insight at lunch today.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(malorn @ Feb 13 2007, 05:51 AM) [snapback]389434[/snapback]</div>

Kinda like Dodge and their nutty incenstives. Dodge Ram fullsize runs about $8k less than a similarly equipt GM fullsize. lol

 

Has Toyo pushed that state incentives at all? Here in CO the '05 prius got me a $3434 tax credit in addition to the $2000 fed tax deduction. The people at the dealership didn't even seem to know it (the state tax credit) existed. I found out about it after the fact and was chuffed to bits. The tax credit runs out in 2011 I think so here in CO there's still plenty of financial incentive to buy hybrid.