Incredibly, I drove a new Prius home yesterday -- the package and color I wanted, & with no markup! It did have the following accessories: carpet/cargo mats, cargo net, security system, wheel locks, rear bumper applique (I wanted most of those anyway, except maybe the applique). We were not charged anything over list price, for any of these things. I found this Prius after only about 2 weeks of (real) searching. I had put one deposit down (for $100), although I did call/email a number of other dealers & watched 3 Internet boards like a hawk. So I had put some time/effort into it... in fact I am very relieved that I can go back to doing other things now, because I had serious "priitis"... I also didn't have a car, so I was real motivated. Anyway -- it is possible -- although I think that luck was definitely involved. We were going to visit Martinsville, VA so I called their dealership & they had an unclaimed #4 on the lot! It was the first unspoken-for Prius I had come across anywhere, but I needed a #7 or #9 package. They managed to swap their #4 for a #7 with a dealer in Farmville, VA (who apparently had 2 identical #7s on their lot, so this way they could offer more variety). So -- for people who are still looking, there may be 1 or 2 in Farmville, VA. I want to commend Martinsville Toyota (our salesman was Nick Bello, "Captain Credit"!) for their excellent, fair & friendly service. I also recommend checking with Cloninger Ford/Toyota in Salisbury, NC (where I had placed a refundable deposit -- my salesman was Ashley Powell, & you could mention that I referred you) and Mid-State Toyota in Asheboro, NC (ask for Dwayne or Heath). Both of these NC dealerships had very short lists (approx. 3 people) and were friendly & no-pressure. I got a real good feeling from the people at both of them, & they seemed to think they might be getting a few cars in the next couple of months. I would also like to thank Mario Crim, a dealer in the Pittsburgh, PA area (email [email protected]) who was kind enough to try to help me find a Prius closer to where I live, & whose waiting list may also be fairly short. Anyway, that's my (long) story! I hope maybe it helps one of you to find your Prius! :mrgreen:
Perhaps you should retitle this thread to be the "Shout-out" thread Congrats again, I hope you continue your activity on PriusChat! Danny
Thanks Danny! (I thought about calling them shout-outs) & yes I'm looking forward to reading more of the topics now that I can apply them to a real live Prius fyi all I think I misspelled Mario's email address in my post above, but in any case you can find him at Mel Grata Toyota in Hermitage, PA.
I followed up on this and emailed Mario regarding any 2004's with BC that were on the ground in the Chicago region and he followed up right away and offered what information he had. His check showed many leads to follow up. They may be phantoms but I'll check it out. He also verified that there is no order system at all for this model. Japan simply ships what they ship. He also said a "dealer's pipeline" had nothing to do with allocations but simply "turn and earn" which I think some have refrerred to as "travel rate". I suppose this could vary by region. He was personable, straight-foward and very helpful - with no expectation that I might be ordering from him or anything. Wow! His email is mario crim [[email protected]] Mark
Bad News, I talked to a saleman this morning from Haley Toyota of Farmville, VA. Yes, they have 2 prii on the lot, but both are already bought. Oh well, maybe the 2005 production will be enough to meet demand.
Hi MadCat, I'm sorry those Prii were already gone although unfortunately I'm not surprised, because even in a small town I think these cars go very fast. I would just like to reiterate here that I was very optimistic about my chances at the 2 dealerships in NC (which are much closer to you than Farmville VA), in case you are looking for a place to get onto a short list. I have referenced both of those above (one is in Asheboro, one in Salisbury). They both had very short lists & seemed like very nice/reliable dealers. I was lucky to find a Prius quickly at another dealer, but I was also very happy to find those 2 dealers; they seemed to think they'd have some Prii coming in this spring although the package/color was unpredictable. Best of luck!
