I've been on the waiting list for MONTHS. Yesterday, my dealer calls me and says he has a "brand new" 2004 Prius--loaded. Do I want it? It's at MSRP--$25755. HUH?? I thought that Toyota has been shipping 2005's for months...where did this "new" 2004" come from? My problem is this--where has this "new" 2004 been hinding? and why would I want to buy a year old car--when the 2005 model year has been for sale for months?? what do you think? My first instinct--was to pass. But I've been waiting soooo long. LOL
First, find out the month of manufacture. That will be on the door jamb. Second, mileage. If it is low, (under 100 mi.) it wasn't driven much, even for test drives. Is it a new title? You can check carfax. If it is recently manufactured, low mileage, clean title, and looks OK, then it should be alright. Not much differences between 04/05 anyway.
Other than it being a whole MODEL YEAR old. I lose much more value buying a 2004, than a 2005. The sales man said it's "new". but he didn't know the mileage, the care wasn't at his dealership yet.
I bet it's a demo. It's not at the dealership yet because the owner's kid isn't finished with it yet, or something like that
Isn't that about $700 less than you'd pay for a 2005 with similar options? If it's not a demo and you plan to keep it for several years, you may be money ahead taking the 2004.
There's no difference between the 2004/2005 model (aside from perhaps having a few of the TSBs already implemented). Assuming it has low milage (not a demo) and is infact new, I'd recommend picking it up. Dave.
If it turns out to be a demo, I'd pass. Test-drivers abuse demos. If it merely got lost in the flow as some high-volume or low-sales dealer began selling 2005's before selling his last 2004, it could be okay. The difference in MSRP ought to cancel out the lower resale value for the older car. As DanMan suggested, the month of manufacture ought to be some clue, along with the actual mileage.
And even that depends on when the 2004 was made. Mine was made in August and the only 'fix' for it is the new NAV DVD.
Does anyone know the last month of manufacture for 04s? I assume it couldn't have been any later than September and, I suspect, might have been August. In the event it's the latter, I'd pass. That would mean the car has been sitting around on a lot (outside near Chicago?) for close to 5 months. Not good, right? Anyway, I agree with Daniel; if it's a demo, walk away at that price.
Probably August. Mine got to the dealer the third full week of Sept, the west coast was already getting '05s by then. I think it takes and extra 2 weeks to get to this 'coast', then add the trip up from port. And I third the motion. Never take a demo or a rental unless it is WAY cheap. People are not always gentle when it isn't their car. Especially when they want to see how fast it will accelerate and how it handles a 'panic' stop, etc.
I can't imagine it's NOT a demo. I haven't seen the vehicle, it's not at the dealership--yet. But, any 04 Prius that was NOT a demo probably would have been sold long ago--right? Toyota has been shiping 05's for months...if this is a non demo 04, it's been "hiding". It has options that I'm not interested in-- and it's already one model year old. I don't see how this is a good deal for *me*. But I've been waiting for sooo long....damn....
On The Other Hand.... I purchased what was, in effect. a demo. My Prius was originally driven by a Toyota employee and intended for a close relative. The relative apparently never drove the Prius and died. The Prius was then licensed and registered, subsequently listed in an EBay auction. My bid won, we flew an hour and met the seller, closed the deal and drove our "new" Prius home. The price was fair, the Prius had been maintained very well... like new, 4,500 miles on the odometer. All SSCs and TSBs had been done, even the 5,000 mile service had been completed as well. I believe the local maintaining dealer provided superior service since it was a Toyota employee's auto at that time. The transaction was a good one in every way. Both eBay and CarFAX provided "protection" against misrepresentations. My point? Purchasing a "demo" is not necessarily all bad. Use you own good judgement, get a CarFAX report and by all means, ASK QUESTIONS. Seems hard to believe, but some dealers are STILL asking $$$ premiums when a little time shopping coupled with willingness to fly/drive can find Prii at MSRP.
The dealer I bought from seems to have no waiting list and has Prius inventory on the lot. Call around to the dealers with ads on Traderonline, find out who has the one you want and go get it. There is absolutely NO reason to wait in buying a Prius, but there will be a 90 day wait for a custom ordered one, which is what I did. I paid no markup about suggested retail either.
Good points... And most dealerships around here (oddly enough, not the VW dealership) have their salesman go with you during a test drive, so aside from milage, a demo isn't going to have the same potential for "extreme testdriving" that a rental unit would have. That said, I rented an 03 before I bought my 04, and I was considerate with it Dave
The car Charles bought was not a demo: it was "intended for a relative" of the dealership employee. So it was probably driven in a normal, considerate manner. The salesman came with me on my first test-drive. But as I was still not certain, he let me take the demo from late Saturday until early Monday, an entire day plus. I could have been first on the list to buy that unit after it had served its purpose as a demo. It was the exact color/pkg I wanted. I said no. Sparky: if the car has options you don't want, I'd say again, pass it up. Call around, check the ads, find the car you want.
I love my August 2004 Prius. It is a 2004 and the next one sold by the dealer (who was surprisingly busy in Upper Michigan) was a 2005 (and is on this board). Get something in writing that you are the first owner so you can protect your claim for the Clean Fuel tax deduction when you are doing your taxes a year from now.
