I'll never get over it....

Three words; Anger ManageMent

Just keep repeating, GOOSFRABA



Hey, works for me! Not real well or anything but, well, actually, it doesn\'t work at all.

 

as of the timestamp of my message, that link had 1002 hits and only one bid of $20k, nowhere near the asking price... the free market (one which i believe in) may very well stick this guy with the car unless someone is willing to pay over list to get one quick. spread that overpayment across five or more years and tens of thousands of miles, and it may be worth it to someone.

but not most of us......
and that's why i like this group and why i ping my dealer monthly and not that eBay auction!

 

I sent him the following eBay message:

"You are scum........from someone waiting over 3 months for a Prius.......capitalism does have it's dark side........"

Made me feel better........

 

This guy is a hoot......check out the email exchanges:

His answer to my email:

"From someone that decided to get a Prius 2 weeks ago and found a way to get one at sticker with no wait......hard work has it's bright side.

There are dealers out there with no wait and selling at sticker."

My response:

"So now you mark it up and sell it on eBay......I guess we all have our values."

He answers back:

"It's always unfair when someone has something that you don't. Somebody is always scum. Its always the person that has something.

If I was selling my place in line for a heart transplant, that would be scum. A Prius is a luxury item that you don’t need and neither do I. If someone wishes to reward themselves with one with no wait and area willing to pay the price, that's totally their choice. If a Prius is so important to you that it becomes part of your core values, well, that up to you. There are 10 million items for bid on Ebay with everyone looking to make money. You're going to wear out your computer writing emails to all this scum. Would be easier to ignore what you wish not to buy though. Your choice."

My retort:

"Seems you are bothered that someone would consider your actions "scum". Guess
you'll have to live with it.

Nothing I said had anything to do with the concept of fair.....it's a values
choice....and you have made yours.

I'll enjoy tracking this item and it's hopeful lack of success.

BTW, I bet you drive a gas guzzling, polluting SUV....."

Gosh, I'm enjoying this! Hopefully more to come......
P.S.--Ain't it great that the Prius is now a 'luxury item'? LOL

 

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I don't know what irks me more ... Forum topic headers that don't reveal the message subject matter ... or ... Forum topic headers that don't match with the message subject matter.

 

I've noticed this happening a lot on ebay. At one point, I had actually scooped a prius in the middle of PA that was available for sale from a dealer! I was happy as could be until *they* decided to put it up on ebay and wouldn't entertain the notion of selling it regularly. (Independence Toyota, in case anyone is wondering).

Currently I'm in the middle of 32 people on my dealer's waiting list. I don't mind waiting, but if there's stuff out there, I'd sure like to find out about it!

And while I'm thinking about it, I've seen listings on ebay of "extras" for sale. You'd figure that most dealerships, if they indeed got an extra one, would give it to someone waiting.

 

I can't comprehend how "extras" are even possible unless the dealer gets more cars than there are customers on the list. How unlikely is that scenario?

'And while I'm thinking about it', I wonder if there is even one Toyota dealer in the entire U.S.A. without a single customer waiting for a Prius (or even a dealer with only one customer on the list).

 

amen, tag!
when we bought our '98 Camry, the color we wanted was "in", and the dealer said that if we didn't want that color, he could easily trade it to another dealer to get a model he could sell. are those days over? can a Toyota dealer NOT find another dealer who'd trade a car he needs or wants for a Prius he doesn't? there's either a hidden agenda, or flat-out stupidity on the hoof, there!

What's the quote? "The two most abundant things in the Universe are Hydrogen and Stupidity".... yep, that's the one.

 

Yep! That as well as just plain-vanilla, old-fashioned, run-of-the-mill, greed.

I've seen this kind of thing happen before. I saw it firsthand when Toyota redesigned the Land Cruiser and Honda released the 2002 Odyssey so I suppose none of what's going on with the 04 Prius should come as a big surprise. Sure is frustrating, though!

 

There's actually worse than that tho. One of the dealers near me (Sansone's Route 1 Automall) somehow is showing 4 or 5 priuses in stock (and have been since December). If you call, they'll tell you they definitely have some. When you get there, you'll find out they *just sold* the last one and you'll have to order.

I knew better and didn't fall for that routine, but I wonder how many people have taken that bait.

 

I love my '04 Prius with 2200 miles on it. However, if someone were to offer me $5,000 more than I paid for it, I would have to consider it.

 

I ordered a blue #7 back in November. Took delivery 2 months later. My dealer told me that the one he had been going to get was a different color, so he traded allocations with another dealer to get me the blue. So, yes, it still happens, though in this case the traded cars were still in the pipeline, and merely re-directed.

This is what capitalism is all about: buy something someone else will pay more for. Scalpers do it at football games. Speculators do it on the stock market. Any place there's a scarcity, someone will exploit it for profit. Of course, there's always the risk that nobody will pay.

But I have to agree with the guy selling the car in this case. A Prius is not a necessity. It's a luxury car. If he was hoarding food in time of famine I'd call him a scumbag. But rather than call him names, I'd suggest looking at the economic system where the wealthy drive up the cost of housing to the point that some folks have no roof over their head.

The guy is being a capitalist in a capitalist society, he's not breaking any law, and he's not harming anyone.

That said, I hope he can't sell the car and has to take a loss on it. Maybe somebody will end up getting a slightly-used Prius at a discount.

 

Daniel,

It is interesting that those that have their Prii and are currently enjoying the economy and pleasure (luxury, if economical transportation is indeed a luxury) are much more tolerant of this particular implementation of capitalism than those of us who continue to be frustrated by the situation. Yes, I fall into the frustrated category just as thousands of others who continue to wait. And, yes, we are all put off by those dealers and individuals who attempt to take advantage of a situation that will disappear as soon as supply meets demand. Until then, I hope those that have more money than good sense will not fall into their scummy (yes, scummy) webs (no apologies for venting frustration). Please agree or disagree as you wish....and enjoy your Prius.

 

Windsurfdog, A Prius IS a luxury. A Kia Rio will get you around just fine, and it costs less than half that of a Prius. Last year, I purchased a Daewoo Lanos with 10K miles on the odometer on Ebay for $4300.

It drove me to and from work every day without a single hitch, and kept the heavy miles off of the other vehicles. While I can certainly understand your frustration, The anger really is misguided. The guy bought the car, and it belongs to him to do whatever he wishes with it.

 

Wolfman,

I'll not argue the "luxury" angle further except to say that a pair of shoes can be construed to be a luxury for bare feet, much less a Kia Rio....it's all perspective.

I agree....the guy bought the car and he can do whatever he wishes. Thank goodness this great country we live in supports that. But does that alone provide sanctification? Is he above ANY reproach? Should everyone wish him the best no matter where they stand on the issue? Is there not gray between the black and white? Anger, no. Frustration, definitely. No room for this?

Enjoy your Prius.

 

You most certainly have the right to be offended by what he's doing. This is a free country. However, since what the guy is doing is perfectly legal, there is no real reason to have ill regards for what he's doing. Since the guy isn't harming anyone, IMO, there are much bigger fish to worry about than him.

 

You can certainly be angry at the guy for having something you want. And you can hope and wish (as I do) that he does not find a buyer and ends up having to take a loss and someone gets a bargain on a slightly-used Prius. but it's hardly justified to call him a scumbag.

Do we even know that he bought the car with the intention of selling it used for a profit? Might he have bought it in good faith and then had financial difficulties that forced him to sell, and now he's just trying to get whatever the market will bear?

 

I agree that while it is frustrating that this guy is (maybe) making a profit when the Prius is in demand, he really isn't doing anything ethically wrong.

An example of a scumbag would be a dealer who moves people who are willing to pay a significant amount over the MSRP to the head of the waiting list (such as the dealers at Tysons Corner Toyota).

 

hedwig and windsurfdog
I think you guys influnced this bum. he has pulled it off of the auction. It says it is no longer for sale

Tom