Thinking of a cheap upgrade

Tell me what you think of this, if I'm just crazy or if it might just be crazy enough to work.

This all started when I took my wife down to the dealership on Saturday to put the deposit down for her new Prius, replacing the guzzling mini-van (we're tired of waiting for Toyota to bring out a hybrid Sienna...). She wants leather in hers, since she'll have the kids more often then I will and she likes how easily it cleans up. My cloth cleans up great too, but hey, she gets what she wants . So, anyway, she's going to get the package 6, bluetooth, nav, and leather. My 2006 doesn't have bluetooth on the package 4 (now equivalent to a package 2), so I am going to be jealous as hell since I'm the tech nerd of the family.

We started talking with the dealership manager about my 2006, and he said they just sold a 2005 off their lot for $25k. Mid-line package, no nav. Said he sees them go for that easy on craigslist, put it on there for immediate sale and you'll have a bidding war. Got me thinking. My 2006 is in great shape, a couple dings but nothing too noticeable. 19k miles (pretty low for a 2006). Package 4, so the single-CD player, no bluetooth, nav, all that stuff. I did the Coastal EV mod to it, and have a block heater. Lifetime average just under 48mpg, but I can consistently keep it around 54-56mpg now. Car's paid for, no outstanding loan.

So, what I'm thinking is that I put another $1000 down for a 2008 (heck, maybe wait a month and get a 2009 when they start taking orders for those?), and sell mine around the time when mine comes in, maybe a week or so early. Get a new 2008/2009 with package 5 (bluetooth and nav, I don't need the leather) for $27k and change (not including the tax, I guess), and sell my 2006 for $24-26k. So I get basically the last two years of use on the Prius for free (that's about what I paid for it then) and upgrade to a new one with the fun stuff on it for just a couple grand. Pay cash for it and walk away.

Am I out of my mind? What am I missing here? Sounds too easy...

 

I'm the same way, prefer the cloth to the leather, especially here in the Arizona heat. But, our 6 year-old girl has a tendency to occasionally get car-sick. My wife fell in love with having leather in the family car starting with newborns for just that reason. But I don't need it in my car, I don't have the kids in it that often.

I'd probably put it out there at $25k and see what happens.

 

Big Two in Chandler. I bought my 2006 from them, and that's where we've got our deposit for my wife's. Will probably use them for my new one too if I decide to go that way.

I think the key is people just don't want to wait the 60 days most dealerships are quoting for a new one now. Demand is high, and overall supply has stayed constant due to the battery manufacturing. In our market, supply has actually gone down as it's increased in other areas. Dealers here aren't getting the same allotments as they used to. If the Prius is in hand and ready to sell immediately, people seem to be willing to pay that $25k for a 2006. I've got less miles on mine than most I've seen, too, so that might help in the price. This really seems to be a recent change on the craigslist boards in the last month. The only problem is that you can't really see what they sold for, you can only see what they listed them for.

As for the 2008/Pkg.5 for $27k and some change, Big Two is selling them for MSRP plus their delivery fee, about $400 or so. No premium like some of the other dealers in the area are adding and getting away with. Don't know about the 2009 pricing, though I would guess it would be similar.

 

That is a REALLY good point on the tax situation, I really going to have to mull that one over. I could afford to take a little less on the trade if it offsets the $2k in taxes I'm going to have to pay (taxes here in AZ are pretty tough).

The dealer sold a used 2005 with more miles than mine for $25k, so I'd think I might be able to get the same privately for my 2006. Craigslist seems to have them listed at around $3k over Kelley Blue Book in the last couple of weeks, though there's no way of telling if they sold at that price. eBay hasn't looked as good, but they have shown a slight uptrend in the last few weeks.

People just don't want to wait, we're in an instant-gratification society. My wife was seriously thinking about the Hi-Hy just because they had one on the lot, even though it's more than we want to spend and less mileage.

 

I'm biting the bullet and putting down my $1k to get on the list. Trade in, I'm looking at $24k for mine (that's BB trade, not private sale) and I confirmed that with the dealership. I might be able to get more on private sale, but if I trade in then that does come off the price of the car before tax, which saves me about another $2k so it makes sense to just trade it.

Our dealership here will also sell the 2008 Package 5 for $27,250, which I believe is MSRP, no uplift. They did that on my first Prius in 2006, and did that on my wife's 2008 Package 6 that we're picking up tomorrow. So, I think I can pretty much guarantee that price for the Package 5. That would put the car most likely around $3,250 + tax/title (would transfer my hybrid tag to the new car, and it was just renewed). Most likely I'd pay for that out of pocket and have the new car clean.

Just seems like a great time to get the value out of my 2006 before it potentially drops with other hybrid offerings being announced. I mean, I can trade this guy for $24k, and I paid $25k for it two years ago. That's holding value pretty well, I must say.