Prius Base vs. Touring edition: the dirty little secret

The touring also has a larger rear spoiler.

 

Thanks for the suggestion. Lots of crooks or innocent know-nothings out there.

The Touring Edition was only available in the U.S. for the 2007, 2008 and 2009 model years.

Besides (1) larger rear spoiler, and (2) 7 spoke 16" wheels and 16" tires, all Touring Editions will have:

(3) HIDs and front fog lights (but high option package Standard Prius will have these too),

(4) larger front and rear stabilizer bars (but you won't be able to easily tell the difference by looking at them), and

(5) different rear struts and springs - note that you WILL be able to detect this:

Look under the car from the rear. On either side you will see where the struts attach to the rear suspension beam. Just above the attachment point are two painted stripes on the strut tube.

The Touring Edition Prius has a pink stripe and a red stripe.

The Standard Prius has a blue stripe and a red stripe.

You can see pictures of the different colored striped struts in this thread:

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-main-forum/32947-touring-owners-check-your-rear-struts.html

 

I noticed many Indy dealerships listing a "Prius Touring" and using the Kelly Blue Book site to list the "price" of the car. They do this so it looks like the car is worth more. Its really sad and dishonest. They can always claim the sign was put there by an inexperienced salesman, but even after I pointed out the error to a sales manager at one of the dealerships, they were still up on the cars 2 weeks later.

 

The spoiler is the quickest way to tell. It looks noticeably different than the Standard edition spoiler.

 

Yes, I heard that for 2007, 2008 and 2009, the Touring Edition constituted only about 5% of the Priuses shipped to the United States.

 

Mine says it on the window sticker from the factory, not sure if that means anything or not.

 

I'd say the struts & the spoiler are the dead giveaways but without a reference, "larger spoiler" isn't helpful. If the original window sticker isn't available then look at the struts as Boo said. I'd report the dealers with the misidentified cars to the county Consumer Affairs office. If original owners & dealers are misidentifying the cars then they are IMO theives & scum.

 

Consumer Reports made a big deal about the Touring model handling better than the standard. I have the 08 standard, and am quite satisfied with its handling in normal driving. And I've driven a few sports cars which can be a pain driving around town, with all the shifting and noise. The Prius is very low stress--no noise and no shifting.

 

Advertising and/or selling Standard models for Touring is unethical.
But whoever said that used car salesmen are models of proper
behavior.

Given the relatively small numbers of Touring model cars vs. standard
ones on the used car market, clearly this is a case of caveat emptor,
buyer beware, or buyer do your homework!

I have never understood why there hasn't been an OEM Touring badge
on the Prius. Especially since Mother Toyota has at least one in her
parts inventory for the Avalon. And, had the badge been pinned with
corresponding holes in the body work, there would be little chance to
"fake it."

More on Touring badge choices here:

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-modifications/29725-touring-badge-options.html

Yes, at least on the surface the easiest visual clues to tell the
difference between the Standard and Touring models is the slightly
longer hatch mounted spoiler and seven spoke wheels. IIRC retrofitting
these goes for ~$2,000, and I can't see them being added willy-nilly to
create a deception.

Yet, it is possible to upgrade even the suspension on the Standard
model to Touring Specs. See this thread:

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-prius-main-forum/41925-touring-suspension-parts-research.html

In addition to the excellent information he provided in post #3, Boo
figured prominently in this thread as well. Well done, sir. :thumb:

Lastly, I believe that all the parts necessary to complete the
transformation are available at Sigma Automotive

So, even if you can't find an OEM Touring model, with a little $$ and
work you can build/mod your own.

 

Don't blame the dealer right off. They may have been duped by the owner of the car. They looked at the car and saw a touring and never checked the serial number for conformation.

I saw this happen back in the 80's when a Chevy dealer called on a Volvo they had taken in on trade. They called due to the owner being a little squirrelly as they say. A Volvo 242 GL gets traded in on a new Chevrolet. It had the right emblems, wheels and grill but something was just not right about the car. The Chevy dealer not knowing Volvo's calls my dealer and talks to a salesman I was BS'ing with while waiting for an oil change. All the guy had to ask was, did it have a sunroof. The Chevy dealer said no. Then it was a base DL then.
Needless to say the guy who traded it in got a phone call from a very unhappy sales manager.

 

The US verson touring Prius will not have fog lights. At least not the 2007's

 

My 2007 Touring has fog lights.

 

I traded in a 2004 Prius for the 2007 Touring Edition. I liked the handling of the TE much better. It doesn't have that slight understeer of the standard models yet it seemed to corner better. I'm now moving on to the 2010 model because of parking assist and other features. The only annoyance is the more boat-like steering. You do get used to it, though, so I wouldn't wait forever for the TE.

 

I don't understand why your 2007 Touring doesn't have front fog lights.

Front fogs were standard on all 2007 Touring Editions.

See the list of standard and optional equipment in the 2007 Prius eBrochure:

http://www.toyotacertified.com/ebrochures/07_prius.pdf

 

If you're dissatisfied with the handling of your 2010 Prius compared to your 2007 Touring Edition, you might consider some performance handling modifications.

There are already a lot of aftermarket performance handling modifications available, including strut tower brace, chassis stiffening braces, larger front and rear stabilizer/sway bars, TRD Sportivo struts and springs, lowering springs, etc.

See Sigma Automotive:

Toyota Prius 2010 ZVW30 Performance, Handling & Electronic Accessories :: Sigma Automotive

 

Am I bad. Mine does have fog lights I just looked. I remember the issue was that on the American ones you can't just turn on the fog lights but you can on the foreign ones. If my memory serves me correct. Sorry for the misinformation.

 

A bit out of step with the original discussion: I wanted to add that this is a great thread, and anyone considering buying a used touring should be careful.

I was looking at them, and many of the "tourings" for sale in the SF Bay Area clearly weren't (as shown by their rims in the photos supplied by the sellers).