Prius Prime - official prices paid thread

Why is your interest rate so high? I got 1.74 from my credit union for 72 months.

 

Check PenFed and DCU for great online rates on car loans - even as a refinance. DCU can go as low as 1.24% for 65 months if you DD into their checking, as the Prime also qualifies for an additional energy efficient rate discount.
Auto Refinance Loans | DCU
PM for a $20 referral

 

The auto financing rate depends on many factors such as your credit score, current employment, income, amount of loans, model of the car you are purchasing, etc. Just because one can get a low rate from a CU does not guarantee others can get the same rate. When financing, dealers are more willing to lower the price of the car if you let them find a lender. This is most likely because they get some type of kickback from the lender. You have to do a comparison and find out what saves the most. I usually start the negotiation with a dealer with a pretension of financing even if I can purchase it by cash and let the dealer pick a lender and negotiate to lower the price. Most often, I find better rates from dealers than from local banks. I just make sure there is no application fee and no penalty for paying off early.

 

What he said. Plus the fine print of the $4k cash back was it had to be financed through the dealer. Looking into local financing now that I have the paperwork from their bank. No penalties for early payoff or refinance, so I will be meeting with a local credit union that is offering 1.169 for 69 months. My credit is good but my bank won't come close to what the credit union is offering. As long as they don't have ridiculous terms, I will be going with them.

 

Yeah, definitely refinance at a lower rate, if you can. As for the cashback, I thought your rebate was $5K from Toyota? That did not require financing from the dealer as I recall. But, in this seller's market, whatever the dealer says, the buyer just has to nod to get the deal going.

 

Yes, we know this....it's a data point. 3.49% is crazy high.

 

I hope they did a proper job prepping the paint for that ceramic coating. I imagine that's cheaper than a good detailer would charge - which is what worries me.

 

We get a high end job including paint prep at a local CarStar here for under $500 with a 5 yr warranty. Dealership "treatments" today are the snake oil of yesterday. Pure profit centers for them.

 

Looks like no more 21s out there anywhere. My cousin likes mine and was interested in the deal I got. Toyota dropped the cash back on the 21s entirely and New England $2k cash back on the 22s is down to $1500. Guess he will have to wait until next year.

 

Pretty sad since there were none available to even take advantage of the $2000 offer. Most of the dealerships I've spoken with have suggested doing a Preference order instead of waiting around for what you want to just magically be available.

 

This might have been the first year the PP cashback offer amount deceased. I have a feeling it may require a longer wait before the seller's market turns around.

 

Cargurus shows 130 nationwide, Cars.com shows 120, none in Illinois. We only get a dozen for the entire state in a good year. This year we may not get any unless someone orders one.

 

Thank you for this information. I checked their site and found out I can become a member. Did refinance on the loan I took when I recently purchased my PP from a dealer. I let the dealer finance it to get a better deal, but was planning to pay it off in a few months. But now with the new refinance APR full 2 points lower, I may just keep the cash in the investment account earning ~8% instead of paying the loan off.

 

Penfed is a good credit union (anyone can join),
and if you are or a parent/grandparent are/were in the military then Navy Federal is top notch.

Current 1.79% new/refi auto at both

 

Oh, it wasn't Penfed. It was another one mentioned in the comment, DCU. That location was in my neck of woods, and I found a way to become a member even though I had no relative who is currently a member nor my employment could be used as a part of the eligibility requirement. As commented, I got a 1.24% APR for 65 mo for refinancing an auto loan without trying too hard. My bank would not touch that at that rate. It is well below the national average. However, I don't think I will be using all 65 payments to pay it off, but as long as the cash sitting in my investment account is doing better than 1.24% annualized return, there is no incentive for me to pay it off too early.

 

Yeah, that is the way to do it.
Credit Unions are unbeatable most of the time.
Pretty much profit sharing goes to the members...shown as lower rates (at least more than the CEOs at national banks )

 

I have a number of financial accounts, mostly online banks with one local brick-and-mortar bank, but I was never a member of any credit union. This was the first one. When I was checking out to join DCU, I did also check a local credit union that is supported by my employer for comparison. Guess what, their new car loan rate was listed as 4.99%, even higher than the car dealer's loan through a national major bank. So, I don't know if all CU are alike.

 

oh no, not all CU are alike.
Doctor of Credit will list all good things and rates for all financial institutions. (im sure you been there before)
But out of the top 3, penfed, nfcu and dcu are there all around general loans! ( I am member of the latter 2, dcu I have not joined.)

 

FYI, DCU Primary Savings acct will earn 6% on up to $1,000 - with no catches (no debit transactions, direct deposit, etc)

 

2022 Prius Prime XLE / Titanium Glow (Door guards, all weather floor and cargo area mats)
$31409
$2500 (Dealer, Toyota, and military)
$28909
$31250 (Includes TTL and 6.25% MA sales tax)
Vermont