Took delivery of my 2007 Touring Prius today!!

I took delivery of my 2007 Prius Touring Edition today!

Specs:
Classic Silver Metallic Ext. / Dark Grey Interior
Touring Edition
Package #3
Preferred Accessory Package
MSRP: $23,070
Package #3: $2,555
Preferred Accessory Package: $277
Delivery: $620
Total: $26,522
Costco discount -750.00
Grand Total (without tax, title, etc): $25,772

Wait Time: 3 weeks from putting the deposit down

Got lucky when my wife asked me to bug the dealership about our status on the waiting list. Turns out that this car was just delivered to the dealership and the person who was on the top of the waiting list rejected the car. Salesman offered the car, and we took it.... 2 1/2 hours later and it was in our garage! I didn't want the dealer to drill holes in the front bumper for the front license plate, but to my dismay it was already too late. Oh well.

Took it out later for a spin. Handling seems to have improved as well as cornering. Spoiler looks the same to me (subtle change). Rims are not too bad looking. Interior seems very similar if not the same as the 2006.

Pictures to come...

Thanks to everybody's posts on this board; they were very helpful in getting us this far.

10/18/2006 Update:

Impressions after 1000 miles:

The Prius has proven itself to be a very capable and well handling car with the addition of tuned suspension and larger wheels. I doubt the spoiler had very much to do with it (perhaps somewhat added stability at higher speeds?). Rear visibility is not affected by the larger spoiler at all. Note: Prior to owning this Prius, I test drove the 05 several times, and my previous vehicles were a 96 Accord and a 99 Integra.

I've found the Prius to be very capable in cornering as well as stable in lane changes at high speeds. The car doesn't have the floaty boat feeling anymore, thereby reducing the need to make minute corrections on the freeway. The suspension is stiffer than stock, thus you feel the bumps a bit more. There is still some body roll; however it is substantially less than with my previous experience with a 05 Prius. The handling is just as light as in the regular Prius, in that it doesn't have much feedback from the road. I find that because the Prius is pretty light, I can "attack" the corners agressively. I can get some good acceleration coming out of the corner if I'm following a good line and nail the apex.

However, don't get me wrong as the Prius cannot be pushed as far as say a "sports" car. I'm not expecting nor am I advertising "sports" car like performance. Being what it is, primarily a car that was built with low emissions and high gas mileage in mind, I would say it exceeds all my expectations and then some.

Looking forward, I'd like to see some comparisons between the Touring Prius and the new Hybrid Honda Civic. Toyota did a good job addressing some of the handling and stability issues that plagued early reviews of and comparisons with the Prius. Since it was one of the main weak points, I'm sure the Prius will come out that much better in the future.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/70091315@N00/

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ken1784 @ Sep 24 2006, 11:09 PM) [snapback]324554[/snapback]</div>

Hi Ken,

Apparently the American Touring Edition comes with Bridgestone Turanza EL40002 P195/55R16.

edit:
Here's a link:
http://www.bridgestone-firestone.com/news/...id=2006/060818a

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(billyboy @ Sep 25 2006, 06:19 AM) [snapback]324615[/snapback]</div>

I was also told this by the dealer... There may be some truth in this since there will alway be more regular models than touring ones. However, my advice would be to stalk the dealer and see what they get in every week. I was told one week ago that they wouldn't ANY 2007s much less the touring edition for 4-8 weeks, so I assume they tell this to people so they won't get into trouble making promises they can't keep. It was by chance that I called the dealer on the day they got their new delivery, and I know that there were people on the list ahead of me... I'm guessing the salesmen are opportunistic: if you are there at the right time and the salesman hasn't made any promises, and you are willing to buy it right there and then, it doesn't really matter where on the list you are, the prius will go to you.

Hope this helps...

 

I'm in the Bay Area, and purchased the car from Hanlee's Toyota in Davis, CA.

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Pinto Girl @ Sep 25 2006, 11:51 AM) [snapback]324782[/snapback]</div>

Thanks for the advice!

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ken1784 @ Sep 28 2006, 06:27 AM) [snapback]325001[/snapback]</div>

Hi Ken,

Made in Japan is on the sidewall.