TOYOGUARD

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eberrong @ Jun 15 2007, 07:30 AM) [snapback]462190[/snapback]</div>

As far as I know (we refused to get it) ToyoGuard Plus Package cost $699 and is put on all AT PORT (Jacksonville, FL) and is put onto over 95% of the S.E.T. Toyotas. If you catch the vehicle BEFORE it hits port you can (as we did) eliminate (delete) it and save $699 !!

In my opinion (although others may disagree) Toyoguard is a complete waste of $699 !!
What it is....
VIN etch in the glass (which is probably the only good thing)
Undercoating, quickly sprayed ONLY in the wheel wells
Some sort of waxy, oil-based "spray" under the rest of the underbody/chassis which sort of attracts dust
Paint "protectant" which is a form of "quickly applied" polymer coating. I much prefer to apply Zaino myself.
And they say first two oil & filter changes as well as tire rotation is free (not too sure of this one ??)
Plus something about the use of a "rental" (loaner) car if your vehicle is in the shop (another one I am not sure of)

Since we did NOT get it I am not the one to give specific details, just an opinion that if we did it would have been a complete waste of $699 (except maybe for the glass VIN etch which can be done elsewhere for under $100) !! Like I said, we were lucky to locate our vehicle while it was still on the ship (before port) and we were able to say NO, don't want it !!

Your concern about the "undercoating".... from what I heard it is just a "quick-and-sloppy" spray they do ONLY in the wheel wells.... now I may be totally wrong, but this is what OUR Toyota Dealer told us !!

BTW- This thread tells about the paint protector experiences:
http://priuschat.com/index.php?showtopic=9710

 

FloridaWen is absolutely right. We caught both of mine in time to eliminate the Toyoguard crap charge. Even the salesmen don't really know what it is usually... If you ask them, they will mumble something about undercoating (which Toyota already puts on anyway) and window glass etching (which I think you could probably have done for much less than $700!)

In my opinion, ToyoGuard = extra profit for dealership only.

I think some of the practices at SET are very unfair, but they do have a monopoly in that part of the country. They force you to have to go 400 miles to get out of their grasp! (They also have that mandatory "dealer" charge of like 600-700 which is just for the pleasure of them selling you a car!)

-Vikki

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Miss_Taz @ Jun 15 2007, 08:10 AM) [snapback]462196[/snapback]</div>

YEP !! We were suckered into an "additional" $599 DEALER ADMIN FEE down here in Florida. When we questioned what it is, the Dealer told us it includes the cost to "prep" the new Prius, the "salaries" for the people behind the scenes, like the office admin. people, etc., and it also covers "overhead".... as he told us this I asked what is overhead? He told us it is the cost to operate the business, the building lighting, etc. There was NO getting rid of this $599 fee, in fact it is PRINTED right onto the sales paper !! :angry:

 

Everything is negotiable, even if it is printed on a form. I had a dealership try that with me once. I told them that if they wanted me to pay for their overhead through a separate charge, then I wasn't paying a dollar over invoice (their cost) for the vehicle. I told them I understood they were a business and had operating costs, but that those should come out of their margin on the sales price versus the invoice price, not by some flat charge tacked on elsewhere.

The salesman balked, so I walked. The sales manager caught me in the lot and waived the admin fee on the spot. Like I said, everything is negotiable when it comes to buying a car.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Swanny1172 @ Jun 15 2007, 08:27 AM) [snapback]462201[/snapback]</div>

My Wife and I "caved in" during the heat of the moment because they were telling us that they found a Prius in the color/package we wanted coming over on the ship (or else we would have to wait over 90 days) and it would be here in two weeks, plus we could eliminate $699 Toyoguard. We folded and gave in, I guess.......

But.... got 4 free rubber floor mats out of it !!

 

Just remember that you have the upper hand. You can always walk out the door, and a dealer will do almost anything to see that doesn't happen. The minute you get desparate or excited, you lose.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(FloridaWen @ Jun 15 2007, 08:15 AM) [snapback]462199[/snapback]</div>

I guarantee you if you just got up from the table and said "ok, well have a nice day" that fee would suddenly become 0$. Its a total BS fee. They tried to do it to me when I was buying an '06 eclipse (used). I told them "the best I can do is 22,000 out the door"
"oh ya, bla blah we can do that no problem"
I get to the financial part and its like 23,500 and I'm like Wth, I said 22000 OTD, whats this extra 1500?
"It pays me, and all the people that helped sell this car"
"oh, ok, well then make the car 20,500, because I said 22,000 OTD and you said you can do that. If not, then what does "out the door" mean to you?"
"well, we cant do that"
"k thx bye"

Easy as that. Dont let dealers own you because they think your dumb. Be the smarter one, its your money.

 

The other funny thing is that the 3 year/36,000 bumper-to-bumper warranty on the car already includes roadside assistance!

The description of the warranty below comes directly from the Toyota website:

So, it sounds like they are trying to charge people for something that they already get for free with the car. Total scam.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(eberrong @ Jun 15 2007, 10:18 AM) [snapback]462249[/snapback]</div>

Our was only $599 in Tampa (Toyota of Tampa Bay) <_<

A lot of people "outside" of the S.E.T. area are reading in this forum about this Dealer Admin Fee and suggesting it is negotiable, and to a very small point one might be correct in saying it is !! The Toyota Dealer can manipulate other vehicle costs and still add the $599 in there then tell you they have "eliminated the fee" but most of these Dealers in the S.E.T. area have that fee "in stone" and will not take it off the price.

Currently, and for the past two months, the Prius supply is far less than the demand down here in Florida, and the Dealers all know this. If a customer wants to price haggle (unreasonably) and walk out, the Dealers will let you. Maybe a combination of "end-of-year", the high gasoline prices and very low (if any) inventory of Prius ??

 

The roadside assistance and emergency towing, can also be covered if you are a AAA Motor Club Member, which a lot of people (especially seniors here in Florida :lol: ) have. Actually we have it too, and we are not yet seniors, but coming real close....

The first week my Wife had the Acura MDX and accidentally left her lights on all day and discharged the battery, that was the ONLY time she used the "AcuraCare" (1-800 CALL-ACURA or some gimmick number like that) instead of our AAA. The ToyoGuard Plus "Care" portion of the package sounds a little like a clone of that AcuraCare and what most high-end vehicles offer included in their price tag.

 

I doubt I'd get ToyoGuard again, but for my first expensive car I thought it was a good idea. It was discounted at my dealership so I paid maybe $420 for it. No sign the undercoating did lessen the road noise, but the seats are still cleanable. No, I wouldn't have bothered dragging the car elsewhere for the window etching...

 

i can't see the value in it. we didn't get an insurance discount for the window etching, we bought seat covers so the scotch-guard didn't do much in the long run, we do our own sealant protection thankyouverymuch, and this undercoating thing? i've never driven a prius without it so i can't tell ya but i doubt it does much.

it's a profitmaker.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(galaxee @ Jun 15 2007, 11:50 AM) [snapback]462345[/snapback]</div>

Does the 2007 have Roadside Assisstance through Toyoto?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Slair @ Jun 15 2007, 09:09 AM) [snapback]462213[/snapback]</div>

In defense of people who got roped into paying the 'Toyoguard' BS fee, it should be noted that, for a long time, supply had not caught up with demand on the Prius and if a prospective buyer balked at paying whatever the dealer wanted (including BS fees like Toyoguard), the vast majority of Toyota dealers were more than willing to let them walk. They knew, quite well, demand was high enough that there were plenty of people who would pay it. It could very well have been during the time of the $3150 Federal tax credit, as well.

Now, with supply more in line with demand on the Prius and the tax credit reduced to $788 (unless it's been eliminated completely), it's much easier to play the "okay, well, have a nice day" gambit in an attempt to successfully call a dealer's bluff on BS, add-on fees like Toyoguard.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(priusmaybe @ Jun 15 2007, 02:06 PM) [snapback]462438[/snapback]</div>

Yes. Check the warranty section on the Toyota website. All Prius customers are covered by roadside assistance and road hazard insurance for 36 months/36,000 miles from the vehicle's in-service date.

 

BTW, I found this about ToyoGuard while doing a little research:

Other car makers sell directly to dealers. Toyota sells through regional distributors to dealers, adding a level of cost, and fees. Toyota would love to ditch these middlemen, but they can't. Here in Florida and the Southeast states, we're served by Southeast Toyota Distributors, started by Jim Moran in the 1960's to sell Toyota in the US. He was already famous in Chicago as owner of Courtesy Ford. He also owns JM Lexus, #1 Lexus dealer in the US, where I bought my SC300. He was also responsible for coaxing Toyota to create Lexus, and formed AutoNation with Dolphins owner Wayne Huizenga, who founded Blockbuster Video. Southeast Toyota sells to over 160 dealers in the Southeast and represents 20% of Toyota's business. Due to these distributors, your Toyota may have useless Port Installed Options(PIO's) you may not want. Southeast Toyota adds the overpriced $250 "environmental coating" in the wheel wells called "Toyoguard" on most Toyota's, including Camry, Supra, Celica and MR2. So you are stuck with it, and other wasted admin fees. They tack on huge ad fees, too. Always ask to see the original Toyota invoice to verify these fees.

Source: http://www.carbuyingtips.com/car3.htm

 

if you want vin etching on the windows, you can do it yourself for under $25

 

I get roadside assistance as a line item on my car insurance for $8.40 per year. I can call ANY service station, not limited to AAA-approved places, and I don't have to go through a centralized national assistance number. I pay for the service, get a receipt, and file a claim with my insurance. It's more convenient and a fraction of the price of AAA.

A "document fee" is a normal part of a car sale, but the southwest region charges an obscene amount for it. The best thing, as Slair recommends, is to negotiate for the price out the door. Then the dealer can do what he likes with the individual lines if he "must" include certain set fees.

Everything is negotiable, but supply vs demand is king, and if your offer is too low they'll send you packing.