Buying a Prius

[kyounge1956]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harley Quote: Originally Posted by kyounge1956 Confession time! (unfortunately you don't seem to have a :blushing: smiley available here) (snip) It's in the "more" list in the smileys.

I saw that one but didn't recognize it. The face color looked like "Mr-Yuk" to me, so I thought it was an "I think I'm gonna hurl" smiley. Now that I look at them more closely, most of the smileys have that color face. Odd.

[Frugality_of_Apathy]

If I was looking to blow $22,000 on transportation I'd sooner buy 5 $4000 cars that get 20 miles/gallon and have 2 years worth of gas money before even hitting break even with the Prius. Plus there's the fact that if you had some mechanical trouble or someone crashes into your car you can always just leave it burning on the side of the road and hop in one of the other cars. When the crazy vandalism occurs totalling your car you can collect the insurance money and get back 100% of the value of your cars.

[Andy R]

So I went to the Toyota dealership to look at a used Prius. I negotiated on a 2008 with 16k miles. He took me from the Used Sales office to the main building/offices to pay and complete the transaction. I sat there for nearly 1 hour before I got frustrated and got up to find out what was going on. One of the guys said "you are Andy? I have your stuff on my desk". I asked him why he did not get me earlier and he said "I did not know you were out there". Bad customer service so I was frustrated.

Next the "business manager" goes into trying to sell me the extended warranty and I told him "you can skip this, I am not buying the warranty". I told him I was frustrated from sitting out there and told him if he did not skip the whole extended warranty BS I would get up and leave. He said he "HAD" to do the warranty stuff and then started to justify the cost when it would only add $40/month to the payment. I got up and walked out.

When a client is clear and polite and says no, why can't they just move on. It's been 11 years since I bought my Jeep and I hope after I get this next car and wait 10 more years I can just shop online and push the next button when that option is presented!

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

The salesman sounds like a jerk, a drone.

That said, it's a great car. Hope you find one at a more reasonable dealership. I'm getting about 60 mpg on my mixed city-highway communt. Flawless vehicle since 2006.

[Notmuchlonger]

Yeah. We bought a car this summer. The guy who finally sold us a car was a decent guy. The other ones made me never want to buy a car again. I shouldn't be angry when I want to purchase a car

[73ss454]

Andy, I spent 27 out of the 35 years I spent in the car business as a business manager. That said you have to understand that business managers don't get a salary so if they don't sell you anything they get to do about an hours worth of paper work for nothing.

I know, not your problem but it is the business managers problem and he's gotta do what he's gotta do to try to make a living.

Also the manufacturer sends a customer satisfaction survey out and one of the questions asks if you had the opportunity to purchase the extended warranty.

You couldn't imagine how many people say they don't want to purchase the warranty or anything else and end up buying a bunch of stuff.

So yeah, they lost your sale but no biggie. It's a Prius and it won't be there long and the next guy may buy a warranty.

[Notmuchlonger]

Interesting. I would think in this market not making a sale might sting. Goes to show I dont know the inner workings of the automobile sales industry

[Andy R]

73ss454, Thanks for the info about Business Managers. I bet a lot of people do buy that stuff. Unfortunately I don't drink that Kool-Aid so it's a frustrating step in the process.

Do you happen to know much about buying a car a day or two before New Years? I have heard dealers here in Dallas, Tx have to pay property tax if the car is on their lot January 1st and they are willing to negotiate good deals at that time. Is this true?

I loved the Prius (this was my first time driving one). It seemed like I was actually in a modern car of the future. I have been wanting one for years based on what I had read so it was nice to get the same feeling when checking it out in real life.

[73ss454]

Well, the last day of the month is the only day to buy a car in my opinion. The last day of the year is even better. All commissions to the employees are paid on a monthly basis and the managers want to get every deal they can in for the end of the month or year.

Now, I think buying a prius is a different story. This is a car in high demand and the dealer is not going to get stuck with the vehicle. The best thing to do with a car like this is find a dealer that has a bunch in stock, if there is such a thing and buy it there.

I would think on the last day of the year if you were in the market for an American car that would be the day.

[73ss454]

Andy, try to buy the car on line and make sure after you cut the deal with the internet manager you tell him/her you don't want to deal with anyone else. They may offer you the warranty themselves without the business manager.

By the way, an extended warrany from the manufacturer only is not a bad thing but you can also shop them.

I would think if a prius breaks after the 3 year period or 36K the bill would be something you wouldn't want to see. Some people like the piece of mind of the warranty.

Many dealers sell ins. company warranties or in house warranties. You don't want one of them.

[Andy R]

Thanks for the info 73ss454. I know what I will be doing on December 31st.

FYI - Not even Prius sales are holding up at the moment. "November Prius sales dropped 48.3% to 8,660 vehicles from 16,737 last year" (link). Gas is now under $1.50 here in Dallas so demand for the Prius is weaker at the moment IMO.

With your past experience do you think that buying the newest model possible (a 2009) or should I try to get a deal on a 2008 on New Years Eve? Obviously I'd like the newer one but maybe the commissions are higher on the newer units or does it matter?

How do I determine the stock that a dealer would have? Are there any sites that might help me size up their inventory so I can be more informed?

[kyounge1956]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Andy R So I went to the Toyota dealership to look at a used Prius. I negotiated on a 2008 with 16k miles.

Yikes. Mine is 2-1/2 years old and only has about 12 or 13K miles.

Quote:

(snip) When a client is clear and polite and says no, why can't they just move on.

And why can't real estate guys believe it when you tell them how much money you have available to buy a house? When I was shopping for my first house I had a set amount I was able to pay. I happened by a condo that was opening up and told the guy there the figure. He dragged me all over the place for an hour and finally revealed that the least expensive unit in the building was $5K above my top price. I felt like asking him which he thought I was, so stupid I forgot the right number, or just lying? Been more than twenty years and I'm still ticked off at that guy!

Quote:

It's been 11 years since I bought my Jeep and I hope after I get this next car and wait 10 more years I can just shop online and push the next button when that option is presented!

I bought mine through a car broker. Maybe I didn't get it for the absolute minimum I could have paid, but they didn't try to sell me a bunch of stuff I didn't want or need and they didn't keep me sitting around the office for ages when I went to pick up the car. I did have to wait several months for the car to be delivered, but mine was new—I could have bought a used one and driven it away when I went to a local dealer for a test drive, but that one had a bunch of options on it that I didn't want and would have cost more than my new one did. I've never "negotiated" with a car dealer. My first car was from a sale of lightly used rental cars through my mom's credit union (she's a retired schoolteacher), and if there was any negotiation I'm sure my dad did it, I was just out of college and greener than grass. The Prius is only my second car, and buying it through a broker was so painless I'll probably go that way again when I need to replace it. If I did pay a couple hundred bucks more, it's worth it to me not to have to put up with the garbage you have to go through at a dealership!

[73ss454]

Andy, you can usually check the dealers inventory on line to see what they have in stock.

I would think if the 2008 and the 2009 have the same look and mechanicals that the 2008 would be the better buy. But the price has to be a few grand better than the 2009. If you're keeping the car for the long term 8 years from now it won't make any diff. what year the car is. It's mostly condition at that point.

Yeah, I wasn't thinking about the lower gas costs holding back prius sales. Well, that's a good thing for you at this point.

Just remember that keeping a car like this long term can be expensive. The battery pack will have to be replaced at some point and they are very expensive, at least at this point.

If it were me and I was buying an electric I would look at pricing the manufacturers warranty and get as long term as you can. Then maybe 6 years or so from now with the warranty still in place selling the car out of your driveway won't be a problem. No one will be affraid of the car at that point if Toyota is backing it up.

If I was buying a camry or a corolla and it was gas I'd keep the car at least 10 years because of past performance. But with the new techonology in the prius we don't know what to expect 6 or 7 years from now. Repairs on an electric car should be very expensive I would imagine.

[Bestwifeever]

I read that too about the Prius sales being down 48 percent--seems like you should be able to get a great deal, Andy.

And I agree that the length of time it takes to close the car buying deal is ridiculous and should be completely unnecessary. The last time we suffered through it, we sat in the little waiting office and ripped the dealership, hoping there were little microphones in there (I always heard that the sales staff listen in on the customers when they put them in those little rooms).

I don't understand why the business manager doesn't receive a salary. Do they have no function other than selling add-ons?

[ziggy29]

I would think that the combination of a crappy economy and temporarily cheap gas would make this as good a time to get a good deal on a Prius as any time...

[73ss454]

Bestwifeever, so you think that the dealerships should run the way you want them to run?
Why don't you spend a few million and buy one then you can run it the way you want.
Then you would realize the tremendous costs associated with running one. We have a member (cardude) who owns one and is about to close his doors.

In the mean time many of the people who buy cars want things on their cars, such as warranties and remote starts, alarms and in some places rustproofing.

Also it's another source of income like any other business. They are entitled to make a living after all. For the one hour you sit in the dealership every ten years I think you should learn to deal with it. If not maybe you should buy a used car out of someones driveway, problem solved.

Also if no one offered you a warranty and 4 years from now the car broke down you'd be the first one screaming that no one offered it to you. I've seen it all!

If you think the guys and girls working 6 and 7 days a week 12 hours a day are having a good time putting up with people like you think again.

[samclem]

The Honda Insight hybrid is scheduled to be re-introduced in April 2009. MSRP is slated to be $19,000, and it wil be a "five-door" hatchback, like the Prius. This might put some downward pricing pressure on Toyota.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 73ss454 Also it's another source of income like any other business. They are entitled to make a living after all. For the one hour you sit in the dealership every ten years I think you should learn to deal with it. If not maybe you should buy a used car out of someones driveway, problem solved.

Wow, I guess different people have WAY different experiences at dealers. When I bought my present car (in cash, no extras or warrantees), it took well over 3 hours, maybe 4 hours, before I was out of the dealership and on my way. In a way, all that time sitting and doing nothing turns what could be a great consumer experience into a bad day. You're right that I don't buy a car that often, though. So, maybe I have no basis to complain.

Maybe it was longer because it was a new car, not used. Anyway, next time I think I'll pack a book, some sudoku, and healthy snacks, or maybe even a pillow when I go to buy a new car.

[ziggy29]

Quote:

Originally Posted by 73ss454 They are entitled to make a living after all. For the one hour you sit in the dealership every ten years I think you should learn to deal with it. If not maybe you should buy a used car out of someones driveway, problem solved.

Wow. Talk about putting the cart before the horse. You sound like customers ought to be thankful for the business rather than the other way around. And I don't think anyone said that a business does not have the right to try to turn a profit.

With no customers, there is no business. And any business that has this attitude toward its customers deserves to be out of business.

Like it or not, if you make things miserable enough for the customer, even once "every ten years," they'll look for a place where the experience isn't so painful.

I'm not one of those "customer is always right" people, because some customers are unreasonable jerks who don't deserve to be accommodated. But just the same, especially in a rotten economy, businesses that have this mentality about their customers may not stay in business for long.

[Bestwifeever]

Didn't the customer used to always be right? So sorry to have offended you, 73ss.

We are buying a new car after the first of the year and you can be sure we will be doing so at a dealer that makes the process easier for us.

We are also a car dealer's dream--people say we walk into business establishments as if we are saying, "Can't we pay more?" But we still don't enjoy spending half a day (if we're lucky) sitting at the dealership waiting to hand that check over. Sorry about that.