[oldfox]

Finally got the word today. My Salsa Red Pearl Prius arrives Dec 20. Problem is -and I did expect something like this- It arrives with a bunch of add ons that I don't want and does not have what I do want (Pkg 6).
Car has 6 disc in dash cd player. Self Dimming Mirror w/Homelink. Carpet Mats. Pkg 1 which as you all know is only the rear wiper for $180 Thank you very much!. Rear Bumper Protector (Not sure what this is) and the very loveable ToyoGuard Protection Group. All of this for 2,024 and I could have all of this plus side and rear air bags for $1,920, yes that is pkg 5. I don't have smart entry which I really wanted and being of a certain age 60+ could care less about the 6 cd changer - a single cd at a time is more than enuf for me.
I have to make a decision by tomorrow. If I decide not to take it I go to the bottom of the list and may realistically expect to get a Prius by mid 2005. What should I do? My Explorer has 153,000 miles and runs fine but is starting to have problems - need something - Camry?? Byte the bullet and get the Prius. Any thoughts or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[TBangs]

Decisions

Well I would say that we should be thankful that we have to make a decision as to wether we get keyless entry or not and a six disk cd player or the regular one and the car is red rather than the color we wanted. My wife and I turned down a tan Prius that had a lesser package than we wanted, but we were told we would have first right of refusal on any of the other Prius's as they come in because we have worked our way up to the front of the line (we started out at sixth and had ordered our Prius Oct. 17th) so their is a good chance that if you turn this one down you may have others to choose from in the coming weeks. Our dealer indicated that they have more of them showing up now and that we stand a good chance of getting pretty much the car we ordered in Dec. And besides if we have to wait so long it becomes ridiculous we will just put our order in for a 2005 and take it from there.

 

[Jerry P]

Ouch! I feel bad that they did not get what you wanted. I personally would wait for the one I wanted. I think that the dealer owes you some consideration on this one and should not put you at the bottom of the list. The Smart Start/Entry is a great thing to have, as well as the side curtain air bags. I'm not too far off your age (52) and I think that when you start getting up here, you need to have exactly what you want. You've earned it. Talk to the dealer. I was told that fully 30% of the production is Silver, with Pkg. #7 (AM), which was exactly what I wanted. This has all the things you wanted plus a little more. If you can tolerate the color (I like it a lot!) maybe one can be found more easily. Hope things work out for you.

 

[ses]

i wouldn"t

i understand that the dealer may be offering you the "next available car", but if it isn't what you ordered, than it isn't what you've ordered. i think that to bump you to the end of the line is inappropriate. if that is the case, then why bother placing an order at all. i would take the car if you can live with it, or decline the car and protest any "punitive" delay, this sounds like something a "good dealer" would never do. make sure that the sales manager is aware of that arrangement.

 

[sharris]

Decision time: add-ons

The color and factory-installed options (e.g., option packages #1 thru #9) are done in Japan. The floor mats, first-aid kit, etc. are "Port-installed" options. Finally, the "ToyoGuard" (which I assume is sealing the paint, putting on an undercoat, and Scotch-guarding the interior) is a "Dealer-installed" option. You cannot do much about the color and option packages since that is done in Japan, BUT your dealer CAN cancel the "Port-installed" options (I think the main one--floor mats, etc.--is called a Z-1 package or something like it.) And, if you are ordering the car ahead of time, you can tell the dealer not to do anything beyond the very basic prep of the car. Dealers may not want to do this because they get a pretty good markup on the port-installed options and on the ones they add themselves. Instead of paying $300+ for floormats, I bought much better ones (rubber) for $80. Since many dealers subcontract the sealing, etc. to detail shops, I simply went directly to the top dealer subcontractor in town and saved $350 on that! (paid $150 versus $500).

By the way, the dealer I dealt with was a dream to work with. They answered all questions regarding options (that's how I learned) and were able to cancel the port-intalled options less than 2 weeks before delivery.

So, hang in there. You can get what you want (within limits)...but that may depend on the dealer you choose to work with. I also just heard that the factory has had trouble getting the 6-CD changer so all options that come with that will be put on hold until the supplier delivers more. The estimate I heard is that those options will be available again sometime after the first of the year. (This may be a rumor, but I got it from a Toyota source.) If true, this could mean that the option package you will be offered will be different.

--Scott Harris