in Sept. 2000, when I went looking for a new car, I went into the Toyota dealer to ask about this new car I had heard about (my husband didn't know anything about it at the time). Since it was almost closing time, the salesman just handed me his Toyota University training binder, and told me to come back the next day for a test drive. When I returned the next day and returned the book, he told me that I now knew as much about the car as he did... (I did spend some time online (the only sites at the time have now become
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/toyota-prius/ and
http://autos.groups.yahoo.com/group/toyotaprius/ ) and actually found an owner in my town that answered most questions that I had.
The only problem I had with my dealer was that he said that I'd be able to install the navigation system after delivery, since all the buttons on the dash were already there... (There is no such add-on, and to retrofit the factory system is very costly in both parts and labor time...)
For my 2004, I went to a different dealership. (I had moved, and I already had a referral discount with this dealership.) I haven't heard anything incorrect from this dealer, but I can say that we each know some things about the Prius that the other does not (but he's very Prius-knowledgeable).
My mother didn't have a bad time with her dealer when purchasing her 2002 Prius (although the finance guy and the service department scared her away forever...). Her saleswoman was very good about the ordering process, and didn't try to guess at anything (since my mother already knew about the car).