Gas Prices Make Prius Shopping Nightmare
Created May 14, 2006, at 3:33 am by Anonymous
My main motivation for wanting a Prius is lower emissions. So when the gas prices recently rocketted, my heart sank. I've been trying to get into a Prius for months now and cannot seem to land one. To add to the frustration, dearlerships are capitalizing big time on the demand. Everyday I get several calls from salesmen telling me to "book it" over to their dealership; but once I get there (usually within an hour or less), the vehicle has been mysteriously sold already. Then they try to sell me a "contract" without a vehicle! I've learned this is illegal, but am witnessing this practice almost everywhere (I'm in Southern California). I want to do the right thing by the environment, but this experience of shopping for a Prius is wearing me down. I feel that I'm on the verge of giving up and purchasing a small, gas powered vehicle like the Corolla or Civic. Can anyone offer me some advice or words of encouragement? Thank you
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Our family had not bought a new car in 27 years. My wife and I have 2 children. We bought a new Prius in Jan. and we love it. My son bought a new Civic in Feb. and we bought our daughter a new Corolla to commute to college in April. So we have driven them all and although the Prius and Corolla are great cars the Civic is probably the most liked for some reason.. it is a fantastic looking car and drives great. It is a gas civic but he gets about 41 on trips and 36 in city. My wife likes the civic better than her Prius. It is a lot of car for the money and they are a low emission vehicle. You won't regret buying a Civic, the white four door really looks sharp.
Cheers,
Just get a diesel, like the VW Jetta TDI or wait until the new Rabbit TDI comes out.
diesel is not a bad option, you could always get a kit to convert it to biodiesel!
Thank you for the suggestions. I am wondering which non hybrid vehicles are considered low emissions. I understand the Civic and Corolla are contenders? But how exactly does one determine which are "low emissions" and which are not? Is there a standard MPG by which to measure?
Thanks,
Hi Christy,
You can check the EPA Green Vehicle Guide at http://www.epa.gov/emissweb/index.htm to see which cars have the lowest emissions. You're right about the Corolla, but I hate to see you give up on the Prius - it's a great car.
Thanks Leslie!
If you're having a hard time landing a Prius in your area, give me a call and it may be worth the drive across country to buy one from me. Call 1-866-698-3477 ext 6439. We actually have Hybrids in stock. If you get my voicemail, leave the best contact info in your message, cell, email etc!
Thanks
Tom Hayes
Berlin City Toyota
Portland, Maine
Sorry to hear it is taking you so long to find a Prius. I picked mine up used in Jan '08 for $16K in Oklahoma City. It now has just over 100K miles and I still average 56mpg. So if the one you find is used they still are great cars. Just don't let the dealer try to rip you off because they are in pretty high demand right now.
I located a 2007 Toyota Prius with 20,000 miles about 3 weeks ago. It was a challenging process, but I think I've got it mastered! Check out www.hybridhysteria.com. Good look in shopping for a new or used hybrid!
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