I ordered the 'Standard' trim Plug-in Prius yet kept wondering if I should have ordered the 'Advanced' trim instead (I've contemplate canceling and waiting to get the 'Advanced' trim a little later). To see what the Softex (fake leather) was like and to also look at the HDD screen and see what the Heads up Display was like I drove 40 miles to the only dealer in my area that had a 'loaded' (solar roof) 2012 Prius 4. This car has some of the same electronic goodies that the 'Advanced' trim PiP package has. I do not really like leather and the Softex seemed no different. It was a very cold day in Minnesota and the Softex felt very cold to the touch. I coild easily imagine the Softex sticking to my skin in the hot summer, too. I was also really not impressed with the HUD. The HDD screen was nice but not worth paying a lot of extra money and then not liking the Softex interior. I'm sure most 'Advanced' trim purchasers will be quite happy with their new car. I'm quite satisfied now that I ordered the right one for me. I almost always spend extra money to get the 'fancy toys', but this time, I made the exception. ($40K for a Prius... It just could not be justified for me). I guess I was also satisfied that I will still have a lot of fun with the electronics in my new PiP (even without the 'Advanced' package) simply because the new dash display looked so very good in the 2012 Prius 4 (and even the 'Standard' trim PiP gets this). While I was there I also got to see a 2012 Corolla in 'Clearwater Blue Metalica'...a very nice color, indeed (although it is almost a car of two colors, shiny blue in the shade, and silver blue in the sun)! The Corolla also had the new 6" display audio screen with navigation. I thought it was actually pretty nice. I will be happy with this in my 'Standarc' trim PiP. I now happily await my new PiP!
Thanks for the information. I was in the same boat. Couldn't quite justify the Advanced. I feel good about the decision. Looking forward to the PiP.
It's good to hear you're happy with that choice. But then again, we know Toyota did well choosing what to offer on the standard model. They research the market carefully and are very receptive to feedback. For my profession, I'm expected to be well informed about the latest technology... especially when in comes to user interfaces with everyday users. And how in the heck am I suppose to support something I don't have routine access to? Glad you like the blue too. I was drawn to the dynamic nature of that shade. It changes quite a bit depending upon lighting. .
John, are you trading in your 2010 Model IV for the PiP? I have a similar Prius (2010 Model V), it's almost the same car, except with the plug in capability, just not sure it's worth the nearly $20K it's going to cost to upgrade to the advanced PiP (I have a $20K offer on my 2010 from Carmax)
Plans are to keep the 2010 within the family, which is indeed well loaded. 4 is a nice package. But I've never been disappointed with taking advantage of the latest Toyota offers. They've proven years ahead of others... and I like the goodies. Having driven an early model PHV, the enhancement to EV is something I'm really looking forward to. It's going to make the standard package very compelling once the market for plugging is established... which I'll be happy to contribute to. Just a few weeks left of waiting. Yeah! .
Do you feel that Carmax is giving you a better price than you would get trading your car in? I've heard that Carmax tends to low-ball on their offers, but I have no personal experience with them.
The issue is, you get very very low offers from non Toyota dealers, I was offered $15K from a Chevrolet dealer (when I was looking at a Volt, which I cannot get into easily so thats now out), or when I was looking at a Leaf, that was a $15.5K offer. The KBB trade in value is about $21.5K, so $20K is a fair offer. Private sale on the car is in the $23.5-$25K range, but good luck finding a buyer looking for exactly a 2010 Model V Prius in Blue, willing to pay that. We'll see when the PiP comes in what my Toyota dealer offers, if its another lowball offer, I have the carmax offer as a backup to pull out, thats why I went to carmax in the first place, to at least get a reasonable offer, as Carmax will buy your car without a tradein, and give you a bank draft for it. I do not think it is a "lowball" offer, especially in this economy. It remains to be seen if I am going to take the PiP as well, I am not convinced its worth $20K to me to upgrade to the advanced PiP from a 2010 Prius, its not enough EV range, and its just about the same exact car. I have bought 3 Prius from the same Toyota dealer, so they did not require me to give them the $500 deposit, they are fine keeping the car to sell if I don't take it (and most likely marking it up a little over MSRP)
I also got a $20K offer from carmax. One toyota dealer offered $19K, the other offered $17K, but then came up to $20,250 when I showed him the carmax quote. Dianne (the Prius Goddess) thinks it may be worth as much as $25K retail, in the right color and condition. I'm not sure she was thinking of private party sale though.
