Good price - what do you think?

If you are concerned about the $500 bucks, I suggest you negotiate an "OTD" price with all fees included. These dealers tend to add $80 documentation fees and other crazy fees after the fact. If you negotiate "OTD" prices, at least you know that's all you're paying.

You can save more money by buying from a Private Party. Dealers have set overhead and costs to cover...Private parties can sell at whatever price they want.

 

I'd probably take it to a Toyota Dealership just so they could run the codes. You need someone familiar with Prius and Hybrids. You could investigate (and probably should at some point) independent shops and mechanics in your area that deal directly with Hybrids, but if you are not comfortable or familiar with any right now, perhaps the best choice would simply be a Toyota dealership with no direct vested interest in the sale,- outside of trying to gain your trust for future maintenance.

But I don't quite understand. How could of the dealership sold the vehicle when new, but now it's currently at a non-Toyota dealer? Only Toyota dealerships sell Prius new. So if this was a used Prius "originally" at a Toyota dealership, how did it end up on a Non-Toyota dealership lot?

 

Would this be considered a "certified pre-owned vehicle" and come with a 100k mile warranty? If yes, that alone is worth at least $500 bucks if not more. I'm sure if this is a Lexus dealership, they would have already done a pre-inspection report on the car, you probably won't need to do another inspection, they will have that on record.

 

If you get it inspected, you might consider NOT taking it to the Toyota dealership that is part of the same network or family of dealerships.

You want to try to get an inspection done by an entity with as little vested interest in selling the vehicle to you as possible.

 

I never trust "Pre-Inspection" reports from the dealership that is selling the vehicle. It's too their advantage to present the vehicle as positively as possible, because they want to sell it to you.

If it isn't a Toyota Certified Pre-Owned and doesn't come with any warranty then any sheet of paper that is presented as a "Pre-Inspection" is basically worthless.

I once bought a used car (At a Major Honda Dealer) in which I was given a sheet of paper that proclaimed the vehicle has been give a "Tech Approved" 130+ point inspection, in which all systems were supposedly thoroughly checked out and passed. The minute I signed the contract and drove the vehicle off, only to discover it needed axle work. Within weeks when I showed the Pre-Inspection sheet to the dealership repair, I was told, -- too bad they sometimes miss things. Even though before I bought, I was given a beautiful couple of pieces of paper that showed that the suspension and axle were all checked out and in great condition.

I think it is always of value to try to get an inspection by an INDEPENDENT 3rd party.

 

Most major dealerships will have at least a 30 day warranty on their cars. With the inspection report in hand and 30 days warranty, you should be able to get any repairs done during the warranty period. In this case, I probably would trust the big dealer's inspection.

As in your case with the axle problem, anything can happen. I would think the inspections they do are all visual, and most definitely things can be missed or simply overlooked. There's no guarantee a 3rd party would catch it either. If you bring it to a 3rd party, it may even work to your disadvantage as you've inspected the car YOURSELF and found it to be free from defects.

 

Well, I make no assumptions about a 30 day warranty. I've bought used cars across the board, private party and Major Dealerships, infact the Honda I reference WAS a major dealership. -They offered no warranty.

I know some do, but you have to ask, not assume. This might be the "Sister" dealership, but it's technically NOT a Toyota dealership, so if I was guessing I'd assume the vehicle is NOT being sold as a Toyota Certified Pre-Owned. As a Lexus dealership selling a Toyota Prius, they only may or may not be offering a warranty.

It's a good question for the OP to ask, and know the answer to....

 

Well if the dealer is not willing to reduce the price by $500, have them throw in a warranty that's of $500 value. Negotiate for as many things they can provide that's not monetary. New floor mats, tinted windows, etc

 

I think ONLY a Toyota Dealership can sell a Toyota as a Certified Pre Owned...with all that applies.

But I suppose that wouldn't stop a Lexus Dealership from simply offering their own warranty on the vehicle.

Do ask...asking is free.

 

I've read there are 2 types of certified pre-owned. One that is certified by the dealer only and another that's certified by the car maker (this case Toyota). The one that is certified by Toyota, the warranty is good nationwide, the warranty that's certified by the dealer is only warrantied through them.

 

Yep, that's basically my understanding too...

TOYOTA Certified Pre-Owned is national and has certain baseline benefits as part of the program. It's actually through Toyota.

A dealership can offer a warranty and call it "Certified" or basically anything they want, but if it is the dealership offering it, and backing it...the parameters of that warranty are entirely up to the dealership.

http://www.toyotacertified.com

Here's a link to TOYOTA's definition of their Certified Pre-Owned program. It shows the parameters.

 

It all comes down to how pissed you would be at yourself if you did not get this car. It sounds like the price is pretty good and you would be happy with it. Is $400 enough to walk and start the search again? If so then give them your final offer and walk away.

If not then realize that they have come off their original price a fair bit and pay the extra $400 and not worry about it and enjoy the car.