Here's my summary. Ordered 1/23/04. Was #5 on wait list. Estimate was 4-6 months. Early March dealer was contacted and responded with "out allocation was cut. We will only get 5 cars this year, one received to date. You are #14 on the list." The dealer is in a big GM town, thus they sell few Toyotas and apparently the allocation reflects that. Thanks to suggestions by this group, I began emailing and calling over 30 dealers in my state and surrounding states. Found one strong lead, placed deposits at two more dealers, also encountered a number of dealers that were rude, unprofessional, etc. One required that I buy rustproofing, a Chrysler product they used, for $800! I passed. Then I found out they owned 7 of the other dealers I had contacted. My list shrank quickly. Got a call 4/14. Conversation on 4/15 indicates my strong lead has come through, getting allocation for the color and package I requested, in status F (whatever that means), and may see the car in 2 weeks. The dealer is almost 600 miles away, but there is no hope of getting one elsewhere for MSRP or before December at the earliest in a primarily big 3 area with lower allocations. Based on other's comments, it appears I am extremely lucky, locating the right dealer at the right time. We'll see if this all works out.
Congrats! Hopefully everything comes through for you in a few weeks. I'm originally from Bay City, Michigan (tri-city area) and don't expect to see too many when I drive there from DC this coming June for my nephew's graduation. Best of luck and hope you get it soon! -m.
