A guy from Metroplex Toyota called and said he was about to put in our order for the Aqua Prius (we signed up Sat.), but that April would be the expected delivery date. He wanted me to give him 3 color choices, but I said I really wanted the Aqua. He then said that delivery might be May. He was concerned that because we have that "we can back out and get our $500.00 back if the car isn't delivered in 4 months" option. It sounded like he was giving us the option of backing out before the car was ordered. I assured him that 4-5 months would be ok. We just wanted some kind of assurance that if it took way longer and we needed to get a vehicle that we could back out. What do y'all think? Is Aqua a really popular color and in short supply?

While I have heard rumors that Aqua Ice is harder to get...it should not really matter, as these cars are basically built-to-order. What is possible is that if you go ahead and provide a 2nd and 3rd choice, and a car of one of those colors becomes available (through, for example, buyer-default), you would be given a shot at the other-colored car and have an earlier possible delivery. (This situation has been reported on several occasions.)<br><br>p

Built to order? You sure about that? Aren't they shipping 12,000 per year to the states because that's our allocated portion of their capacity? With only 4 colors, and all options installed at the port, I think they're just crankin'em out. If the poll on egroups is statistically significant, and if the word got back to Japan, they ought to be making a preponderance of silver ones.

Well, BTO might not have been the best choice of words. However, with a 4-5 month lead time, they have plenty of ability to adjust the color allocation to match the desired color of the orders taken.<br><br>p

WE were promised a delivery date of March for our Prius, however we got a call last Wed from the dealer who said he had one in, and the person who ordered it didn't want it and were we interested. It wasn't the color we wanted but come and look at it, he said. It is Aqua Ice, and we fell in love with the color and the car. We took delivery on Friday, and we are so happy, even after trading in our two vehicles for it. We are now a one car family. You will love the color, and it is especially beatuful in the bright Florida sunshine!

I have the same color also - and love it.<br>Especially in the beautiful bright New Jersey<br>sunshine!

My order from Arizona was Nov 27th with possible delivery in April. The dedicated Prius rep, Tony Parker at Right Toyota, told me that all orders for the Prius go over the net. He logged on and placed the order through the Toyota web site while I stood there. He got the dealer confirmation back and gave me a copy. He said the only way to order a Prius is through the Toyota web site. My order confirmation, PR#xxx, was waiting on my home computer an hour later. While I am new to this, your dealer experience sounds a bit off.

There are two steps to your purchase order.<br>1) You should place a purchase request on toyota website ( <a href=http://prius.toyota.com target=new>http://prius.toyota.com</a> ). The website sends you an e-mail with a P.R.# (purchase request number).<br>2) Then you go to a dealer and give him a deposit and also the P.R.# assigned to you.<br><br>When your dealer confirm your purchase request, you should receive a "dealer order notification" directly from toyota prius website to your e-mail. For your information, I enclose the dealer confirmation I received when Schaumburg Toyota (in chicagoland) confirmed the order within one day with only $100 deposit:<br><br>

I think your dealer is working with "fuzzy math". Watch your pocketbook.

I had a similar thing happen with Freeman Toyota. They lost their certification, my car arrived in Houston (unbeknownst to me) and sat there for 5 weeks. Eventually, after much patience then much yelling, Toyota of Irving delivered the car to me. I went in to T of I on Saturday to check on my license and Jereme Shoemaker mentioned that Metroplex and Texas Toyota had both lost their certified Prius mechanic, so he was getting those orders, as well.<br><br>I would insist that Metroplex provide you with your PR#. Then, call Jereme and ask him to look up your order status for you. I would highly recommend T of I, and Jereme (pronounced "Jeremy") in particular. I would never, ever recommend Freeman Toyota or any other dealer that consistently provided a customer with major untruths.<br><br>T of I's number is 972-258-1200.<br><br>Good luck!<br><br>Paul Opitz

Thanks, yours truly 60067, for posting what you got as your order confirmation. After I posted here, Metroplex forwarded me emails that they got from Toyota,and among them was one like yours. Don't know why I didn't get one before, because I did get the late November snafu postings.<br><br>Paul, Metroplex told me that Freeman had lost their certification because they have to have a Prius mechanic to be certified. Irving Toyota told me that in order to have a demo car that the dealer had to be certified. When I went over to Metroplex, they still had their bottle green demo out front. <br><br>I guess the worst that could happen is that around March-April-May I don't get delivery. I'll get my $500.00 deposit back and go get a Ford Focus. I have to admit that I'm not as up avout the Prius as I was before.

Well, Jeck, et al, let me inject a call for recommitment here...<br><br>I, too, had lost my flare for the Prius - I have one on order - until I drove one again recently on a rainy night in rush hour(s) on the densely-populated 101 freeway between San Jose and San Francisco... in stop and go traffic and slow cruising (30-40mph), I was amazed to watch the average fuel economy creep up to 58 mpg at one point in the journey (soon to vanish, but nonetheless, impressive). Try the same commute in a Mustang and get out yo' money sweetheart!

If Metroplex does not have a Prius-certified tech at time of delivery, they will assign another dealer in the area who does have the tech as a drop-ship point. Just be sure to stay on top of where your car is...you should have it within 2 weeks of getting an email saying 2-4 weeks.<br><br>Paul

&gt;after I posted here, Metroplex forwarded me &gt;emails that they got from Toyota,and among them &gt;was one like yours<br>So you have a valid P.R# with you. You can confirm that things are under control by going to prius website ( <a href=http://prius.toyota.com target=new>http://prius.toyota.com</a> ). On the top right corner, there is a button [ which looks like (?) ] for contacting the prius people on live-help web based chat room. I found them to be very helpful and answering all questions. Hopefully, they may be able to confirm that your P.R# is confirmed and valid.<br><br>You may also want to make sure that they have your proper e-mail address.<br><br>&gt;I guess the worst that could happen is that &gt;around March-April-May I don't get delivery<br>Once you have a confirmed P.R.#, you should be able to get your car.<br><br>I reserved it in August and forgot all about it. Then, just before Christmas time I got the prius. I love the car. My wife said I was wasting money while ordering, but now she grabbed it and I don't even get to drive it.