Fuel economy: If you bought a Prius in 2004 - smile
Back in 2004, when gas was threatening to hit the $2 mark, you could have gone to the car lot thinking: "gee, I'd like to make an eco-friendly decision about what kind of car I drive." Or you could have thought, "I want an all-American badass machine, screw carbon footprints." Here's the thing: if you made an eco-conscious choice, you wouldn't have lost 63% of your vehicle's resale value already. Doh!Today's gas prices have really messed with the resale value of Trucks and SUVs. Right now, the resale value for a '04 Prius is twice as much as a '04 Ford F150. To be fair, the Pruis did cost about $4k more to drive off the lot, and if you financed it -- even more. Still, as it stands, the Prius' 2008 MSRP is $22,160 and the Blue Book value of a 2004 -- $21,035. Compare that to the Ford F150 2008 MSRP of $26,140 versus the 2004 resale value of $9,670. The bottom line: fuel-efficient cars are in high demand. Gas-guzzlers are out of luck.
[via Treehugger]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-29-2008 @ 4:30PM
Phil L. said...
Kind of an apples-to-hand-grenades comparison; they're totally different vehicles, purchased with different uses in mind.
That said, the real value difference is nowhere near double: Toyota dealers were selling the Prius for MSRP back in '04 (and often tacking on every extra fee or feature they could). Few F150 models went out the door for anywhere near MSRP.
I'd be more interested to see how the Prius value stacks up to similar Camry/Accord models of the era.
Reply
8-30-2008 @ 12:46PM
ryan said...
So the fact that I bought my 2005 Prius for $6,000 last year would be insanely shocking then, eh?
Reply
8-31-2008 @ 8:17PM
Phil L. said...
An '05 Prius for $6k? Massive mileage; something wrong with it; get a deal from a friend/relative. Or something else?
Willing to sell it for $6K?
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