Anything I should know?

[YarisOwnersDad]

Hi, Guys and Gals.

Since I am soon to be a Yaris owner, Lord willing, are there some tips that anyone might have to pass along? For instance, are there any features that your Yaris had that you were not even aware of at first? Any cool accessories? Any tips on maintenance?

Is there a thread that specifically addresses these questions for new Yaris owners?

Thanks.

Tomster

[SLIK4]

don't know if this was said in your other thread or not but the paint on the yaris is notoriously thin. just keep an eye on it and it should be fine. use the search function and you might be able to find more info on this :thumbsup:

[YarisOwnersDad]

don't know if this was said in your other thread or not but the paint on the yaris is notoriously thin. just keep an eye on it and it should be fine. use the search function and you might be able to find more info on this :thumbsup:


Slik:

What do you mean by "keep an eye on it?" What can the owner do to compensate for the thin layer of paint? Does waxing help, or does it hurt?

Tomster

[firebob]

A few coats of past wax will help a lot. I do not feel that the paint was thin on mine. I would clay the car before I gave it a wax job but I’m a little OCD on keeping it clean and shinny.

[SLIK4]

i just meant to keep an eye out for paint chips and things like that. i have read about some pretty bad paint damage on these cars due to gravel being kicked up by the cars in front of you. i myself have not experienced much of a problem with the thin paint other than car door dings that on many other cars wouldn't have left anything and left a decent scratch on the paint. mine is a 2007 so i don't know if this has improved in recent years or not. as far as i know wash and wax normally just like any other car.

[Phaeton]

Get a clear bra on the front end, it will be worth it.
My hood looks like a acne faced teenager.

[roxy1]

Slik:

What do you mean by "keep an eye on it?" What can the owner do to compensate for the thin layer of paint? Does waxing help, or does it hurt?

Tomster

dont sweat it. my black hatch had very little blemishes of any kind after more than a year and no chips off the front at all. i was careful about what i drove behind and washed it about 2-3 x/month, but that is about it. (in fact, it looked so good that i lost only $1700 off its new value in over 1 yr and 21K miles)

i dont believe the yaris has any worse paint than any other eco cars. the forums for every eco car made have "why is the paint so crappy on the ____" threads.

[m911gt]

many people have experienced multiple paint chips on the front end, the Yaris only has a single-step paint process so I don't believe their is even a true clear-coat on the car.

Tom, here is a helpful link:

http://www.yarisworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11808&highlight=yaris+frequently+asked+questions

Good luck with your purchase.

[YAR1S]

http://www.yarisworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=9363&highlight=secrets

GREAT THREAD :p all the yaris secrets! A must-read for all yaris-to-be-owners.

[tomato]

I have the paint chips but my car has close to 60K miles. Still, you have to come pretty close to notice it, it's not like it's peeling off or anything. I parked my car next to a brand new Yaris yesterday, right outside the dealership, just to take a picture, and the color and the shine of my Yaris is pretty much identical to the new Yaris, so I'm not complaining.

There is a thread called "crappy paint" or something like that on here some place.

[Giobatera]

Mine is white and I don't think the paint is thin at all. I use clay and nice wax job as frequently as possible and barabim barabum!!! Works!:thumbup:

[YarisOwnersDad]

Thanks for the replies, folks, but, unfortunately, the deal did not materialize, and I guess a Yaris is not in my immediate future. The used car appraiser was only going to allow me $8000 on trade-in, but the salesman had led me to believe (through Emails) that I might get as much as $9500. He did tell me that it would be up to the used car appraiser, though, so he left himself an "out." I guess they just want to get you on their lot, hoping that you will go ahead and buy.

The appraiser's low offer was not in any wise due to the condition of my car. My Cobalt is immaculate. After all, it is only ten months old, and I am VERY anal about its appearance.

Oh well, I hope this thread will be useful to new Yaris owners, even though I am not going to be one for a long time from the looks of things.

Tomster

[NaturalTopaz]

The used car appraiser was only going to allow me $8000 on trade-in, but the salesman had lead me to believe (through Emails) that I might get as much as $9500. He did tell me that it would be up to the used car appraiser, though, so he left himself an "out." I guess they just want to get you on their lot, hoping that you will go ahead and buy.

Tomster


Most dealers hold back at least a thousand when presenting trade value and since there are available rebates on the Yaris right now, you can take advantage of that. Goto http://www.edmunds.com and do an appraisal on your car (dealers use ROUGH to AVERAGE, NEVER excellent). You can also check http://www.nadaguides.com for NADA values.

Go armed. If you have a CARMAX in your area, you can also take your car there to get appraised (its free) and bring their quote with you to the dealer and ask them to match it. In most cases, they will to get your business.

:thumbsup:

Good Luck

[SLIK4]

^ if your wanting a yaris bad enough i would give it a try

[tomato]

Maybe the dealership will decide they want YarisOwner'sDad's business after all and will call him back in a day or two with a counter? :iono:

[YarisOwnersDad]

Guys, I did my homework, like NaturalTopaz suggested, and that's why I knew I was going to get a good deal if they gave me $9500 for my car. Unfortunately, it was TOO good of a deal, according to the used car appraiser, and he offered to give me just $8000. I just wish my salesman had told me that I would be getting something like that, and then I would not have gotten my hopes up.

When I checked Emunds a few day ago, it said that the average trade-in value for my car was $8964, but when I checked it just now, it said $9298. Wonder why it went up? Kelly Blue Book is showing $8425 now, but that is also a little higher than it was the other day. Hey, if I wait long enough, THEY will have to pay ME to trade cars. :biggrin:

They didn't try to get me to stick around. They didn't ask me what I would be willing to trade for. They just let me walk out the door.

I understand that the dealers have to make a profit on reselling the cars that are traded-in. They can't afford to give much over auction price, since they don't make as much on the new cars as they used to, especially on the low priced cars. I guess auction price is actually lower than "average trade-in price," which is what Edmunds and KBB show.

Thanks for the replies.

Tom

[YarisOwnersDad]

I guess those of you who have followed this thread know by now that I really DID end up getting a Yaris! I had to suck it up and take my lumps on the Cobalt; I got $8500 trade-in on it and paid $145 over invoice for the Yaris, a Flint Mica base sedan.

I made the deal Monday, April 13, 2009.

I LOVE the Yaris!

Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeehawwwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!!!!!!!!

Tom

[nerp]

One thing I noticed recently with my new 09 3 door is that when you have the power package, you can take the keys out of the ignition and still roll up the electric windows. Handy if you're the type of person to always forget to shut the windows when you stop the car. :)

[SailDesign]

One thing I noticed recently with my new 09 3 door is that when you have the power package, you can take the keys out of the ignition and still roll up the electric windows. Handy if you're the type of person to always forget to shut the windows when you stop the car. :)

I can do that with mine, even if the battery is disconnected! :biggrin:

Manual everything FTW.

[tomato]

I can do that with mine, even if the battery is disconnected! :biggrin:

Manual everything FTW.

:bellyroll::clap:

[GeneW]

Hi, Guys and Gals.

Since I am soon to be a Yaris owner, Lord willing, are there some tips that anyone might have to pass along? For instance, are there any features that your Yaris had that you were not even aware of at first? Any cool accessories? Any tips on maintenance?

Is there a thread that specifically addresses these questions for new Yaris owners?

Thanks.

Tomster

Buy a ScanguageII. Mount it on your dashboard. Live the code.

Gene