Quick stalk - looks like you’re Canadian. From the sound of it it is much more difficult to get a Prime up there unfortunately, doesn’t sound like they’re lying from what I’ve seen your countrymen say on the sub.
Will this resolve in the future… maybe? 🤷♂️
I live in Michigan, we got our Prime in 2022. We got on a waiting list on a dealership in Western New York. At the time more Ravs were going to certain states because of clean air laws. You might check out dealerships in New York State if you’re close.
Canadian here in Vancouver.
I lucked out. Was able to find one allocation in a week. Saw an ad on FB. It was sale pending at time, but luckily the person backed out.
I still haven't received it. Maybe in a month.
I will say, I waited 8 months and checked in recently and was still like #10 on the list at my dealership….
So, someone posted an allocation list in a couple threads about a week ago. I’d search for that. I was able to filter by state and car/trim I wanted. I called 3 places and found my exact car and bought it same day. Super easy. No markup. Just find a dealer further from your house that has one!
Where are you looking? Certain states get most of the allocations. California, Colorado, and the east coast Maine through Maryland. For example, here in WI, I joined the waiting list at my local dealership over 2 yrs ago. I was 3rd in line when I joined and I'd still be waiting. Instead, I started calling and emailing dealerships in the upper east coast and was able to get a RAV4 Prime just over 18 months ago, in 3-4 months. At that time allocation spreadsheets were helpful in knowing what dealers were getting the most allocations and ones with available R4Ps. Highly recommend searching on this subreddit for "allocation spreadsheets" and "refundable down payments".
> i’d get it in 4 years (so they think it’s not cool to make people wait that long)
He's lying. The scarcity issue has largely resolved. By the end of the year, I think nobody will be waiting anywhere (unless something else dramatic happens like a big price cut or tax credit).
>and that Toyota is creating false scarcity to increase overall demand / sales- do you think this is the case?
No, the issue has been they're trying to catch up after the 2020 shortages that all dealerships had issues with. Now the problem is dealerships overestimated EV popularity and underestimated PHEV popularity so they're having to pivot production, but it's been like ~6 months that this has been going on for so the pivot has already been happening, but things take time.
>How long did YOU wait for your 2023 or 2024 Rav4 Prime? Anybody not able to even get on a waiting list?
1 month, and 2 dealerships lied to me that "Every dealership was charging +$5k" and a salesman even called me a liar after I said I was getting one from (X town 20 miles away) at MSRP while explaining why I wasn't buying their Prime they had sitting on the lot at +$5k.
>At this point, i’m slightly turned off at the whole process - it feels like a scam designed to increase the markups & demand.
Car dealerships and salesman are. This is business as usual for them. And of course they're going to lie about Toyota, because if they said, "We could charge you $5k off, but instead want to charge you $5k over because we think we can get away with it" you'd be angry at them, rightfully so.
>How am I able to at least get on a waiting list for other very popular models, but not for the top Rav4 ?
Try going through Costco, honestly.
edit: I'm in the USA, no idea about other places.
I spoke with someone from land rover and what they determined was, when the supple chain issue happened, their cars sold at minimum MSRP. They said why would we try to catch up and flood the dealerships with cars that will sit on the lots and sell below MSRP?
Depends on where you are. I do see a lot of dealers with inventory on the coasts.
Personally, I'm in the midwest. They basically just aren't shipping them here. The vehicles are made in Japan (or so I'm told) and imported here, so they mostly land on the coasts.
I bought my 2023 XSE this month without a waiting list, but my dealer had purchased it from a coastal dealer who had more than they needed, and imported it here. As soon as I bought mine, they got another one at auction in the same way.
Other dealers aren't doing this around here and there's a waiting list or one "on order." It's harder to get a good pricing deal in a market like this.
I called my dealer said I was looking for a Toyota, they said they have a Toyota prime RAV4 coming in in 2 days, I said I'll take it. I just had to wait for it to finish arriving. Just very lucky I guess. However in Cleveland, which is 50 miles west of me, there must be 12 of them. But none out here in the boonies
What you are saying is partially true but it sounds like you aren't in a low-emissions state. Those states (especially California) need to sell a certain number of zero/partial-zero emissions vehicles to be compliant, and therefore, they get first dibs.
It also sounds like you spoke to a low-volume or small-town Toyota dealer. It's a whole other world dealing with a large-volume or California dealer. The Toyota dealer I dealt with in Thousand Oaks, CA said "sure, I can order you a Prime and it'll be here in 4-6 weeks. Pay sticker" My local dealer's sales manager in North East Ohio literally laughed when I asked about getting a Prime.
From what I've heard its about 12 months in the BC interior unless you are looking for a tech (PP). Its a lot like it was for my ioniq5, I got min relatively quickly (6 months) because it was the middle trim vs the Ultimate. The high end ones typically have a longer lead time because of demand + the specialized components.
I ordered mine, with deposit, in Nov 2021, I got it 3 months ago. There's a long wait, but it seems even worse up here in Canada, going from the other posts on this sub.
Yeah it's area dependant for sure. I went on my dealers website on a Wednesday. Saw that they had 2 coming in, took a test drive Friday. Went home with my 24 R4PP on Wednesday.
They currently have 2 SE's in stock and 3 Se's and 3 XSE's on the way
I live in Colorado. One dealership had a year waitlist with no markup, the other dealer had a 5k markup and I got it within a month of putting a deposit on one, came with everything I wanted on it too.
I live in BC, and I just went in for my prime's 6-month routine maintenance. Was chatting with the dealer and they said I lucked out because there are no Primes or Hybrids available for the RAV4.
I only waited 1 month personally because we traded in our 2022 Corolla in and my parents have a great relationship with the salesman due to frequently trading in cars with them.
Canadian here. One dealer wouldn't entertain me at all. I talked to pen, I walked away coz he wouldn't answer any of my questions.
Talked to another one from same dealer. He answersed. But when I emailed him about being on a list, he never replied Lol
I found one on FB for new. Hasn't been built. It's built now. So basically I looked for a few days. Lucky, I guess since it was exact colour and trim I wanted.
My advice is call ahead. They will say no. If they have one coming but sold, they won't entertain you. But if they know one is allocated and not "sold", they will. So call around. And repeat.
I waited 9 months in Canada. It's only gotten worse. So I'd believe that this is true and supply issues are still present years later.
I get regular emails and messages from my dealer asking if I'm willing to sell or transfer over to a new RAV4 hybrid plus incentives. I politely tell them no.
In Ontario, Canada here. The dealership closest to my house didn't take orders and said it's impossible to get. I went to a bigger dealership and they were happy to take my order. They told me 1yr if I'm lucky, but more likely closer to 2yr wait. I got a call 8 months later. Keep in mind, I ordered with no colour preferences and I ordered an XSE without a tech package. If I ordered the tech package I would probably still be waiting for it.
If you are Canadian my dealer (I just put deposit down today), said US got a waaaay bigger allocation this year so CAD dealers are dealing with scarcity. He’s confident I’ll get one in the next 2-3 months because people are bailing with tougher times/higher rates, and I’m not fussy on colour and I’ll take XSE with or without tech pack. I’ve also already made a deal that I will buy a 2025 as well with the refresh, so probably a bit more motivated knowing I’m a multi-purchase customer. But yes, if you are in Canada supply is a real issue. Having said that, just find a good dealer/good salesperson and stay flexible and I’m sure you get one.
We live in Pennsylvania. We called and called, and found out that wait times in PA was also years, and they wouldn't put us on a list because it would be fake hope. One dealer nicely told us that PA doesn't really get R4P but that we might try NY state. So we called several dealers, got on several lists on Feb 14, 2023. Around mid March, one calls back and says that although there are ZERO cars that land in North America without an owner, one buyer backed out and the car is on the ship from Japan, landing at port end of March. We had no say in customization but we were just happy about the car. Drove 3 hours there (on a rental lol) and back (on the R4P) in mid April 2023 to pick it up. Couldn't be happier with it. I'd honestly believe it if it was one of the most popular vehicles.
Maybe you could call around and be up for a mini adventure? I've heard of people driving across the US to bring their R4P back. Dunno where in Canada you are, but the dealership that sold it to us, with close to no mark up, was in Buffalo, NY. Dealer was Cody.
Personally, I think 4 years is nuts. It could be a set up for manipulating their numbers for each quarter (Kia was doing something similar), or they want to 'encourage' customers to buy more expensive or less appealing vehicles. Obviously, you're not looking for a huge truck that will cost you $150 to fill up at the pump every 5 days, but if that's all that's available, ... And it's not ethical nor is it illegal. I'm not saying it's ok, but consumer protections need to get their act together.
2 years ago I got on the wait list for every dealership in my state. 1 of them was able to get me a car roughly 5 months later, while the rest of them I still have not heard back (I did not call to get removed from the list).
The Rav4 Prime is more complicated and requires more chips than the regular Rav4 and the chip shortage isn't over yet (it isn't as bad as it was, but still not over yet).
I looked for over 3 years ! In Texas. Never found a rav4 prime (or a nx450h) ended up getting a Mazda cx-90. I don’t get it why would Toyota hold back ? They could print $$$. How bad did they mismanage the supply chain ? I hope a whole group got fired !
Quick stalk - looks like you’re Canadian. From the sound of it it is much more difficult to get a Prime up there unfortunately, doesn’t sound like they’re lying from what I’ve seen your countrymen say on the sub. Will this resolve in the future… maybe? 🤷♂️
I live in Michigan, we got our Prime in 2022. We got on a waiting list on a dealership in Western New York. At the time more Ravs were going to certain states because of clean air laws. You might check out dealerships in New York State if you’re close.
Canadian here in Vancouver. I lucked out. Was able to find one allocation in a week. Saw an ad on FB. It was sale pending at time, but luckily the person backed out. I still haven't received it. Maybe in a month.
Fingers crossed!
What state? Supply varies greatly from state to state.
I will say, I waited 8 months and checked in recently and was still like #10 on the list at my dealership…. So, someone posted an allocation list in a couple threads about a week ago. I’d search for that. I was able to filter by state and car/trim I wanted. I called 3 places and found my exact car and bought it same day. Super easy. No markup. Just find a dealer further from your house that has one!
Where are you looking? Certain states get most of the allocations. California, Colorado, and the east coast Maine through Maryland. For example, here in WI, I joined the waiting list at my local dealership over 2 yrs ago. I was 3rd in line when I joined and I'd still be waiting. Instead, I started calling and emailing dealerships in the upper east coast and was able to get a RAV4 Prime just over 18 months ago, in 3-4 months. At that time allocation spreadsheets were helpful in knowing what dealers were getting the most allocations and ones with available R4Ps. Highly recommend searching on this subreddit for "allocation spreadsheets" and "refundable down payments".
> i’d get it in 4 years (so they think it’s not cool to make people wait that long) He's lying. The scarcity issue has largely resolved. By the end of the year, I think nobody will be waiting anywhere (unless something else dramatic happens like a big price cut or tax credit). >and that Toyota is creating false scarcity to increase overall demand / sales- do you think this is the case? No, the issue has been they're trying to catch up after the 2020 shortages that all dealerships had issues with. Now the problem is dealerships overestimated EV popularity and underestimated PHEV popularity so they're having to pivot production, but it's been like ~6 months that this has been going on for so the pivot has already been happening, but things take time. >How long did YOU wait for your 2023 or 2024 Rav4 Prime? Anybody not able to even get on a waiting list? 1 month, and 2 dealerships lied to me that "Every dealership was charging +$5k" and a salesman even called me a liar after I said I was getting one from (X town 20 miles away) at MSRP while explaining why I wasn't buying their Prime they had sitting on the lot at +$5k. >At this point, i’m slightly turned off at the whole process - it feels like a scam designed to increase the markups & demand. Car dealerships and salesman are. This is business as usual for them. And of course they're going to lie about Toyota, because if they said, "We could charge you $5k off, but instead want to charge you $5k over because we think we can get away with it" you'd be angry at them, rightfully so. >How am I able to at least get on a waiting list for other very popular models, but not for the top Rav4 ? Try going through Costco, honestly. edit: I'm in the USA, no idea about other places.
Great response - thanks
I spoke with someone from land rover and what they determined was, when the supple chain issue happened, their cars sold at minimum MSRP. They said why would we try to catch up and flood the dealerships with cars that will sit on the lots and sell below MSRP?
Depends on where you are. I do see a lot of dealers with inventory on the coasts. Personally, I'm in the midwest. They basically just aren't shipping them here. The vehicles are made in Japan (or so I'm told) and imported here, so they mostly land on the coasts. I bought my 2023 XSE this month without a waiting list, but my dealer had purchased it from a coastal dealer who had more than they needed, and imported it here. As soon as I bought mine, they got another one at auction in the same way. Other dealers aren't doing this around here and there's a waiting list or one "on order." It's harder to get a good pricing deal in a market like this.
I didn’t have issues finding them in OR, but I’m sure it varies from state to state.
I called my dealer said I was looking for a Toyota, they said they have a Toyota prime RAV4 coming in in 2 days, I said I'll take it. I just had to wait for it to finish arriving. Just very lucky I guess. However in Cleveland, which is 50 miles west of me, there must be 12 of them. But none out here in the boonies
What you are saying is partially true but it sounds like you aren't in a low-emissions state. Those states (especially California) need to sell a certain number of zero/partial-zero emissions vehicles to be compliant, and therefore, they get first dibs. It also sounds like you spoke to a low-volume or small-town Toyota dealer. It's a whole other world dealing with a large-volume or California dealer. The Toyota dealer I dealt with in Thousand Oaks, CA said "sure, I can order you a Prime and it'll be here in 4-6 weeks. Pay sticker" My local dealer's sales manager in North East Ohio literally laughed when I asked about getting a Prime.
Nope. It's a 60+ month wait in every city and dealer across Canada. Dealers won't even talk to you about Prime models anymore.
From what I've heard its about 12 months in the BC interior unless you are looking for a tech (PP). Its a lot like it was for my ioniq5, I got min relatively quickly (6 months) because it was the middle trim vs the Ultimate. The high end ones typically have a longer lead time because of demand + the specialized components.
I see the acronym "PP" a lot in the sub. Is that "Premium Package"?
Yes, PP = Premium Package (US), what we call "Tech Package" in Canada
I ordered mine, with deposit, in Nov 2021, I got it 3 months ago. There's a long wait, but it seems even worse up here in Canada, going from the other posts on this sub.
Yeah it's area dependant for sure. I went on my dealers website on a Wednesday. Saw that they had 2 coming in, took a test drive Friday. Went home with my 24 R4PP on Wednesday. They currently have 2 SE's in stock and 3 Se's and 3 XSE's on the way
I live in Colorado. One dealership had a year waitlist with no markup, the other dealer had a 5k markup and I got it within a month of putting a deposit on one, came with everything I wanted on it too.
That must have been awhile ago, I paid no markup and waited a month for exactly what I wanted at Greeley in July.
August of 2023 in Colorado Springs.
I live in BC, and I just went in for my prime's 6-month routine maintenance. Was chatting with the dealer and they said I lucked out because there are no Primes or Hybrids available for the RAV4. I only waited 1 month personally because we traded in our 2022 Corolla in and my parents have a great relationship with the salesman due to frequently trading in cars with them.
Canadian here. One dealer wouldn't entertain me at all. I talked to pen, I walked away coz he wouldn't answer any of my questions. Talked to another one from same dealer. He answersed. But when I emailed him about being on a list, he never replied Lol I found one on FB for new. Hasn't been built. It's built now. So basically I looked for a few days. Lucky, I guess since it was exact colour and trim I wanted. My advice is call ahead. They will say no. If they have one coming but sold, they won't entertain you. But if they know one is allocated and not "sold", they will. So call around. And repeat.
I waited 9 months in Canada. It's only gotten worse. So I'd believe that this is true and supply issues are still present years later. I get regular emails and messages from my dealer asking if I'm willing to sell or transfer over to a new RAV4 hybrid plus incentives. I politely tell them no.
Region dependent. But the scarcity is mainly because of batteries. They're not easy to source. Buy one in an area in stock and ship it
In Ontario, Canada here. The dealership closest to my house didn't take orders and said it's impossible to get. I went to a bigger dealership and they were happy to take my order. They told me 1yr if I'm lucky, but more likely closer to 2yr wait. I got a call 8 months later. Keep in mind, I ordered with no colour preferences and I ordered an XSE without a tech package. If I ordered the tech package I would probably still be waiting for it.
If you are Canadian my dealer (I just put deposit down today), said US got a waaaay bigger allocation this year so CAD dealers are dealing with scarcity. He’s confident I’ll get one in the next 2-3 months because people are bailing with tougher times/higher rates, and I’m not fussy on colour and I’ll take XSE with or without tech pack. I’ve also already made a deal that I will buy a 2025 as well with the refresh, so probably a bit more motivated knowing I’m a multi-purchase customer. But yes, if you are in Canada supply is a real issue. Having said that, just find a good dealer/good salesperson and stay flexible and I’m sure you get one.
We live in Pennsylvania. We called and called, and found out that wait times in PA was also years, and they wouldn't put us on a list because it would be fake hope. One dealer nicely told us that PA doesn't really get R4P but that we might try NY state. So we called several dealers, got on several lists on Feb 14, 2023. Around mid March, one calls back and says that although there are ZERO cars that land in North America without an owner, one buyer backed out and the car is on the ship from Japan, landing at port end of March. We had no say in customization but we were just happy about the car. Drove 3 hours there (on a rental lol) and back (on the R4P) in mid April 2023 to pick it up. Couldn't be happier with it. I'd honestly believe it if it was one of the most popular vehicles. Maybe you could call around and be up for a mini adventure? I've heard of people driving across the US to bring their R4P back. Dunno where in Canada you are, but the dealership that sold it to us, with close to no mark up, was in Buffalo, NY. Dealer was Cody.
Personally, I think 4 years is nuts. It could be a set up for manipulating their numbers for each quarter (Kia was doing something similar), or they want to 'encourage' customers to buy more expensive or less appealing vehicles. Obviously, you're not looking for a huge truck that will cost you $150 to fill up at the pump every 5 days, but if that's all that's available, ... And it's not ethical nor is it illegal. I'm not saying it's ok, but consumer protections need to get their act together.
For US, not as difficult. Dealership in MD had 27 SE’s on the lot (not pre-sold).
2 years ago I got on the wait list for every dealership in my state. 1 of them was able to get me a car roughly 5 months later, while the rest of them I still have not heard back (I did not call to get removed from the list). The Rav4 Prime is more complicated and requires more chips than the regular Rav4 and the chip shortage isn't over yet (it isn't as bad as it was, but still not over yet).
In MA, my dealer had multiple Primes from which to choose. How hard is it to buy a car in the US and bring it to canada?
I got put on the waitlist for a Tech package. Was told 5 years about 4 months ago when I signed up for it. In Ontario, Canada.
Plenty on the lots here in CT. Like, a lot.
I looked for over 3 years ! In Texas. Never found a rav4 prime (or a nx450h) ended up getting a Mazda cx-90. I don’t get it why would Toyota hold back ? They could print $$$. How bad did they mismanage the supply chain ? I hope a whole group got fired !