Like many of you, my roommate and I are both big gear-heads, and love looking around online to fantasize about finding a cheap Aston Martin or Porsche – a bit or a stretch for our still “very young professional” budgets. That being said, we still find ourselves spending more time than either of us care to admit customizing the newest Lamborghini Aventador, 911 or Ferrari 458 online, building our ultimate dream car/poster car to a T, ceramic brakes and rear diffuser and all. Although the six-figure sum at the end of the multistep online customization process if always disheartening, it prompted me to explore some more reasonable options…just kidding.
But really: My roommate remarked “I wonder what a fully loaded brand new Prius comes in at…I wonder if what you could find for that on the used market. I bet nothing THAT cool, right Christian?”
I was curious, and immediately hopped on the Toyota site to build a decked out Prius. With it being one of the most iconic and relevant hybrids on the market, with 184,794 units sold in in the US in 2015 alone, I was surprised to find my loaded Prius 4 Touring, in black of course, totaling a hefty $35,737 BEFORE tax and delivery.
After wading through this rather surprising customizing process, it was on to the fun part – what if I could find a Porsche for a Prius?
After browsing around in the local car classified and doing a bit of digging, I found some staggering options, further exacerbated my surprise that nearly 185,000 Americans would opt for a glorified dishwasher on wheels, only quieter, over a classic 911, the esoteric and timeless G-Wagen, a multitude of 500+ horsepower AMG Mercs, and even the pinnacle of automotive luxury, a Bentley. All for less than the price of a loaded Prius; in some cases even close to half as much as the Prius…
There was no emoji emotive enough to emulate my astonishment: Mind. Blown.
In conclusion, yes, you can find a classic Porsche for the price of a Prius. Here’s the 1985 Porsche 911 Carrera Convertible with 30k miles on the clock we found. So before you convince yourself you can’t afford an automobile with such character, take heart in the attached screenshots:
Although this stunning whale-tail booty’d ’82 911 SC is a tick outside of our budget, ie. a grand more than the loaded Prius, we felt it deserved an honorable mention. With shipping and delivery who knows, it might be under the Prius. Be a Porsche driver, not a Prius driver — happy browsing!