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As someone who just went through the process of buying a Toyota Prius, I can offer the following information:
Wait times for the 2004 Prius are very long. I ordered mine in late February and I am finally picking it up this Saturday (May 22nd). I have heard that the US models have an even longer wait period than the Canadian models. Not sure why. Perhaps it is the navigation system.
In 2004 Toyota received many more orders than they were expecting, which is why the wait times are so long. No word on whether they will ramp up production for 2005... so the wait period might be just as long for those. I have heard that the 2005 Prius will be exactly the same as the 2004 Prius.
Make sure you do the math before buying. The amount you save on gas does NOT make up for the extra premium you pay for a hybrid car. Even with gas prices where they are, for the average person it is still more cost effective to buy a regular car. I'm not sure if the numbers will change with the 2005 model, but I doubt it.
I look at my purchase as an investment in technology... not as a money saving or environment saving plan. After all, the real world figures for gas mileage are comparable to smaller regular cars. So by driving a Prius I'm not saving money or saving the environment, but hopefully I am sending a message to car manufacturers that the public is not afraid of new technology. At the same time, I'm getting a pretty spiffy car with a lot of cool features.
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