"This is the time to buy a used Toyota in US", expert says

TORONTO, March 22 /CNW/ - "If you are planning on buying a used or almost new Toyota in the next few months, you may want to consider moving up your buying decision," says Viraf Baliwalla, President of Automall Network. "With all the negative publicity surrounding Toyota in the last several months, their wholesale residual values have dropped significantly in the US versus Canada. And with the dollar at almost par, it creates great bargains today, especially for the more expensive models including Lexus."

Toyota has announced a slew of recalls recently, one after the other, and has been a target for media stories and government officials. However, Toyota has a loyal following and many Toyota customers feel the negative publicity was a witch hunt to protect the North American manufacturers. Despite that, short term public perception has had a negative impact on their vehicle sales and market values, but moreso in the US than in Canada.

"The reduced prices are a short term thing. We see values rising again in the coming months once the recalls become old news," claims Baliwalla. "For clients considering a used Toyota purchase today, we are suggesting a US purchase to capitalize on the current environment."

For example, a 2009 Toyota Camry LE V6 with 6,802 km recently sold at wholesale auction in Canada for $18,200 Cdn. In the US, a comparable Camry LE V6 with 9,028 miles sold for $13,900. Both vehicles had all the recalls completed. "Other than Toyota, many higher end vehicles are also selling for less in the US," states Baliwalla. "A 2009 Lincoln Navigator we recently priced out from the US was almost $8,000 less including all taxes, delivery, everything than buying a comparable one in Canada."

Automall Network is a vehicle buying service, some call it a car broker. They do for car buyers what a real estate agent would do for a home buyer. Although Automall Network has a dealer's license in Canada, they do not operate like a traditional dealer. Instead they work for the buyer.

For further information: Viraf Baliwalla at [phone] x303 or [email protected], or view their website at www.AutomallNetwork.com