Toyota has a lot to recommend it, but discounted prices are not one of those things.
The quality has been outstanding. Every mechanic and car person always comments about my Toyota something along the lines of "oh that's bulletproof/will last forever"
Both of those statements are true. New Toyotas aren't discount, and Toyotas have a reputation of lasting forever.
This is resolved by buying a 20+ year old vehicle. You can get a 1999-2003 Toyota for a few thousand dollars.