I am going to get a used Prius soon. I found two with $17k before tax, it's either a 3xk miles Prius II or 6xk miles Prius III with nav/solar roof (I posted it in the Dealers and Pricing forum). I only do a few miles to work, so may be the high mileage doesn't matter? I do plan to make more long trips to the city after I got the car...
I'd get the newer Gen 3 with the 60,000 miles in my opinion If you know the vin number you can log into the Toyota web site and get the service record that was recorded at the dealer. This will tell you what service and repairs were done. Here s the URL Service History Online - Toyota Owners Congrats
Nice find! I can verify all the 15k services at the dealer, although they don't show in Carfax. 60k service is not there, but since it is a certified car, it doesn't matter, I think? Although from this forum I found it pretty easy to install a Rosen nav/backup camera, it's still better to have them stock.
Negotiate that they discount the price so you can do the 60,000 mile service or have them do it. Don't want to forget any interval. At that mileage I would replace the Transaxle fluid. The dealer charges $100. When your there have them check for any recalls and test the 12V small battery. Once you do that you'll have worry free motoring. Welcome to the Prius community. Keep in mind that oil in the gen 3 should be changed every 10,0000 miles. Was that done? Alignment every 5,000 miles. Check the recommended factory maintenance against the work done that was recorded at the web site. Fluid changes are the most important otherwise you may face early parts failure. If it is Toyota Certified than the car had a 144 point inspection and a extended warranty. Your probaly golden but always good to check em for honesty. Best to you. You got a good deal.
Thanks for all the details! Yes it is a certified and is actually at 67k miles. Should the 60k miles service be included in the certification already?
Certification is different than the 60,000 mile service. The 60 K service includes an oil change, engine filter change and cabin air filter change It also requires an inspection. The cost is about $100 The certification is a larger inspection for warranty authorization. No oil change or filter changes may have been done. You need to ask them. You may be OK so no worries. Hopefully they did the oil change otherwise you will go 20,000 miles without an oil change. Worth it to ask them don't assume. This URL includes what should be done in t 60,000 miles Toyota Parts and Service This is the URL for the certification inspection 160 Point Inspection | Certified Used Toyota
Personally, I'd get the Prius II because it has only 30+K miles rather than twice that amount. Meaning, in theory, you'd get an extra 3 years of ownership (again, in theory, and all else remaining the same). And with all of the complaining I've heard here about Toyota's NAV, it's not such a selling point. Now, the solar roof, is that worth what is basically 3 years worth of ownership? Not for me. But that might be a selling point for you. One other issue: Do you get any feeling that the original owner driving the III at 2,000 miles per month was any harder on the car than the original owner driving the II at 1,000 miles per month. Not sure how to tell, but maybe you can get some kind of feeling (dings, wheels, scratches, seats, etc.). I'm sure they tried to clean up both cars as much as they could. Good luck. Mike
Traction Battery lifespan is a decade or longer. The newer car with higher mileage is the better choice in my humble opinion. Replacement rebuilt is about $1,800 plus install $300 or salvage $500 plus install. Gen 3 batteries are better. Not scaring you hopefully you got another 7-12 years of driving in the 2010.
Thanks for the comments. I don't actually care about the NAV or the solar roof much, it's the backup camera I would find useful. If I get a II, I will install it myself. The thing is other 2010 III with NAV in my area are rare and listed much more expensive. I bought a 2000 Mitsubishi Eclipse 3 years ago with 135k miles and I only put on 20k miles myself, already including a few road trips. We might move and get a longer commute, that's why I am thinking of a Prius. Nexus 4 ? 2 Any idea of how much a platinum extended warranty will be? Or do I need it? For the III it will be almost 4-year/32k of the bumper to bumper warranty instead if the 1/12k that came with CPO. Do they sell for less than those who picked up a 1 year old car? Nexus 4 ? 2
I googled the Platinum Warranty and noticed from $650 to $1,050. Plenty of room in negotiation. The warranty is nice to have. Like an insurance policy. The Prius gets very high marks from Consumer Reports for reliability. You may never use it. It offers peace of mind. Many dealers include it to sell the car. It covers the battery, inverter and Transmission it is worth the $650. Keep in mind you may never make a claim against it. It is a profit for the dealer. But if something goes wrong you got it covered.
I just bought one in SO CAL about a little over a month ago. I got mine from Longo Toyota (largest dealer NA) I did a lot of homework before buying and the best time to buy is when the car has been listed for more then 50 days. They will not keep the car past 60-70 days If it does not sell they will drop the price a few grand and lure in buyers. If the car does not sell they send it to another dealership or strait to auction. Don't let nav persuade you into spending thousands extra for something that can easily be added for a few hundred dollars. My car was listed at 18,888 before tax and misc fees. Sale price 16,800 OTD price 16,000 taxes and misc fees included. 59xxx on the clock Black prius II Car came with new tires and three different warranties and one year road side assistance free. (I even squeezed them for floor-mats, cargo-net and Toyota window gaurds ) Hope this helps if you have any other questions you can PM me.
It's a bit expensive around here than SOCAL. Anyway from cargurus I can see that car was for sale for 67 days already, and cut the price twice totaling $2000. The last price cut was just last week. The dealer is no haggle price though, they don't even make a $200 more cut. LOL Nexus 4 ? 2
Bought it! $19k out the door. It was a lease return. At 67k miles, the dealership did the 60k service, changed the front brakes, coolant and transmission fluid. Just one key fob is not the solar roof A/C type.
Thanks to this forum and some other websites, I already had the price and accessories in mind. The dealership has a no haggle policy, so their was not much time wasted. They just tried (not very hard) to sell a paint sealant package when I asked about paint and corrosion warranty. They offered 7y/100k extended warranty for about $1.5k so I declined.
Sounds like they were trying to take advantage of you on the warranty price.Good move to decline. The car is so reliable you will be OK. Just follow the maintenance schedule and the car will be a Charm.
Actually I googled, quite a lot of dealers are selling it $1.5k to $2k. And the financing guy said it costs the same to buy an extended warranty for a car of the same year but different mileage (like 2010 Prius with 36k vs 76k). Since I got much less coverage for the same warranty price, but I already took advantage of the cheaper car price due to higher mileage, I would pass...
