Considering a Used Gen 2, What Do I Need to Know?

The only thing I would do differently is the orientation of the bag. Try putting it laying on its side, against the back seat. Then load the other bags similarly. Take advantage of the space overhead that you are not utilizing. Think outside the box so to speak. Or think how the airlines would be handling your bag. It probably won't be laying flat like you have it.

 

Gotcha, just wanted to mention it in case you were pressed for time. If you would have seen how my wife loaded down our Prius two years ago, you would not have believed it. I have no doubt we were over the limit, but the car did fine on a 120 mile trip with some hills here and there. Travelled from Lufkin, TX to Houston, TX. Houston is flat, Lufkin (East Texas) is hilly with a lot of pine trees.

I honestly believe that if you end up with the Prius you will be happy. It may be snug, but the price at the pump makes a BIG difference.

Best of luck to you Sal!

 

Make sure you get two fobs that work. Check them very carefully. Also, make sure that both emergency key's are cut and will work the lock on the driver's door. The other stuff we talked about is minor imo, but the fobs are real important imo.

Best of luck again!

 

Sal,

Go back to the beginning of this string that you started and look at the picture I posted on post#4. If the Prius you are looking at has the square black button like what is pictured in post #4, then the Prius will have SKS on it. No square button, NO SKS!

If they know what they are doing and the car is setup for SKS, the fobs stay in your pocket or purse. The only time the fob needs to be in the dash is if the battery in the fob is dead or the SKS is disabled. There is a button on the dash below the steering column. Disabled (button is in) Enabled (button is out). If you had the fob in your hand and pushed one of the buttons on the fob, you should see a little red light flash. Once you see that light and am familiar with it, then walk up to the car and watch the light. Once you are in range the light will flash, and the interior lights will turn on. Then if the car is locked, touch the inside of the door handle on the front door (driver or passenger). You should hear two beeps, the parking lights should flash twice, and the car should unlock. Open the door within 30 seconds otherwise the doors will relock automatically. Enter the car, foot firmly on brake pedal, push the power button. You will hear some beeps and see lights come on on the dash. Once you see ready, the car can be put in gear and drive off. Remember when shifting from P to D or R, always have your foot on the brake firmly. If you don't hold the brake pedal down, the transaxle will not shift out of P.

To shut down, place foot on brake. Push the P button on the dash (Park). Then release the foot brake and push the power button. All the lights should go off on the dash. Upon exiting the car, close all doors and push the black square button on the front door or the rear hatch. The doors should lock, the parking lights should flash once and you should hear one short beep. If you hear one long beep (10 seconds), a door is not closed or a fob is inside the car.

I believe you will see two buttons under the steering column. One is for the TPMS system, the other is for the SKS system. I am not sure if your car will have the TPMS or not. I think that came out on the later models. But I am not sure when it started as far as year model is concerned.

It would be a good idea to make sure you get a owner's manual also with the car. The one for the '09 is over 400 pages. It took me three days to go through it and begin to understand what is in there. I highly recommend you read the whole thing.

FWIW, the salesman at Toyota didn't have a clue when we got ours. He taught me to have the fob in the slot. I found out that our car had SKS after visiting a different dealer to get a second fob and pay for the programming. That is when they explained to me what I had and how it worked. I have first hand knowledge of the costs, that is why I stressed it to you. It is NOT cheap for the second fob. In the end, I managed to get the seller to reimburse me for the second key fob and the programming. But it took a lot of talking and phone calls to management to get that far.

 

Lots of variables on that. Ambient temp, cabin temp, light conditions etc. At 80 ambient, with the A/C set auto @ 76, the air will feel not ice cold.

90 ambient 76 Auto air should be cold within a couple of minutes. It is electric, not run off of the ICE.

There is a sight glass under the hood. It is on the passenger side. Pretty obvious. Check for bubbles when A/C is on. Also the gas/oil should be clear. It is normal to see foaming when compressor kicks on and turns off.

Hard to describe online. If you have doubts, ask the seller to have the system checked. On our 09 I had to replaced the coil in front of the radiator and recharge about a year after we bought it. Looked like it was damaged from a stone thrown up from the highway.

 

That happens a lot. The dealers are striving to increase their bottom line. They rarely give what a car is worth when you trade in. If you can stand the hassle of selling it yourself, you will come out ahead. If you have the finances ready, and cash flow to back you up and can afford everything then consider getting a Prius and then selling the trade in outright.

I was lucky. I had a nice Chrysler T&C with low miles and late model that I traded in. First offer was low ball. 12,5 K I wanted 18K. In the end we settled for 17.5 K trade in and got our 09 (two years old with 42K on clock for 18K plus TT&L. All said and done the bottom line was 2K out of our pocket. We were happy, but almost walked out on that deal too. I worked with them for 3.5 hours before we reached an agreement. I came in armed with printouts from all the websites clearly showing the values. The trade in was in excellent condition with no scratches and or flaws inside and out - low mileage etc. Only reason we traded was fuel economy and comfort levels. It was hard to get in and out of the van. Had a Mazda MPV before that. Very easy to get in and out, but constant problems with transaxle and check engine light. Bought that one new, sold four years later.

Don't give up. Buying a Prius is a adventure and worth the trouble. In the end you will have a car that gives the best mileage.

Good luck to you.

 

Keep plugging away on it, it took some time when we got ours too. They come and they go. When it happens, it will be the one for you. Good things come to those who wait.

 

Not sure where in OH you are located however I bought a 2008 Prius with 102K on it from a Toyota Dealer that sold it (1 owner) and serviced it too. Wouldn't consider a high mileage vehicle except this was in great condition. I had to drive a distance to see it thinking it was too good to be true. After reading this forum and researching the vehicle I was only going to buy it from a Toyota Dealer. I currently have an Toyota FJ Cruiser which gets about 18mpg on highway and I travel at least 80 miles to an from work. I can tell you the Prius is absolutely Great on gas, comfort, space, handling,....can't say enough.

 

Here are essential things you MUST know:

1. In the 2006 year, there were some noticeable changes to the MFD graphics and the rear taillights weren't blacked out anymore.

2. The battery's warranty is 8 years/100,000 miles (10 years/150,000 miles in California CARB states) and age seems to be more of a determining factor in the battery life than mileage.

3. Look for little black squares by the front door handles. These are for the Smart Key System. They make the car a whole lot more enjoyable as you don't need to dig your keys out of your pockets to unlock/lock the doors and trunk.

4. Backup cameras are OPTIONAL; they didn't come on all models. I love my backup camera and couldn't live without it, so consider this!

5. Leather is not very common on Gen II's as it is on Gen III's, so if you aren't very patient, buy a cloth model and save up for some good leather covers.