Wanting a Used Gen II Prius but Concerns about High Mileage

not really. if you want reliability, in terms of automobile's, the prius can't be beat. but at those mileage's, you're at the mercy of bad luck. if you're in a carb state, you have 150k/10 years on the hybrid system. but that doesn't cover all the expensive stuff. welcome to priuschat!

 

There is no way to check the health of the hybrid battery. The good thing is if it goes bad on you, it can be fixed for about $2000.

Just some info for you, I have owned 3 Prius, all with over 100,000 miles and no battery issues. I currently own a 2005 with 160,000+ miles and its on the original hybrid battery. If I were you, I would look for a CA car, an 07 with the least miles, in your price range (since CA has a 10 yr, 150,000 mile warranty on the hybrid battery).

 

If it will only take you 1 year to get a new car, I would just hold off on buying any car until that time. There are no guarantees on a used Prius, especially with high miles. Last thing you want is to spend $7000 and get a lemon with problems that you can't afford at the present time.

In CA you get an amazing warranty of 10yr/150k miles warranty on the hybrid system. Getting a new car will provide you with many many years of trouble free driving, while you focus on your career. No need to distract yourself now with a high milesage Prius that may or may not be reliable. Just wait and buy new.

 

I was in a similar scenario as you are in, however my daily commute is around 130-150 miles RT per day from the IE to LA. I was able to find a used 05 prius with a few exterior cosmetic issues on the rear bumper but with an impeccable service history and a brand new hybrid battery with just 1k miles and 3 months old warranty replacement hybrid battery. I'd recommend for the lowest price to scour the CL listings and autotrader private listings from beyond the LA, OC, IE, SD areas. LA areas tend to keep their prius prices near the high avg. My prius was acquired via a 10hr RT but it was a package 5 2005 with 101k miles for a little under 6k. I'm happy with the car. My number #1 reason for trusting the car is the great service history (can be pulled from toyota owners website). To avoid too much hassle, perhaps look into an originally registered CA car and try to make sure the date of registration is under the 10yr or 150k mileage, then pull into dealership and ask them to check the hybrid battery. If its suspect you might be able to take advantage of that extended hybrid warranty.

BTW, I'm averaging around 50-54 mpg with mostly highway cruising which is better than my Ls430's 30 mpg.

 

I have to agree.
If you are less than a year away from a situation in which you project you could then afford a new car?

Why not just wait and get a new Prius?

If you haven't started your career, and currently budget is an issue, then a high mileage Prius is a risk.

Since you never know how life is going to unfold, either in regards to a used car purchase or when a career is going to start, getting stuck with a hybrid battery replacement could be bad. And with that price range, and that age range, I don't think there is any way the risk doesn't exist.

Not saying it would happen, but it could, or in that price range and with that high of a miles, other potential issues could arise.

If you're looking at a temporary year or less vehicle, before upgrading, I would be more conservative and maybe hold my Prius purchase until I could invest more. You can find something...that is better in terms of gas mileage than a SUV. Even if it doesn't match a Hybrid gas mileage.

Get something right now, that you can drive and potentially use as your " trade in" in 12 months.

Reading in between the lines and speculating a bit, but it sounds like you'll have a better idea at least of what your new income will be, and what job you'll have in a year.

Instead of getting an Older High Mileage Prius, that will be even OLDER with HIGHER mileage in a year? I might make "reliability" my highest priority in my search, and simply find the vehicle I felt was going to hold it's value and be as reliable as possible for the year I'm waiting.

 

Where she's at, the Prius is probably the most reliable vehicle that will hold its value better than any other car. She is in the $4 a gal. gasoline area $4.599 in downtown LA in some places.

I know all of you have the best intentions but, I find it so ironic that talking her out of buying a Prius is the general consensus here??? If she buys an 07 with 120k miles for $7k, she will still have warranty to 2017 on all hybrid components. The only other 07 vehicle with a warranty that long is a Hyundai. I'm not sold on 07 Hyundai reliability and... good luck finding a low mileage 07 Corolla or Civic (in good shape) for under $7K in CA.

As all of you know, I'm biased but, I'm biased for a reason. These are damn good cars that get exceptional hwy and superior city mpg. Reliability is better than most cars out there and the cars that are comparable in reliability are typically as or more expensive.

As evidenced by this Autotrader Search
http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/2007/Toyota/Corolla/Arcadia+CA-91006?endYear=2007&firstRecord=301&makeCode1=TOYOTA&mmt=%5BTOYOTA%5BCOROL%5B%5D%5D%5B%5D%5D&modelCode1=COROL&searchRadius=0&showcaseListingId=0&showcaseOwnerId=0&startYear=2007&Log=0

Whereas a quick search for a Prius netted this.
http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?zip=91006&endYear=2007&modelCode1=PRIUS&showcaseOwnerId=0&startYear=2007&makeCode1=TOYOTA&searchRadius=0&showcaseListingId=0&mmt=%5BTOYOTA%5BPRIUS%5B%5D%5D%5B%5D%5D&listingId=379377198&Log=0

 

I'm in no way suggesting the Prius is a bad car and to avoid it. Just from the OPs current position of not starting her career and budget minded should avoid a high mileage Prius. We all know the pitfalls that can come up on a Prius. In SoCal $7000 will most likely buy you a Prius that's out of warranty. If you find one that's still under warranty, you best take a closer look.

Since the OP is planning to upgrade to a new Prius in 1 year, it's in the OP's best interest to avoid a used Prius with over 150k. There are risks involved and no guarantees the car will be problem free for the 1 year period. There's a better chance at getting a reliable civic or corolla that can save her gas money and drive reasonable well for 1 year without any unforeseen issues.

I'm biased as well with my 4 Prius cars.........

 

I don't see any "reliable" low mileage civics or corolla's in that price range, in the area.

 

I purchased "your Prius" a few months ago. I had the same criteria as you, so I talked to customers at the gas station I work at who were driving compact sedans in my price range. The Prius stood out as being the best by far. I didn't find one person who had an issue with theirs, but most of the others had several small issues suck as tie rods or exhaust issues repaired.

I have put about 15k on mine already and am very satisfied with it.


Not a Dalek

 

writes has good advice if you're going to pull the trigger, but less than 2 months under his belt.

 

Regular gas here in SoCal is at least 4.59 a gallon. In LA, it'd be heard to find it for less than $5 a gallon.

As mentioned earlier, I was driving for my extended daily commute a LS430. Great mileage for its size, but I was still filling up its huge 22.2 gallon tank with premium fuel around 2.5 times a week. It starts getting expensive for sure. And the LS430 gets around 28-31 mpg if hwy mostly driving. I don;t really want to imagine that with a SUV.

The Prius is sensible in many ways for right now or in 1 year's time. If you purchase now, it'd be just as reliable potentially as if you purchased the same used prius a year later. Granted the key is having impeccable service history and maintenance and avoiding accidents and the like. I personally think that its most sensible for a person like me, a graduate student saddled with quite a bit of school debt, to buy a used prius with the best bang for the buck. The key for this particular scenario is that it will most likely take some time to find the RIGHT prius. There are soooo many priuses in the LA extended area, that it can be quite a chore to sort through them all. Lots are salvage which I ignore right off the bat. The next thing I look at is if the price is reasonable at the start. I usually don't prefer to talk down a price too much and would rather see a sensible person price their car non-exorbitantly. I try to look at TRADE-IN values based on kbb, NADA, and black book for the vehicle in GOOD condition. After that I have found that private parties will give you the best price and bang for the buck. They key once again is searching the car service history and maintenance. I love it when I find a car that has been dealer serviced every 5k miles with little things, preventative maintenance checked off, when I find TB cleaning, fuel injector cleanings, belt replacements, water pumps replaced, coolant and brake fluids changed, brakes changed. To me that indicates the person just dropped it off at the dealer and let the dealer do whatever they wanted. The car was well-maintained and perhaps a bit over-maintained. Just the way I like my used cars. I would never do it that way, but then again I like to do most things myself and rarely go to a dealer for anything. A good independent Toyota mechanic is all I need for those more time consuming items.

Like I said, CL and autotrader private listings are your friends. It'll take a while to sort through them all. The longer the car is on the market for, the more the price will drop or is negotiable. I have seen a few priuses be on CL for less than 3 hrs be off the market due to a very competitive price from a person that could afford to sell it for a lower price or just didn't want to play the waiting game or give out a gazillion test rides.

Priuses, I think, we all agree are rock solid reliable cars. Reference Consumer Reports and other publications that reference the prius as one of the most reliable used cars on the market. BTW the most reliable used car is my other car that I acquired this Jan 2014 the flagship LS430 - comfortable and reliable.

I can only imagine withe the OC traffic and LA traffic that the convenience of a prius would win you over real soon. I find it useful for those times I'm not willing to wait it out at a library or coffee shop till 8pm at night to start heading back home. Only when you've encountered SoCal traffic can you really understand what an advantage a prius is over other vehicles.

In summary, as long as you're willing to wait for the right prius with the right service history at the right price, I don't see any reason not to buy a prius now. It's better financially than buying a new car period. BTW I got my prius below even the Manheim auction value for a similarly equipped, similar mileage and year Prius. It's possible, but you'll have to wade through the junk to find the "gem".

BTW, don't put off by old tires. I "had" to replace the tires with brand new Energy Saver A/S's. They're just a part of car ownership.

 

$4.59 and $5.00 per gallon in Los Angeles? You need to buy gas at another station, I filled up today at $3.59 at samsclub

 

i meant 3.50 to 4 per gallon, the earlier quote may be in effect next january with this new upcoming CA gas tax. won't that be awesome.

 

BTW, if you're in the OC area, I know a great Toyota mechanic near Westminster. I travel to him from Riverside just to go to him. One of the best mechanics I've been around for very good prices. He'll tell you what parts are OEM and which ones aren't. He'll even give you the option to buy the parts and bring them in for him to install. He also does free inspections on request with oil changes.

 

Good luck on your search and let us know what the outcome is. BTW, I have experienced what you're talking about and it is crazy.

 

congrats, all the best!