hello all new to forum looking to purchase high mile 2010 lots of questions

I am also a Rideshare guy and I use a 2011 Prius so anything above a 08 is a good deal and yes you should jump on a 2010 that would probably be a good deal for you especially get you out of that Ram 1500 you're not going to make a lot of money because you just put it back into your gas tank so you need to Prius for sure I would go ahead and pull the trigger

 

2016 Ram seems to be quite expensive to upkeep, why UBER if you can afford a new expensive truck?

Anyways, the 2010 does sound like a pretty decent deal. But....there's always a but, the car's HV battery could cost you a few thousand to replace when it fails. I only say this because you would be looking for reliability for a "work" vehicle and a rebuilt battery will not be that reliable. I would check the car fax and maybe bring it to a Toyota dealer to do a prepurchase exam, might cost you a couple hours labor but it'll be better than putting $5000+ into a problematic "work" vehicle.

And that BS you've read about the Gen3 batteries lasting the longest......it's BS

 

Wow....I just kind of like the idea of someone driving Uber with a Dodge RAM 1600. Do you pull up and just tell them to hop in the back?

But that aside.

The deal doesn't seem bad. Or potentially bad. Carfax, VIN check, usual due diligence that one would apply to any used vehicle purchase would be warranted.

And in that age and mileage range, I wouldn't purchase without the knowledge, and ability to deal with Hybrid Battery Failure "IF" it happens.
Once you get in that range, failure becomes a possibility, even if predicting when that failure might happen is nearly impossible. Could happen tomorrow or 2 years from now.

IMO, I now just recommend people go with a new Toyota OEM battery replacement. Too many "mixed reviews" from people who have used refurbished batteries from various operations. People get enticed by the lower buy in price, and sometimes "better" warranty, but too many stories about how it all back-fires when the battery fails and then you have to deal WITH the battery replacement, and work to get some operations to back their warranty.
Have never really read a bad ultimate outcome from someone who just had a new Toyota OEM battery put in.

But the drawback is the cost is in the $3000 range. Give or take.

But if you are willing to do the deal knowing that expense, in one form or another "might" become necessary?
Then if it checks out on all other fronts, that could be a good deal.

 

I got a Prius III 2010 yesterday with 200k miles and it drove fine. However today driving it all of a sudden I have 3 check engine lights. Has a perfect carfax, extensive maintenance history. I guess all used cars are a total risk. Go in expecting to need to replace or work on it is my best advice. I'm mad, but at least it drives fine other than some hard starting when its been sitting a while and throwing some codes =/

 

1. I wouldn't expect too much from a car with 200k miles on it, as it was designed to go just about that mileage for its "lifetime".
2. What is hard starting? The engine doesn't crank, should just be your 12v battery starting it. I would check your 12v battery health make sure it's voltage is more than 12.6v overnight.

 

Test drive it to be sure it behaves properly, runs smoothly, etc. Besides the battery, beware of an oil-guzzling engine, another potential gotcha on these cars at that kind of mileage. It MAY be just fine.

 

johnsrt4, the Prius III-Nav you are looking at still has 2000 miles of hybrid warranty coverage (10 years from original purchase date). Register the VIN at Toyota Owners Official Web Site to see the dealer service history.

I'm with JC & Electric Me on the options for hybrid battery replacement. You can do it once with a new Toyota battery or you can do it cheap with a rebuilt. My consideration would be how long the car is intended to be kept after the swap.

EVERY battery fails. The older the car the closer you are to having to make the decision.

Are you also on someone's payroll? You may need to make quarterly tax payments. Keep a comprehensive log to document the business and personal use of the vehicles. Keep your receipts.

 

These cars are used heavily in taxi fleets and I doubt that they're replacing the traction batteries with OEM new ones when a Dorman battery is half that and uses

Haha, yeah, definitely needs to do some Dave Ramsey reading.... Get rid of that gas and money hogging truck unless you use it specifically for business that requires hauling loads on a regular basis. We went from a loaded SUV (even had air conditioned seats) "down" to a Prius and couldn't be happier. Lower payment, 1/2 to 2/3 less gas used, cheaper insurance.... Win win win. I've owned a full-size 4x4 truck before and to be honest, probably never will again unless it's an older truck that I own just for fun (like 1973-1987 Chevy). These 50-60k pickup trucks are completely ridiculous. Check out the interior of one after 5 years of normal use and you'll see it's not worth the price they tack onto them. Truck prices have skyrocketed, and anything with a V8 has become a holy grail of money.... I bought a new Camaro Z28 fully decked out (T-tops, Hurst shifter, Monsoon 12-disc changer) in 2000 for 24k, new. Adjusting for inflation, that's 33k in 2016 dollars. What can you get on a 2016 Camaro for 33k? Check into it, you'll be very disappointed at the base model you'll leave with! That's why I'm in a Civic Si. Decked out I drove off for 22k, including navigation, and now 3 years later, I can still get 19k trade-in on this car. Suckas!