Found a 2001 Prius for $500 187k, good buy?

It is getting interesting - Car looks good - if you want to see what prices are for gen 1 Prius out here you can look at 2001 - 2003 Prius on craigslist San Francisco bay area - there are a number for sale now

I agree that flipping these cars for profit is not viable

About parts - I have not struggled finding parts yet but as I mentioned earlier there are lots of gen 1s around here but soon who knows as they are starting to show up at the local pick n pull - two weeks ago there were 6 in the Windsor pick n pull - I have been thinking of stock piling parts

What is harder is getting people to work on them if you don't want to DIY - local hybrid shops are interested in gen2+ - not our cars

 

Oh my, someone thinking of buying a Gen1. Don't expect a whole lot of support when that thing fails.

 

Gen 2 is a much better project in many cases.
Also better for resale.

That said trying to flip one and not be scummy about it (like replacing pack with random modules) is pretty difficult.

Fixing these properly can run a few thousand dollars.

 

If I may, why are you looking for such a cheap Prius? Is this a project toy, lack of funds...or what? Respects, but this is important information if you want proper guidance on your purchase.

 

Well if "you" call it just a project to tinker with, I would say you don't need our help. They go for cheap, will eat you budget and you get to play. A lot of us have "hobbies" that make no financial sense. However, if you are looking for a thrifty fix-er-upper strictly for "transportation"...I would reconsider and buy an older Corolla or Civic instead of a GEN I Prius.

 

As little as you can.
You can find one without a battery for $1,000 -$2,000 or so I suppose. (Less if you have your feelers out within your local Prius community)
Add another $2,000 or so for a NEW Toyota battery.
So for $3,000 you have a pretty solid base.
Mileage will likely be between 125,000 - 225,000

If the pack has not been replaced in the high mileage Prii you are looking at, you need to figure that into the cost.

If someone causally says "the pack has been replaced" you need to start digging deeper for concrete answers.
- Was the replacement pack NEW?
- Was the replacement pack USED? (refurbished, rebalanced, cell replaced, module replaced, from a junkyard, etc... ALL MEAN USED!)
- Ask to see a receipt showing the purchase of the battery pack
Look up any dealer service history via ToyotaOwners.com website.

Of course you could skip the whole hybrid thing and just go with a similar mileage and priced Civic (NOT HYBRID VERSION!!), Corolla, Echo, Matrix, Fit, etc

 

Interesting twist - keep us posted on your progress with the 2001.

 

Until it is up and running smoothly, having it as a secondary vehicle to tinker with will likely be much more fun than if you had to have it as primary car.

 

tech stream for the hybrid battery, voltmeter for the 12 volt

 

He's a noob, Bisco. You can get a miniVCI cable from Amazon or Ebay. Installl the software into an old laptop, mines is an old Dell with XP os, and hook up the cable between the computer and the OBD port under the steering wheel. The program will check the voltages of all the modules. It will work for a variety of things on other years Prius, and infact, other Toyota cars.

In the meantime, the battery level indicator on the dash will tell you a lot. Does the car charge it right up to the top? Does it go down really fast when driving the car? I guess I suggest "don't trouble trouble" and just go ahead and drive it. No check engine lights? The HV battery may be okay. Wonderful driving little cars, aren't they?

 

i'm not allowed to say m--- v-- on priuschat

 

If you want my unsolicited opinion as a Mechanic...you might want to wait a while before risking that kind of trip with this unproven vehicle.