I'm a city dweller who has never owned a car, but am considering buying my first. I read on carcomplaints that the 2009 is the most reliable Prius ever made. I found a couple '09s with ~150k miles and no accident history for ~$4500 - $5000. My budget allows up to $12,000, but I'd prefer to save some money and get a car that's already depreciated. I plan on driving less than 5k miles per year. I enjoy fixing things (washing machines, phones, etc.) and can follow video tutorials, but I have zero experience fixing cars. I realize the hybrid battery on any '09 prius is nearing its end, so I'll set aside $2k for a replacement. Is there any other major expense I should consider? Is an older car a good idea for a newbie like me, or should I spend more for something new?
Does that show the service history? There's some very conciensious DIY owner's really on top of maintenance, also doing things Toyota doesn't recommend, transaxle fluid change for example. Not sure where I'm going with this, maybe: yeah check the service history, but also check the car, talk directly to the owner if possible. Tough question. With no automotive experience, I'd lean towards new purchase.
The biggest problem with keeping the hybrid battery and any battery condition healthy is lack of uses. So having a Hybrid car should be start it and driven as much as possible 10k-15k per year is normal and good with regular maintenance oil changes etc. Which mean leaving a car parked weeks or months at a time is bad. Also because of California laws about hybrid battery warranties must last 10 year or 150k without problems, therefore toyota really over engineered the Hybrid system and made them very reliable. Even though 10yr/150k warranty isn't applied to all states but was designed to last long. We have lot of Prius owners still running the original Hybrid packs with 250k. I'm at 175k and torque apk tells me my hybrid battery are still good. I would get the car checked out by a Mechanic example: Firestone does a 50 point check up for $30 and also a carfax check too. Good luck! SM-J737T1 ?
Don't let Firestone touch your car...unless you're just there for their tires. There's a reason "Mechanics" work there.
Great Prices!!! You're gonna love it... And you can get a lot of life out of an original 09 battery pack before replacing... So make sure it's the original pack, or replacement came new direct from Toyota because too often people say "new" battery pack when it's actually a rebuilt used pack, which can require way more maintenance that an original. You're also going to want to clean/replace the battery packs corroded bus bars, as well as do reconditioning on pack to restore capacity. Learn more here: Prolong Battery Systems. Extending the life of your hybrid. — Hybrid Automotive
I agree. Still, our miles per year used to be about 10K, have dwindled to around to 5K (at most), but I still get a kick out of our Prius, wouldn't trade it.
I should've explained why I recommended running the VIN (beyond the service history), which is to check for odometer shenanigans. I've seen two clean vehicles with rolled back odometers that didn't come remotely close to the reported mileage, and without a little due diligence it would've been quite difficult to tell. Example: was offered an 08 with 130k, pulled up the VIN to find the most recent dealer service was dated 08/21/2017 at 224,118 miles, can only guess how many additional miles were put on in the last 2+ years. In this case the owner had been duped by the previous seller.
You saved my behind, thank you. I ran the VIN and noticed there'd been no service history for two years. Did a little digging on facebook and found that he'd posted about his car being in a wreck. I asked the other '09 seller if I could see the VIN and he's ghosted. Makes me want to stick to bicycles
bisco has a great point. Corolla will have very good reliability and also great mpg. Will probably at least give you some minor wrenching to do from time to time with maintenance etc.
I have to agree with bisco. At 5k/yr, you're not using the car enough to keep the battery in optimal condition. Also, you're paying a Toyota premium for a car that you're not driving enough to have problems with. I wouldn't even recommend a Toyota. Consider another Asian brand that's still reliable but doesn't command the price premium of Toyota.
