2014 Prius: Is 84K considered high mileage?

84k on a 6 year old car is very close to national average usage.

But beyond that it's meaningless without context or comparison.

I suspect that what you experienced was a service writer who had been trained to look for cars that had enough age & miles on them that the owner might be up-sold into replacing the car instead of repairing it, and he just wasn't anywhere near smooth enough about it.

When the car is young they just fix it. When it's older they inventory the problems and try to shock you with an estimate so that it looks like a good idea to trade it in. This is a very ordinary practice in many dealerships of most brands.

Just one more reason to avoid dealer repair bays once the warranty is over.

 

Most engine oil that is has the "high mileage" logo typically include "for engines over 75,000 miles." Just depends on the listener's or readers perspective. High mileage to me is 150,000 miles or more.

 

most important thing to do at that mileage is clean the egr circuit

 

And don't look to the dealership for that. Completely clean the EGR circuit AND intake manifold. Watch @NutzAboutBolts for some idea what that entails. If you can DIY and are prepared to clean what you have, it costs next to nothing. His videos are linked in a pinned thread, top of 3rd hen maintenance forum.

 

From my years of personal experience in dealing with dealerships for car repairs, don't do it. They usually charge a lot (due to overhead, licensing, etc), and will suggest you fix or replace as much as possible. Find an independent mechanic experienced with Prius. Your sign says you are in Costa Mesa. I would check out Hybrid Pit in Buena Park.

Hybridpit -- Passion With Perfection

 

Google will send you back here

 

EGR info:

The simplest way to see where you're at, is to check the degree of carbon build up in the EGR pipe, a stainless steel connecting pipe between the EGR valve and intake manifold. Watch @NutzAboutBolts video #16 here:

Nutz About Bolts Prius Maintenance Videos | PriusChat

Two or three other videos linked there too, for the full cleaning of the intake manifold, full EGR clean, and Oil Catch Can install.

Good thread:

EGR & Intake Manifold Clean Results | PriusChat

Another:

Oil Catch Can, Eliminate that knock! | PriusChat

Some tools worth having:

E8 Torx socket (mandatory)
E6 Torx socket (optional, but good to have, to remove the throttle body studs from intake manifold)
3/8" ratchet wrench, regular and long handle, flex head, you can never have enough (or 1/2 plus reducer)
1/4" ratchet wrench, or 3/8" to 1/4" reducer
Ratchet extensions: you can never have enough
Long needle nose piers, straight and bent tip
Ratcheting 12mm box wrench (optional, but makes disconnection of the EGR cooler from exhaust easier)
Torque wrench (3/8" and 1/4" both good to have)
Floor jack and safety stands (or ramps): basically some method to raise front, if you need to take underpanel off, which you may need to, both for access and to recover dropped items.

Comment regarding clamping of coolant hose, mentioned and or shown in videos:

1. When removing the intake manifold for cleaning, you do need to lift the throttle body off the intake manifold. Still, the coolant hoses connected to the throttle body have ample slack, enough that you can leave them connected, and just tie the throttle body to something adjacent, say the inverter wiring harness.

2. When removing the EGR cooler, removing coolant hoses is necessary, but if you drain 2 liters/quarts from the radiator drain spigot prior (into a clean container), the coolant level in the system will be dropped below the EGR componennts, and you won't spill anything. Just be sure to not tip the cooler when lifting it off (and catch the rear gasket): there are a few tablespoons of coolant trapped at the lower back corner.

Pour that into your previous drained coolant, and when done pour it back into the reservoir. If you've got the coolant bleed bolt (2010, 2011 model years), leave it open while pouring the coolant back in, till coolant starts coming out. For later model years, leave the topmost coolant hose on EGR disconnected till coolant starts coming out. Also, might help to burp the main radiator hose as you pour the coolant back in.

 

Boiler plate on speed dial.

Always good to have at the ready .

 

What is the average, about 3 or 4 a week? It's very sad getting new threads as people have problems!

 

Seems more frequent than that.

But @Mendel Leisk would know how many times he has copied and pasted.

The egr circuit is the Gen3 opportunity, so it is natural that we see it more here.

Kinda like the HV battery threads in Gen2 land. They are everywhere.

 

Eugene Park, sorry to hear about your experience. I will say I was a dealership mechanic for 16 years, and I tried to do the right thing for each customer.
I will tell you that when most dealerships are slow they will offer low cost oil changes, and free "Safety Inspections" to get vehicles in the door so they can try to sell work to keep people working.

Each person will read this a little differently. Some will say the dealership (stealership) is trying to find work and fix things that are not broke, and some are right in this statement. Sometimes things can be found that are in need of repair. IF the service writer takes the time to really inform the customer, and the customer is really listening then everyone understands and all is well.

For instance, "Hi Eugene we looked at your 6 year old prius with 84K miles on it. We noticed the rubber strut boots are breaking down due to age which is fairly normal. These boots help to keep dirt from getting to the top of the strut seal, which can eventually cause the seal to leak and the gas and oil to leak out from the strut. The seal is a cheap part but the labor to take out the struts is where the cost is. If we were going to do the job we would suggest replacing the struts based on age and mileage. But Eugene understand this is not a safety issue we are just trying to honestly point out what we saw when we looked at your vehicle."

Instead you heard or were told, "The service advisor said front struts need replacement because the cover is broken."

Either way my 2010 strut boots were both torn and failing. When I sold my 2010 with 280K miles the struts were still in good condition. When I say good condition I base that on the fact I had no abnormal tire wear, and good ride control in the mountains.

As mentioned by others and in my opinion the EGR maintenance is something to be done based on past experience. The problem with this repair is it is a preventative maintenance item that is not in the manual. It is not something Toyota ever setup. It is an issue that has been experienced by many Gen3 owners and has some history to it. But if you are a customer of the dealership and don't have a high level of trust with them, then selling work like this is hard. Many of the customers I do work for have a level of trust with me. I can take the time to discuss and explain what I have seen, a lot of it based on past experience, and experience related to a specific manufacturer/model and its strengths and weaknesses.

I have said this on many of my other posts, some are tired of hearing it, and some will argue it. But I think the Gen3 Prius was a pretty good vehicle. It had some issues, it wasn't perfect. I think some of its issues were impacted by how people drove and maintained the vehicle. If you maintain the vehicle properly, drive it wisely, and find someone who knows this vehicle and how to maintain it to minimize issues it can last you a very long time.

Just my 2 cents.

 

Thank you High mileage for insight from the inside. Its always good to hear the good side of the story. I agree with you, its all in the delivery of the message. You would have been the mechanic I would keep going to. Thank you!

 

Your 2 cents, is worth 2 gold coins! Thanks for the comments!
The dealership is a business. Business's are in in the business of making money!

I worked at 3 dealerships, they were mostly honest. But "I" was honest and wouldn't
lie to the customer's. It eventually cost me jobs.
The last independent service shop I worked at, the owner was one of the most dishonest person
that I think I have met! The shop foreman on the other hand, was as honest as I was. I was great!
But he could only do so much because of the "boss".
We would always show them the problem and explained the level of danger.... and let them decide on
what to do.
When service was slow at the dealerships, they would bring new cars back for warranty work so
that we, the technicians would have work so we could pay our bills and feed out families.

When you find an honest shop, KEEP GOING BACK! And spread the word!

My 2010 Prius is GREAT! Only normal wear and tear items... Except for the egr circuit.
I've done it twice, and it's very easy to do. Just time consuming....

 

We purchased a 2012 Prius v (wagon) in Jan,2018 with 128K on it. It *did* need some work...but I also got it for $8500...so the work wasn't that big of a deal. Now it has nearly 160K on it and still looks and runs great...probably partially due to all of the work I put into it.

As the others have said above, put the work into it and you will enjoy it for many years to come. If you want somewhere to start, read through my Prius v thread in my signature below.