Set on getting a Prius v

It has a lower final drive ratio (higher numerically) than the standard Prius to pull better. I live up a hill with a steep grade and I have no problems. If you want more acceleration, go to the Power mode. The car has almost no sound deadening to save weight. Noise at high rpm is ok but will be rare. A car with 70k should be like new. I would plan to trade around 150k to avoid any major maintenance and only consider the 16 or 17 models.

 

read the egr circuit/blown head gasket threads

 

The Prius CVT does tend to drone (more so on older Prii than newer ones) when at higher RPMs, this is normal and characteristic of most CVTs unless the car has an oversized engine with an excessive amount of power. Lower than average amounts of sound deadening also contribute to this. It's normal. Only potential concern would be low MPG that comes from unnecessary revving, but just the fact that the car revs isn't a problem. It's not a race car, so don't expect it to zoom up mountain grades at 80 mph without revving.

 

What is the reason for a possible prius purchase? How long to keep and how many miles have you figured into this equation....

 

So did you buy the Prius v? Of course its not a plug-in, maybe a used Chevy Volt plug-in would come close. They have an 8 year 100k hybrid systems and battery warranty (including the brake booster abs system) so its possible to find a gen 2 version (2016-2019) for a good price with warranty.

 

If you purchase a used prius you might have to spend thousands of $$$ on a new battery... and other things that go out that are very expensive. The fuel savings would be wiped out.....gas is cheap...... the only way one of these pays off is if you drive lots of miles.....and gas is over 2.50 a gallon. The batteries get old.... the master cylinder system goes out.... over $4000 installed...for just those two. Special tools, parts and knowledge is needed to work on them.....

 

Only bought a Prius because part of my business is solar power backup for remote telemetry sites... Don't hate the Prius luckily got mine for labor cost on a job (trade) but would never do it again. I have three toyotas and it the most unreliable and oil user of them. Get's good mpg..... MAGA!

 

I have to agree with Tim that the gen3 Prius is more problematic than the Gen2 (04-09) or gen 4 (16-present for hatchback). However reliability to 150k miles is statistically very good on all Prii and often pushes them to number one on many surveys. So I suggest people buy with knowledge and trade by 150k if possible. New Toyota hybrids today come with a 150k battery warranty for a reason.

Clearly there are justifications and times to replace batteries, watch oil levels and swap expensive brake controllers to achieve 250k-400k mile lifespans. Clogged egr coolers and blown head gaskets are also a factor with gen3 engines. Taxis and delivery drivers are use cases where one car down for a week is acceptable and cost per mile is paramount. Usually a family does not want the uncertainity of expensive breakdowns even if longterm ownership costs remain low.

 

Used car prices are high now because of slow new car manufacturing.

 

Tim hates his Prius, antagonizes owners, trashes the car every chance he can and wastes his time telling Prius fans that they made bad decisions.

The rest of us love their car and get great value from them.

Pixel 4 ?

 

I only have 68,000 miles on my 2012 Prius V. I haven't seen any issues with power. You definitely want to go to a mechanic who is familiar with Prius cars. But for me it just works. I haven't done anything to the car other than basic maintenance and the car is great. I will probably keep this car for another 5 years or so, hopefully. Cars on the whole are a terrible investment. And while its nice having the latest gizmos in cars, I would prefer not to pay for that many new cars... Dump the clown!

 

We bought a 2016 Prius V with 60k on it a year ago. It was our first Toyota and our first hybrid and we couldn't be happier with it. We put so little gas in it that we forget that we have to do that once in a while and those fillup's are only about 10 gallons. We average about 45 mpg which is outstanding compared to our Odyssey which averaged about 18 mpg doing the same routine. The Odyssey now sits for weeks at a time. It sits so much that I had to put a trickle charger on it because the battery would be dead when we needed to trailer something. The rear seat legroom in the Prius V was also a selling point for us.

The only negative would be the freeway noise level which is annoying but we rarely do freeway driving.

I will say that I didn't know what I didn't know when we bought ours. Being an engineering type and interested in how this hybrid system operates I have learned a lot about it but that is optional. To me it is like a science project but my wife just gets in it and drives. I don't have any regrets about our purchase and I don't think that you will regret your purchase either.

 

Have you bought your V
Perfect vehicle for "dog" transportation (and camping or baby making )
1) Highway acceleration, I find it okay and faster than my 1983 Corolla wagon.
(Straining...could be the CVT transmission causing higher revs yet lack of a horsepower feel...try the power button as an option to reduce this experience.)
2) Steep Hills, I have traveled San Francisco and do not find any safety issues with the hill climbing horse power of a v.
3) What to expect with an 2017?
Hard to say, maybe the basics, brake rotor/ pad wear, tires and alignment.
Shocks should be okay at 70K, but debatable as other say many brands of shocks burn out at 20K and the only way to truly test is on a bench with a tool machine....I would not be concerned about shocks.
A 2017 I would not expect any 12 volt or hybrid battery issues.
Nor would I expect and EGR or spark plug issues.
Engine oil changes, air filer cabin filters, inexpensive to ensure.
What to expect would be "time" issues...brake fluid flush for example, check the owner manual service schedule.
Perhaps undercarriage snow/ salt damage?
Where was the base originally purchased?
Service records available from previous owner or dealer computer system?
So the big question is how was the v maintained and what abuse if any did it experience with its prior owners.
4) What to look for...see 3 above.
Collision damage, water leaks (not expected), tire wear.
FWIW I get 40 MPG average driving "everywhere".

I do like the v and would buy again.
Good luck with your decision.
damage

 

MAGA

 

The OP has decided to buy a 2015 v instead of the 2017. I would agree with Tim that the early 2012-? v's are arguably the worst Prii made. Head gaskets are common, must have seen four posts this week alone. Brake boosters/abs are chronic issues not covered like other gen3's. EGR cooler, another poor design. Inverter failures, luckily usually covered by service campaign and of course hv batteries probably aggravated by the faulty inverters.

 

I just picked up a 2012 V 2? I put the question mark because it has leather seats and a backup camera. I don't know if any of the previous owners added these options but the Toyota Owner's site says it is a 2.

I have been stalking this site for information.

My criteria:
1- Florida car with no rust from the coasts
2- No accidents
3-Car Fax confirmed oil changes. (oil burn prevention down the road)
4-looking for a deal

I ended purchasing a 2012 with 89,000 miles on it. 3 previous owners. It was sold as a Toyota Certified used vehicle twice. Car Fax confirmed all maintenance at the Toyota Dealer with regular 5k or less oil changes. The last owner even got tires and a alignment there at 85K miles.

It looks new. My 2 greyhounds fit comfortably in the back.

I did notice when I went to check it out that the brake booster pump cycles often & know this to be an issue. The Toyota dealer had their Hybrid tech go through it. He even printed out a form showing his diagnostics (none showing) and a VIN search and at the bottom it showed 3 Customer Support Programs (CSP) this V is "potentially eligible" for. 2OTE07(Brake booster & pump assemblies), ZF3 (Sticking EGR Valve) & ZF5 (Intelligent Power Module). The tech said he can't get authorization for the booster pump & assembly until it throws a code but I have 2 years or 60k more miles of coverage for that. Same for the EGR valve. The IPM is warranted until 9/14/2027.

I've put several hundred miles on it averaging over 41mpg in mixed driving. Other than the brake booster pump cycling often it is pefroming perfectly.

Time will tell. I am happy with it so far. It is not using oil. I will be keeping an eye on that.

Side note: I have a company provided vehicle and a 2017 Ford Expedition as my other vehicles. This one is my run around in traffic on the weekend vehicle so it won't get a ton of miles on it. I'm wanting maybe 50,000 more out it over the next 5-7 years.

Good luck on your search OP.