Purchasing used 2014 Prius v Five with cylinder misfire???

Hello everyone,

I've been reading posts on here for the past week and have found them very helpful, but wanted to get very specific with my questions.

I am wanting to purchase a used Prius v (we want a hybrid but have two kids so need the extra space). These cars seem to be going for insane prices right now (like many used cars). I am looking at a 2014 Prius v Five with 130k miles listed for $12,300. It has had two owners and both of them serviced it at the toyota dealerships from which they purchased the car (26 service records on carfax). It is $2k below car fax suggested price and significantly below many other similar cars listed. Seems like a great deal (for reference, there is a 2012 Prius v two with only 10k fewer miles listed for $18k).

But when I test drove the engine has a misfire (which I have now heavily researched on this forum). The owner popped the hood and said he hadn't had a chance to have his mechanic take a look, but it must be the spark plugs or coils. They run the codes and it is showing multiple cylinder misfire codes. He says he can tell the spark plug / coil on the first cylinder has already been replaced, and says he will have his mechanic replace the others that day. I didn't think much of it at the time, but he also refilled the coolant (now realizing this is a sign of head gasket issue?).

I almost walk off and continue my search, but I had made the trip to see it so I ask to take the car to a mechanic shop to take a look. I make the mistake of taking it to the Toyota dealership. They say they want $300 to do a 2-hour diagnostic and I say no thank you. But I talk to the guy about the situation. I say I am worried about a larger problem and he says that if no engine light, the problem is probably not going to cost me in the 1000s of dollars. This gives me some comfort, as I am okay with repair work as long as it is not complete engine failure or something.

I decide to do more research over lunch (while they are replacing coils and spark plugs). Reading on this forum, it confirms that spark plugs and coils are often the problem, which gives comfort. When I go back, however, the problem is not fixed despite all new coils and plugs. I talk to the owner. he agrees to have his mechanic work on the car until the problem is fixed, but will need a deposit to hold it for me. Says it will be refundable if not fixed by a certain time and if it needs more expensive work I'll have the choice to do it or walk away.

I was okay with this at the time because (a) the sales guy had already agreed to come down $500 off the price due to the issue and (b) I figured even if I spend $2000-4000+ post purchase to repair the car, I'll still be no worse off vs. what else is on the market (c) I am happy to invest the money if this car could take me to 200-250k+ mileage

Dealership is now saying injectors were replaced and no more issue, but I'm now reading more about the issue and worried that at this many miles if it has had a carbon buildup issue for a while, the head gasket will need to be replaced. I think that might still be within my budget, but (a) I am not sure it is worth the hassle and (b) I am worried there could be other problems.

From reading other posts, I know you all will likely recommend I pass and buy a new car (rightly so). But more helpful feedback would be (a) how likely do you think that I need to replace the head gasket, (b) how much will this cost, and (c) what other serious potential issues should I be factoring in and (d) if I buy this for $12k and put $2-5k into it, what is the likelihood that it lasts another 100k miles?

At this point, I am considering walking away and losing my deposit and getting a newer car, although to get an adequate alternative I am likely going to need to spend $20-25k which is a significant jump in price so just trying to weigh my options.

Thanks!

 

It is a corner criminally owned used car shyster for sure. I agree with you on the price. I think part of how i rationalized it is that it is only a bit under the KBB or carfax "fair value" but the issue is that there are a bunch of others that are significantly over "fair value" on the market, so it is cheap relative to alternatives. The sales guy definitely didn't know what these were going for elsewhere, I know that.

Thank you. I think I am probably going to pass, and likely need to get something other than a prius, unfortunately.

 

it is strange to me that it had such a strong maintenance record at toyota dealerships and this was never caught / addressed...

 

Thank you. This is all very helpful. There were just so many little things that had me convinced it wasn't a terrible idea but reading through more on this forum today and realizing the coolant was a big red flag for HG issue was what scared me. They also tried to sell me on the warranty and i asked it it would cover the HG and he said probably not because they don't cover carbon build up issues. so putting all the pieces together now and grateful for this forum for saving me on this one.

Back to the drawing board.

 

If I were to consider a regular prius, what year(s) should I avoid?

 

Yes, grateful for this forum for helping me connect the dots.

I am just about to talk to the owner of the dealership to try to get my deposit back (fairly low likelihood, but worth a try). They have their own mechanic and do some repairs themselves. They've already replaced all the coils and plugs, fuel injectors and are now replacing the EGR system (what the sales guy said, need to confirm). I don't think they would have the ability to replace the HG themselves, but he may offer to split the cost of that at another shop. Is there any other potential repair that this would need due to this issue which I could use as a negotiating chip?

Thanks,
Justin