Re: Inspect very carefully before purchasing! This issue obviously bugs you a great deal. You've tried to obtain help from Toyota without success, and Prius Chat readers are now well aware of your dilemma. Rather than continue to be dissatisfied, or sell the car and lose a four-digit amount; why not spend ~$300 to have the rear shocks disassembled, see if the rear springs are at the same height (they probably won't be), and if not, then install new springs.
Poor quality? What else can you find of poor quality besides the slight lean? Just sell your poor quality car to someone that will be glad to own it. You should make a profit as well!
Sorry, I should have inserted "[sarcasm] [/sarcasm]". It was our astute OP who first posed the issue of Toyota's suspect quality control.
Re: Inspect very carefully before purchasing! Great points! At some point it becomes time to stop complaining and do something about it. This sounds like the most practical approach.
For the record, standard 2008 Prius pkg #2, not touring, delivered a few weeks ago: measured, no lean found. (And I'm picky about this, I had problems with weak springs in a vehicle once that were causing the front to sag measurably.)
You've done nothing but whine ever since your first post. If you're so unhappy, sell your Prius and move on with your life.
Whine??????? Posting a real issue that could also be a safety issue is "Whining"? It is realy strang how peolpe do not care when the problem dosn't effect them.
Re: Inspect very carefully before purchasing! That is what I am going to do and may be the best advice for anyone else that has the same issue.
Re: Inspect very carefully before purchasing! Now that you are willing to commit some $$ to resolve the issue, perhaps you may want to call a couple of alignment shops in your area to discuss the issue and see what they say. Maybe the shop can slightly stretch the rear LH coil spring so that greater force will be exerted on the LH side. If that is all that is required, then you would only have to pay to have one rear shock removed and disassembled. If the rear of the car is level, then you may not notice if the front is slightly off. BTW, I am very sympathetic to your concern. You bought a new car and reasonably expect it to be perfect. My 2001 also sagged noticeably to one side, I complained and was told, like you, that this was "normal" and within spec...
like i said earlier, make sure you go to the right specialist... last alignment shop i went to, they had one ase tech who was certified in brakes only. (not that i cared, i just wanted him to put the car on the alignment rack.) find yourself an undercar specialist and you'll have one very capable person under your car. or at least someone certified in suspension and steering, if undercar specialist isn't an option.
Re: 2008 Prius leans to the left I have an '08 Prius that I noticed is leaning to the left slightly. I bought it in July used and didn't notice it before until that last week or so. Kind of annoying! It's under warranty. I'll have to bring it up on my next oil change, along with the annoying rattle in the driver area dash that rattles around 55 mph or more. I think it's wind-driven, but I rolled the window down to see if I could pinpoint it. No luck yet