I NeEd YoUr HeLp!

Dreams are a wonderful thing! But keep looking, I hope you actually find something. When you do, you will have questions, start a list, we will be here.
Good luck

 

I just want a Gen1

The gen I is a nice little car.


an was told I could spend about $700 on one.

That is an unreasonably low price. You might get that price from a family member, or if it has 200,000 miles on it, or if there is extensive rust or body damage.


one guy on youtube bought one for $450, and it was in really good shape!

There is more to the story.


I will go with a salvage Prius if I have to,

A salvage title will drop the price considerably.

 

if you find them i will take 3

 

Prius is generally the wrong car to buy as salvage (or for that matter, out of warranty) due to its unusually high electronics complexity. If something goes wrong and you can't DIY repair, forget it. Classic has several trouble areas including the transaxle, traction battery, inverter, MFD, etc etc. Dealer repair for those items will be in the low to mid 4 digits.

With a budget of $700 you can buy a bicycle. Wait until your budget is $7K before you start thinking about buying an old Prius.

 

I used Ebay but paid $17,000 for one in 2005. Expect to pay $5-10k not counting your self-maintenance. I understand Craig's list works

The maintenance manuals, used, are going for ~$150, for the minimum, two volume set. But buying any used car means you're going to have to fix stuff since the dealer labor rates are pretty stiff. That means metric tools, scanner, and the manuals. If you don't have a place to work on it, you're limited to nice weather repairs. Finally, you'll need a source of parts, either from the dealer or salvage and these can be few and far between.

GOOD LUCK!
Bob Wilson

 

>> With a budget of $700 you can buy a bicycle.

$700 can get you a very decent folding bike to take it on mass transit. Very convenient and good for the earth.
Seriously, you would have to be very lucky to get a Prius for $700 and find nothing wrong with it. If any major repair is needed later, it will probably cost you more than $700.
It is a risky dream...

 

How can you believe that the car "runs and drives" if it has a flat RR tire? Further, the 12V battery definitely was munched.

Unless you can do your own body work, I question why you would think this is a good deal. Looks like $6K worth of body work, at least. Who knows if the rear axle and suspension were damaged.

With a salvage certificate that car won't be worth much if/when you are ready to sell it.

 

OK, it looks like most of the damage is in the Right Rear. The 12v battey is located there, I would guess it's toast, REPLACE THAT! Next is the body work. The Right Rear Quarter Panel needs REPLACING, the Rear End, NEEDS REPLACING. The Hatchback may be OK, it's hard to see in the photo. Most of the damage looks to be body related. If you could find another '08 at a pick-a-part you could pull the body panels you need and come up with a chance of success.

That being said, on the other hand, there must be some sustantial damage for the insurance company to total the car and salvage it. Depending on what model, you have a price range of 25k to 30k new, its 16 months old, or so, there has to be some MAJOR damage that exceeded the insurance companys limits, so it was salvaged. I am betting FRAME DAMAGE, and if thats the case, it will never run true.

Anybody else have any ideas to help out???? Step up to the plate!

 

1. Where is it relative to where you are?
2. How will you get it back to where you live?
3. What sort of work area do you have to work on it?
4. Do you have budget for maintenance manuals, body manual?
5. Do you have tools?
6. What have you done with a car in terms of similar repairs in the past?

If you think you are ready for a long project, go for it. It won't be cheap but it will be interesting.

Bob Wilson