Credible Prius Salvagers

Hi! I'm new here and this is my first post.

I bought a salvaged Prius 1.5 years/40,000 miles ago, and have been very pleased with it. It seems to me that if one is going to go salvaged, then there are good and bad ways to go about it. For me, I like Prius because of the environmental factor, and restoring cars rather than trashing them has a very positive impact. Also, I plan to drive the car forever, so resale isn't an issue.

On the mechanical side, the guy/lot I bought from only salvaged Prius, and the owner/main mechanic had been trained by Toyota. He also gave a 6 month warranty (on the other hand, he negotiated like rabid hyena, but that's a different issue).

I'm now in the market for another Prius, and would be glad to go salvaged, but I've moved to Sacramento and don't know of any similar local operations. I thought it might be helpful to invite others to post known salvagers who focus on Prius. Of course if anyone knows of someone in Sacramento, the bay area, etc, that would be great for me.

To kick things off, the place I mentioned above is All Star Hybrids in Los Angeles (818-974-2956). Again, just be cautious in the negotiations. There is a one star yelp review that is worth considering as well. That said, I feel good about the mechanical side of things.

Another member here also alerted me to Prius hybrids sales and service Scottsburg Indiana in Indiana.

 

Thanks for the response. Not sure I can pull off the road trip for a while, and it makes it difficult to collect on the warranty should I need to bring it in for anything, so L.A. is probably out. And yes, I'm looking at other used options as well.

Again, there are various ways to buy salvaged, and as you say, you have to know your limits. I actually saw my current car before the repairs were done so I knew what I was getting into. There was no frame damage (which I wouldn't touch a car with). Some salvagers have pictures of the car before the repairs so you can see proof of the hit. It actually doesn't take much to "total" a car, so you can find some salvaged cars that weren't really damaged much beyond paint and body stuff. Rear or side hit stuff is usually safe. I'd rather buy from a lot than a person, because then I know where to find them if I have problems. If they offer a warranty, then I know they aren't putting it together with bubble gum and superglue. Like with any other car, I check the carfax and service records.

I actually came within an inch of buying a VW diesel Jetta with a clean title this week with a bad transmission! Barely dodged a $4000 repair job. Point is, you always have to know what you are buying and do your homework, salvaged or not.
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