And I live in Asheville NC where the temps are very moderate. However there are not nearly as many used cars on the market here as compared to south florida. Now, the reason I'm looking in south florida is that I drive down there for a week every single month to visit my 8 yr old son (now you may see why I'm looking at a prius). So I've seen that I can get a prius for a grand or two less down there...everything else being similar/same. I'm also planning on driving for uber/lyft with the car (actually starting an LLC and the car will be a company car with which I plan to write off it's purchase, repairs, maintenance, etc..) So, now that little bit of background is out of the way, on to my question... Heat. It is freakin hot in south florida. Not so much here in Asheville. Because of that, I'm thinking of staying away from a south florida car and instead buying a car that has spent its life here in Asheville at 3500 ft elevation with it's two month long summers of 80 degrees Or, am I overthinking all this? What would you do?
Coming from the north, and having lived in mid-Tennesee (where they use lots of brine on the roads) I know that road salt can be at least as big a car-killer as extreme heat. Do you folks salt the roads in NC in the winter time?
I had lots of friends in Ohio who drove down here to buy used cars precisely because of the road salt issues. Probably not as big of a deal in the NC mountains, but I would not worry about the heat. It doesn't get nearly as hot here in Tampa as it does in the midwest. It's just hot for more of the year. I have bought four Prii so far from @TampaPrius.com at Home - Tampa Hybrids Inc.. Todd's always treated me very well. He won't haggle, but he won't rip you off and he will make sure you understand your car before you leave.
thanks for the replies road salt isn't too much of an issue...usually only gets put down a couple of times per year. and it sounds like florida heat isn't as much of an issue as I thought... so I'll probably continue looking at florida cars. Have my eye on a 2009 with 117K miles for 6k with leather seats...
Do your homework and make sure any car you get out-of-state wasn't involved in a bad crash or a flooding.
I wouldn't worry at all about the heat. If the PO waxed regularly and/or the car lived in the garage, it's a non issue. You can tell by looking if the paint is faded.
Just bought my first Prius yesterday. A 2010 gen 3 Prius III with 86k that looks sweet (Carfax good and thumbs-up from trusted mechanic. )It will live with me garaged here in Douglasville, GA (far western edge of Atlanta area). I kinda know where you're coming from, having lived in Knoxville many years going to school. Oddly, due to your question, the car I got lived in Melbourn, FL prior to this (so not South FL, but still..., plus also oceanside salt concerns). Based on a response here I'd say it was likely garaged in FL (very nice paint), so hopefully no worries. I really wanted a gen 3 and was really happy to stay under $10k and stunned at under 100k miles, considering what's been available (I was prepared to accept many more miles). So, am really excited/fingers crossed, and wanting to learn what all this baby can do (and what all those flashy-thingees and buttons on the dash mean and do). Just broke out the manual to start my studies. Anyone here have advice?
Congrats!! The manual is a great start. Also, the stickies in the Gen 3 forum here.Gen 3 (2010-2015) Toyota Prius Forums | PriusChat
Enjoy! Hopefully the prior owner(s) took care of it and did all required maintenances and recalls. You can key in your VIN and find out if the recalls were done as there were a few. As far as the steering wheel buttons go, some here have griped that they are very dimly lit for nighttime driving. Basically, one is for radio/volume and the other is temp/fan speed. If you run your fingers over one, the speedo should light up orange and the function should be a lavender color before you press it. It's the touch-tracer feature. Unless you have all the proper maintenance records for it (supplied), maybe you should schedule a maintenance at a local dealer for it. They can also check it out for you. 86K is still enough miles on it to consider brakes and other deep maintenances. Also, you might be near the end of the life for the HV batteries.
As a fellow nc Prius owner and a Uber/left driver all I can say is that you are overthinking it. Heat doesn't matter. Get you a nice used Prius with leather as it easier to clean, get the windows tinted and go for it. Do not get the sunroof model as you lose some headroom in the back. Clean car fax is all you need. And barf begs strategically placed in the car for the had too many Asheville microbrews crowd.
I'm coming from Athens to Douglasville today 7/29 to buy a 2004 gen 2 with 202k and only have the Carfax to go on. No way to get it into Thornton rd Toyota on a Saturday. Owner does mobile hybrid battery replacements and minor repairs on Prii. Seriously wish I knew of a good mechanic who'd look at it for me if you could possibly suggest one!
