I am working on getting my first car and totally wanting to get a Prius. I found this 2013 Prius Three with 81K on it. What do you guys think would be a good price (with tax+fees) for it? Should I look for a lower mileage Prius? Thanks!
80,000 isn't too bad. how many miles a year will you drive, and how many years would you like to keep it? it's probably worth around 12k. plus taxes and fees. what package is it?
Thanks for your reply, bisco! If I get a 2013 or later, I would like to keep it for several years. I am mostly looking for generation 3 as I think gen 2 or older would be too old to for a while. I would rather spend some money upfront for a longer lasting car instead of spending money in repairing and/or replacing the hybrid battery on an older car. I am still not sure how much I will end up driving a year, but my daily commute would be pretty short as my school and work are not too far. It is trim 3 (backup cam, navigation, cloth seat).
I would recommend to get a normal car first, so you will appreciate the second car (prius) more later. And get a cheaper car first, so it will be cheaper to repair / insure when you crash it (I would say IF, but as your first car, it's likely you will have some hard time until you learn)
Thanks for your advice, 4est. I actually have experience driving the family cars which were non-hybrids. I am not totally new to driving, this will just be my first very own car. I want to get a Prius for my appreciation for hybrids.
Your position sounds like my son's several years ago. He had been driving our cars but was in a position to buy his own. He ended up getting a new Prius. S hortly after that his hobby became dogs, traveling to dog shows. He replaced that first Prius with a Prius v to get more cargo space. He and my wife just drove from Virginia to Texas for the Papillon breed dog show. His experiences with Prius led me to buy my first one last October. If you have done your research the Prius may be a good choice.
You said your commute would be fairly short. How short is short? If it's less than about nine or ten miles, you might think about seeing if you can fined a used PiP. That's assuming your electricity costs are reasonable. It'll cost more up front, but I don't run my gas engine at all going back & forth to work and @bisco almost never burns any gas with his. A regular Prius won't get its world famous fuel economy till after at least five miles, even though it'll still be better than almost anything else short of a scooter. As for price, that'll depend quite a bit on the package (options) and the condition.
Agreed. 5 miles or shorter, the car will get better mileage than other non-plugins. 3 miles or less then a Corolla or plugin is likely better. In my experience, Toyotas are great for longevity if properly cared for. I still have my 2008 Corolla and a relative still cannot kill my old 1995 Camry.
We used to have a '98 and a '99 Camry before we moved to Honduras in 2007. And I still see that generation of Camry on the road every day. Many look like they are still in great shape.
Mine was the last of this generation of Camry Toyota Recalls 1993 Camry Due To Fact That Owners Really Should Have Bought Something New By Now - The Onion - America's Finest News Source Somebody reporting on that article said only 2 things would survive a nuclear disaster - taxes and a 1990s Camry.
Any mistake you survive should be a learning experience. Our son did something similar when he was about 18.
The 1996 Camry we used to have survived being dragged sideways out of a ditch by a tractor. Apparently they are pretty rugged, but not 20 year old driver rugged.
