Thoughts on this 2013 Toyota Prius 4 and if it's a good deal to purchase?

I found a used 2013 Toyota Prius 4 that actually belongs to the grandparents of someone I went to high school with. The grandparents are too old now to be driving it and have a hard time getting in and out of the vehicle so they want to sell it. Pictures show it in almost perfect condition. It only has 32,899 miles. Its a 4 Cylinder Hatchback. They bought it 2 years ago and only have driven 5000 miles on it in those 2 years. They bought it with 25,000 miles on it. They are asking $12,500.

They dont know about the previous owners but its never been in a wreck from their ownership. I've never owned a hybrid before. My dad checked out the car and took it to his mechanic. Car has a few scratches but nothing major. In terms of maintenance, mechanic said the front 2 tires are very worn and needs alignment (dad noticed the steering wheel veered to the right while driving). Mechanic said alignment would completely fix the steering wheel veering to the right issue. Mechanic also noticed a nail in the front right tire.Other than that mechanic said the car looked great mechanically.

The owner also has the extended warranty on the vehicle and that if I want the extended warranty I would have to pay an additional $700 to transfer it (so $13,200 instead of $12,500) She said it is 5 years or 95,000 more miles left on it. That would mean I would have to go to the Toyota dealership to have it transferred over, but should I do that? Whats included in an extended warranty and what all does that mean? So what do you guys think? Also do you think it's worth being able to ask them to knock off like $500-600 for the 2 new tires and alignment? What's fair? Does this sound like a good deal in all to you guys?

 

Hmm...I can't seem to edit my own post...that's weird so I guess I just have to provide a new reply.

I've been reading up on batteries for the Prius and it seems it has 2 correct? A smaller 12V battery that lasts 4-6 years and is only around $150 to replace and a larger, hybrid battery that lasts around 200,000 miles or 12-15 years (more dependent on age than mileage) and costs around $2-4K to replace. Does that seem correct?

What about in my odd situation to where it's a 2013 but with only 33,000 miles on it in terms of battery life for both the smaller 12V battery and the larger, hybrid battery?

 

Another update...I spoke to the sellers of the vehicle today about one of the front tires having a nail in it, the two front tires been very worn down and needing replacing and the alignment issue that's causing the steering wheel to veer to the right. They mentioned they could bring the price down $200 (so $12,300 instead of $12,500 or with extended warranty for $13,000 instead of $13,200) because that's how much they were quoted would be the cost of 2 new tires and I could get it fixed on my own after the purchase. But they wouldn't bring it down more for the price of the alignment. They also mentioned they fixed the nail in the tire issue today. I also brought up the 12V battery probably going out soon because from what I've read, it lasts 4-6 years and they have never replaced it. So if it's a 2013, this year would be 5 years...but she didn't seem willing to want to replace the 12V battery which I understand and wasn't expecting.

 

Thanks all!

My only concern with these vehicles though is the bigger hybrid battery going out and it costing around $2000-4000? Just because I heard for some people it went out around 150,000-200,000 miles/12-15 years on average no? But the previous poster just said it's more like 8-10 years? I've never owned a hybrid before and that kinda worries me too because of fear of not knowing how they operate compared to a normal vehicle and such.

I called about what the extended warranty covers and they said it only has this left on it:

1.) Extended Warranty (7 year/100,000 platinum plan with roadside assistance. Covers all components other than wear and tear items & including regular powertrain warranty but in addition comprehensive and everything else including electronics, AC, power window, suspension, steering, brakes, etc. (expires July 2020) 12V batterys not included, Alignments not included
2.) Extended Warranty (Scheduled Maintenance plan 6 year/55,000 covers every 5,000 miles, tire rotation, oil changes, brakes (expires July 2019)

They told me that if I didn't purchase and transfer the Extended Warranty though that I would still be allowed to use the warranty for the hybrid system which is 8 year/100,000 miles. This includes the larger hybrid battery, charging and anything dealing with the hybrid system.

The thing I'm confused and trying to figure out though is that if I don't purchase the Extended Warranty would I also still be given the 7 year/100,000 basic powertrain warranty which covers only like the transmission, engine and rear axle. This is different than #1 above because it's just basic and doesn't include electronics and comprehensive. I'm getting told two different things from customer service. One person said it would transfer to me even if I didn't buy the extended warranty while another person at the dealership where they purchased the warranty/car said it wouldn't transfer to me if I didn't purchase the extended warranty and I would forfeit this as well. Also, so in other words the seller didn't know what she was talking about when she said the extended warranty had 5 years/95,000 miles left on extended warranty because that doesn't make sense, lol.

EDIT: I called Financial Services for main Toyota number and he said the basic 7 year/100,000 powertrain warranty would stay with the vehicle even if I didn't buy the extended warranty so the person at the dealership didn't know what he was talking about apparently.

I'm leaning towards not purchasing the extended warranty if I proceed with getting the vehicle. Also, I noticed the previous poster mentioned it might not be worth the purchase if I don't drive it a ton...which I probably wouldn't drive it a crazy amount but just a normal amount...so is that a concern? Also another concern is that the sellers of this vehicle is an elderly couple. They purchased the vehicle 2 years ago and have literally only driven it 5000 miles in the past 2 years...and I hear not driving it a lot is a killer on the larger, HV battery. So that concerns me, no?

 

I know it can never be certain but I'm really confused on the hybrid battery average lifespan. Grid mentioned only 8-10 years while someone else at a Toyota Forum said 12-15 years. That's a pretty big difference and is what's making me hesitant on whether I do this or not.

If it only lasts 8 years and it's a 2013, it would possibly fail in 2021 which is only 3 years from now.

Also, just in general is it hard to own and operate this vehicle if you have little knowledge to hybrid vehicles? I would assume so because the previous owners of this vehicle is a pair of old people...I just would want to know as much as I could about it but I have limited knowledge.

Also I looked up the values of this car for the area and it's as shows:

- KBB Value: $15,200 - $16,008
- Edmunds: $13,000
- Nada: $15,500

Unfortunately, the car is 3 hours away so I need to make a decision within the next day or so on whether to make the drive there or not...

 

Thanks all. Yeah to be honest I don't have any idea what a hybrid automotive charger/discharger is or let alone how to use one. Need to make a decision by today...ah so stressed lol.