Sweet spot for used Prius to replace R.I.P. 2005?

the risks won't be any different than your '05, except that you don't know the care that was taken by previous owners.
unless you need the nog's, i would go back to a reliable gasser like corolla and etc. for lower cost repairs of older cars.
if you want to stay with prius, '08 and '09 are great years. but all are susceptible to battery replacement, brake actuator, combo meter a/c compressor and etc.

for something newer, short of brand new, 2014 or 15 gen3 are probably the best years, be aware of the egr clogging issue, and stay away from anything closing in on 100k.

a used gen 4 would be great, the only downside being, we don't have long history of any major weakness yet.

all the best!

 

Gen 4 is beginning it's 5th model year now and has at least as good a track record so far as Gen 2 and better than gen 3. I think it's the best bang for the buck. A used one is depreciated by several thousand dollars and still has a ton of life in it. And it's vastly more comfortable than previous generations. Not to mention the modern safety features. And, since you're in salt country, the newer the better when it comes to corrosion.

edit to add: I hope everyone is OK from the accident.

 

Used cars are at all-time high prices lately and financing is still pretty easy on new ones. Food for thought.

Maybe look at a 2013, it’ll be depreciated around 50% from new yet likely still capable of serving another 6-7 years. In other words half the car for half the price.

 

The sweet spot directly relates to how DIY you are when it comes to caring for your car. If you're allergic to car repair work than the newest you can afford is the way to go. But if you like doing basic maintenance and when problems arise you're willing to get on PriusChat and do your own diagnosis, I'd say the sweet spot is a low mileage 2009 Prius Gen2... It's going to be everything you loved about your own car but 4 years more refined and advanced. A 2009 Prius with low mileage is my dream car!

 

I do not know.
As someone who only bought used vehicles for many, many years, I've converted. Under 100k used to be "low-mileage" for me and my family. I've run lots of TCO (total cost of ownership) numbers and spreadsheets, etc. Prior to purchasing my first new car at age 35, in 2016 (a VW sportwagen for $18,500 due to dieselgate deals) and prior to my wife getting a Prime last weekend.

Summary:
Buy a Prime LE, negotiate as low a price as you can, collect rebates and tax credits.

Result: over a proposed 150k mile lifespan, the TCO is 20-22 cents/mile. This is based on SoCal gas prices ($/kwh - both very high!), registration, insurance, etc. Could be more or less depending on your locale.
Compare that to a full-on beater - something you buy used for a few $k and try to keep going as long as possible - and your TCO is going to be 14-17 cents/mile or so.
For basically an extra $30-60/month, you get to enjoy the newer car. Our main reason beyond convenience and mpg, was the safety that a new Prius with TSS brings.

Don't get me wrong, we're quite frugal in nearly all aspects of our life, but owning a brand new Prius from 0 to 150k miles or more - that is not a giant step up in costs, and will likely undercut even the lowest cost vehicles out there. 60+mpg and rebates overcome the higher initial purchase price.

 

I recently went thru a similar decision for our daughter. Our main deciding factors:

Safety.
Longevity/reliability.
Price.
Features.
Economy.

Got a used 2018 Level II with safety package.

 

AutoBeYours in Scottsburg IN offers rebuilt Gen 2's with warranties. I bought my 07 last year only had 63000 miles on it. They have unbeatable prices!