Opinion-Gen.2 Prius is the Best=They will Outlast all the other Gen's

get one in chicago for $2,150. installed

he who hesitates is lost

 

So stupid to put a battery in your pile of junk. The world is going to end and your worry about saving a 15 year old Prius. Save your money and put in the stock market.

SM-J737T1 ?

 

I think the 4th gen will be a tank like the gen2. I expect great things from the 4th gen with the lithium pack.

the great thing about lithium is, it can sit for up to 10 years without damaging the pack. Almost no discharge from sitting. So a old used low mile gen4 won’t be a huge problem.

Also the gen4 has fixed oil consumption, and head gasket from what I’ve read.

Some of the gen4 weak spots seem to be the rear shocks, glitchy head unit on early years, and fragile windshield.

I love the old gen2’s! They are getting almost Nostalgic and vintage for me, and that makes me like them even more!

 

I can't believe this is coming from the member who just posted an entire series about using his Prius to power his house. You do know that that isn't possible without the traction battery, right?

 

When you apply terms in evaluation like "best" you are apt to inflame debate.
The Gen 2 Prius is great. It's iconic, it established the Prius as "The" Hybrid. And it was designed amazingly.
The Gen 3 Prius, with age, is reporting some problems with burning oil and needing EGR cleaning.
But it still represents a IMO significant evolution from Gen 2. No more gas Bladder, Beltless Engine, and I can't remember how many other parts and design changes and improvements.
And then now of course we have the Gen 4, which again is a significant evolution. How it ages? We can only wait and see.

So anyway, Gen 2---great. Best? Well I think it earns it's spot as being a really iconic automobile, and the Prius that has spawned 2 more generations after it, as well as having a good claim as being the father of all Toyota Hybrids.

But father time catches EVERYTHING.
I don't care how good a vehicle is...12 years old..is 12 years old. And projecting another 10 years? Two decades of operation takes it toll on any machine.

Whether I would invest into a 12 year old Prius at the "New OEM HV Battery" level would depend on a lot of factors. Mostly how much maintenance I had put into all other parts...how good I felt the condition of the entire rest of the vehicle was, and maybe paying respect to how many miles I already have on the vehicle. Also whether I wanted safety system upgrades of newer Generations. Because I think the Gen 2 Prius might be the "best" vetted incarnation of the Prius thus far, BUT investing into a 12 year old Prius may NOT be the best choice to make. The investment is a much more gray area decision.

 

Engineering marvel really.
But I also appreciate the almost pioneer like "Git-R-Done" simplicity of some of the Gen 2 realities.
I mean...no complication of a heat reclamation system...the Gen 2 uses a thermos to keep the coolant warm.
And as problematic sometimes that the Gas Bladder can be?
It was a really direct, almost simplistic answer to what Toyota wanted to accomplish.

Gen 3, Gen 4 are really important and significant evolutions of what I think the vehicle is, I think they are undeniable improvements. There's no going back.
But for design and innovation I can appreciate the Gen 2, almost like one appreciates classic automobiles.
.

Well my only contention, is that if "The world is going to end "?
Saving your money to invest in the stock market would be just about the WORST thing you could do.
Not a lot of value in stocks....at the end of the world.

 

Now you know how a stupid internet trolls sounds like. Unfortunately I have to spell it out for you or draw a cartoons for you to understand.


SM-J737T1 ?

 

For what it’s worth, I totally agree that the iconic 2nd Gen Prius was indeed over-engineered and I would willingly buy another Toyota HV battery and keep it running up to 350k miles at least.

This vehicle is already ultra reliable and was built with a conscience. It WAS built to be the original poster child of the coming Prius generations.

If I had my way, I’d keep my 2nd Gen running till 500k if it wasn’t too expensive to keep running. It can have a new HV battery and even a brake actuator if that fails too.

I’m now in contact with a Prius Guru (Toyota trained engineer) who can pretty much supply parts cheap and keep “The Spaceship” going for a very long time.

This vehicle is The Corellian YT-1300 light freighter of the Hybrid world. I’d keep mine running as long as I can - perhaps unless I had a transmission failure - or the I.C.E. blew up.

Otherwise, an 11 year old vehicle that can still give me 72.8mpg from 43 miles without me even judiciously trying.....is a keeper!


iPhone 6s +

 

Whether by chance, luck or design, the second generation Prius has been the most durable car I've ever owned. I will continue to put new traction batteries in it for as long as it is usable and comfortable to drive,

 

sadly hg issues are popping up in the 4 gens

 

Now you are just challenging everyone, be careful.

 

For different reason than third gen though. I think for both gens, the failing head gasket is the "messenger". In other words, a failure elsewhere in the car causes the head gasket to fail.