I am a proud owner of a 2017 Prius C two and love my car. Unfortunately right now I'm looking to not have a car payment anymore.. which brings me to this 2012 Prius C one I've found for sale. It has about 60k miles on it. I know 2012 was the first year for the car... any consistent issues with the 2012 I should be aware of? I tried searching before posting but didn't find much. Thanks!
I haven't had any issues with my 12 after 138000 miles. There has always been a problem of minor rattles from the dash which I have solved with rubber and/or cardboard wedges in certain spots. But I am pretty sure the later years also had this problem. There really haven't been many changes to the C over it's lifetime and most of those were minor. Software modifications in the entertainment system, small appearance changes front and rear in 2015. Pole antenna changed to shark fin. Safety features added in 2016 and subsequent years. I may have missed some. But a 12 with only 60k miles is a nice find depending on the condition. There's nothing particular to that year I am aware of.
The 2012 lacks jumpstart terminal under the hood, and it will have the older-style HVAC controller. Works the same but sometimes one of the buttons sticks down. The only real issue is that the 2012s are just now closing out their HV battery warranties. That's the risk- all Priuseses eventually throw a scary error that says a variation of "$3k today." This 2012 is ~5 years closer to it than your 2017 is. Are you in a position to put away a $3k cushion instead, maybe put it where it can earn you scraps of interest? If so, then totally go for it. You've already seen how trouble-free these cars are. Chances are it will stay that way until you lose the battery or get rid of the car. Cover yourself for the probability of replacing the big battery and go enjoy driving cheap with no payment at all. Maybe not as cheap as driving a cheap all-gas car, but it's a nicer ride anyway!
