Looking for advice on purchase. Buying from private party, 1 minor accident, oil changes at regular intervals. Never serviced by dealer. What should I be looking for? I have an obd scanner and the Dr Prius app I intend to use when I meet with seller to inspect car.
Not much to inspect on this car. I did the same thing but at 95k less than a year ago. Main thing that might go wrong is the exhaust heat exchanger and you’ll notice smoke from the exhaust and the coolant will be low to almost gone in the reservoir. Where and how bad was the accident? That would be my only concern. Scanner won’t tell you much more than the lights and sensors already do on these cars. If a check engine light is on, read the code. Did you ask if coolant had been changed? How about plugs? Tranny fluid? Other than that, and maybe brakes, these cars have virtually no problems.
Plugs, tranny fluid, and coolant have most likely NEVER been changed. He said its been mostly highway miles. His fender bender left the car drivable supposedly, so he drove it to get repaired. I want to replace the plugs and fluids as soon as I get it. IF I find issues, such as new battery replacement imminent, etc should I just haggle the price down? Currently he wants 14k for 134k miles, 2016
Biggest question for me would be “why are they selling it?”. Very few Prius owners sell if they are running good. When we were looking the best advice we got was “there are very few good deals on used Priuses” because owners don’t let good ones go very easily. And why was it never serviced by a dealership? THAT would make me very cautious (unless the current owner volunteered why without me asking). And what is meant by “minor accident”? A simple fender bender can be a major problem with all the safety sensors if the repair isn’t done properly and the calibration performed correctly. The cruise control alone is more complicated than most body shops are used to (it uses radar that is mounted behind the Toyota emblem). I suggest having it gone over by a dealership before agreeing to purchase. FWIW
