Should I buy this 2007 Prius with 200k miles?

34-year-old female from Ohio. I would say probably not If you and your husband are not up for fooling with an old car probably not. But then again with what's out there today and what it costs Good luck All I can say is I'm certainly glad I'm not going to have to be buying much of anything for the rest of my stay here. Vehicles have become utter money pits period. To be honest about it a few year old Corolla would probably be your best bet without having to do much work at all to be honest about it once you hybridize a vehicle you had a bunch of expensive parts and those expensive parts get you a little bit better gas mileage but it seems like it's a very slim margin in the savings department until hi mileage reached.

 

It is encouraging to see that the hybrid battery was replaced, but keep in mind that not all replacement batteries are as good as the original. Where did this one come from?

Also, the battery is just one of several very expensive subsystems in that 16+ year old car.

I suspect you'd be swapping one money pit for another.

A young Prius has exceptionally low running costs. That's what I'm guessing you want. Target 2016 or newer for best results. Sadly you won't see one anywhere near that cheap, but that's just how it is with cars now.

 

Lots of negativity here considering this is a forum for gen 2 prius. As the primary wrench for a family with 3 they are pretty trouble free but are almost 20 years old and some things will break. Do you have a regular mechanic? Do they know the car? Any local shops that specialize in these? How far to the dealer? Here are the things I have seen fail, not in any order
HV battery
12V battery
front wheel bearings
inverter coolant pump
something in the braking system, forgot the name
big display in the center console, forgot that too
Bottom line, they are somewhat unique cars and when they break you are better off with a shop that know them. But dealers will get very expensive. If you got 8 years out of the sonic figure out total cost per mile and see what a new car would cost per mile if it lasted 8 years. Then do the math on the prius and add a grand a year in maintenance costs.
All this said, my kids and I love them. Why? Cheap to run and pretty trouble free. But they have a mechanic with a low labor rate!

 

If you are not an experienced Prius mechanic or have a close friend who is one, I would avoid a used Prius. 200k miles is too much for any used car, Prius or not, for anyone who is not an expert car mechanic (and many on PriusChat are!!). In today's insane world if you can afford it a lease on a new car - Prius or other - is likely the best way to go. My own "solution" is to buy multiple used cars. Then when one breaks I can get to fixing it without having to rush, and use the other one. Priuses are hard to fix. Good luck ;-)

 

buy another new car like corolla etc. (do they still make sonic?) 200k plus 120 a day is a recipe for disaster

 

Same here I have four I am just going on the recommendation that they have a later model Sonic which is not a terrible car actually so I can't imagine how that can become a huge money pit is most of the parts that go on a Sonic should be able to be had for near free with any connections at a junk yard or some kids what have you very inexpensive car to maintain similar to the Prius I would expect I've worked and maintained some other Suzuki cars which weren't bad at all other than poor interiors and that sort of thing but the Prius at this age is going to wind up needing break actuators brake pads and rotors and drums etc etc and then she's going to think she's gotten into the same thing she was in with the Sonic although once you fix the Prius you're usually good for the original mileage you got when the car was new basically If you buy a new Toyota battery I expect that to go to 10 or the 13 years the original made. That's the only reason I say no and I always ask if people can do any kind of wrenching use a screwdriver this sort of thing with a little encouragement a lot of these repairs are ridiculously easy. But I wouldn't give up mine to get in anything else at the present time there's nothing I can run this inexpensive nothing this is close to what it cost me to ride my big bore scooter which gets close to 70 miles to the gallon and I'll go 90 miles an hour It's an Italian thing the Prius car is closest I can get to that with four tires on it

 

I'd buy it. Daughters car just turned 300,000 miles and has been nearly maintenance free since she bought it at 200,000 miles. Brake pads, a coolant pump, oil changes, door checker, and a battery are all she's had to repair.

 

The Prius that I sold to my friend has 245k miles on them and so far its trouble free. I sold 2 of them and 1 got totaled from an accident and we replaced it with another one for $3k (buyback from insurance) rear brakes were the only issue on both cars.

I just don't understand the negativity of people out here.. as if you're buying a car that is problematic initially and you buy it expecting that the repairs are cheap.

If you have a feeling that the seller is honest to disclose the issues (if any) then it's a good buy. If it's a guy from a small used car lot or a flipper then it's one thing to run away.

 

the negativity comes from spending too much time here reading horror stories

 

it's not a bmw, Mercedes or Land Rover forum.. worst not Scotty Kilmer..