Advice for a beginner thinking about buying a Prius 3 gen

welcome!

sometime in 2014 production, toyota upgraded the pistons and rings.

the brake actuator is another expensive system.

auris might be a better choice, but idk anything about them.

all the best!

 

If you buy this car, make sure it’s from an owner that’s had it for a while. Many people flipping this car after it’s been repaired (sometimes properly, sometimes not)

 

Just to clarify, "EU" is "European Union", you're somewhere in Europe?

Only the piston rings, somewhere through model year 2014; the VIN number at which the change occurred in the attached. The older piston rings were "low tension", more prone to clog and/or let oil into combustion chamber.

Your best bet would be to buy one with under 100K miles (hopefully not rolled back). Anything more and you're getting into the zone where EGR clogs and head gasket fails.

 

Yeah that would be better do you know how to buy one?

 

IF you've access to JDM vehicles be looking at those. You're obviously looking at hybrids or IQ type vehicles...they're some deals out they're in the market. The flood gates have opened up . Easy to get them in now . Just beware of State issues.

 

I would just buy another car that won’t need a lot of repairs from the get go. Some feller bought and drove his for 80,000 miles and head gasket and hv battery both went after recently. If money and time is no object, the Prius turd gen is perfect t for you.

 

Inverter fails and excessive oil consumption are additional concerns.

If you insist, I would buy the 2018 EU Prius + (v/Alpha) with a lithium battery. The Prius + wagon has a 50% increase in space and improved ride. Plus beefed up suspension, brakes and ac system. By then the low tension rings, inverter and brake booster issues are sorted out. Plus a lithium battery from 2018 would easily last five or more years.

They were also sold in Australia until 2021 with the same gen3 engine.

 

Buy a gen2 . For kids and first timers . It's almost painless . Many of those by the time you get to them will be pre-sorted and some won't but a lot will batteries already been replaced etc etc HIDs have been removed and LEDs or halogenes have been put in inverter pumps have been dealt with all of those sort of things no problem where else you get them done as needed they're not huge You only get taken real bad on these things when you make it an emergency I have extra vehicles on premises I have a motorcycle a big bore scooter etc My car breaking down is never a problem nothing to get excited about at all We are not stranded or anything close to that. That is a big part of mechanical things when something breaks if it is an emergency in your eyes then money gets spent without good thought processes when things aren't an emergency things can be dealt with a lot easier if that makes sense. That's why you pave the mold remediation people $400 an hour from Friday night until early Monday morning because it's what an emergency can't wait top Dollar and so on and so forth.

 

In the EU I would think you'd be looking for one of the small diesels that goes in the Corollas and other little cars they might even be a three cylinder version I know some of these engine numbers I just have to look at the paper to tell you what they are but the caldina and a bunch of other cars have these very small diesels that I would imagine getting near 50 mi to the gallon I don't know I saw a '93 Corolla in Greece just like my LE in the States with a beautiful little diesel engine in it