I'm looking at a number of used Gen 3s with more than 100K miles. I have read about the oil consumption problems and the EGR cleaning here on PriusChat. What else should I be watching out for? (Also, while I'm aware of oil consumption and EGR issues, I'm not sure I understand how to address that as a buyer, so any advice on that would be appreciated.) A couple of the cars I'm looking at happen to be 2013 plug-ins, but I'm not looking specifically for plug-ins, they just happen to be available in my area for approximately the price I want.
Head gasket, brake booster, traction battery are all components that might soon need replacing. There is also the potential for catalytic converter theft.
What region you live in the world could have an influence on what to be aware of as well. So if you give us a sense of where you are in the world, we could further refine your concerns.
Probably the best person to talk to is Eric Powers at EV Powers | Hybrid Battery Service in Madison... He's the kind of guy that always picks up the phone on the first ring and is great at answering questions and being an all around nice guy. He's been in the hybrid business since Gen1 first came out. Lots of knowledge. For best prices on Gen3 I'd focus on cities south of you, their prices are going to be lower than Michigan area.
Can you clarify what you mean by that? What to check on prospective purchase? What to ask sellers? Anything over 100k, there’s maybe even odds it’s being ditched, for one or more of the aforementioned issues. I’d be very cautious, and low-ball offer. How’s your mechanical ability?
Unfortunately, unless the car is running terribly, or there are trouble lights on, there’s not much you can do except take a long test drive, listen for sounds and check mpg’s. If you get dr Prius app, you can check module voltage
Failing head gasket can be masked by stop-leak products, poured into the coolant. Might be detectable; Google the signs.
Wow! You folks are starting to make me think that any Gen 3 will fall apart (like in that scene from The Blues Brothers) shortly after reaching 100K miles.
Yep, they are like that here. Guaranteed failure if you don't clean the EGR every 50k miles. I contend there are thousands of gen 3's running around out there that did not have these problems....We don't know about them because people usually sign on here due to a problem........ I have a 2015 approaching 100k and not too worried about what might happen. At least not for another 50k (5 years for me).
Even if you clean the EGR, the engine is a ticking Time bomb. The car gobbles up engines, inverter assemblies, brake booster accumulators for lunch. The turd gen is the most unreliable thing I think Toyota ever made. That said, it's still more reliable than a Chrysler Land Rover Jaguar Mercedes BMW Fiat or Nissan
I know this is PriusChat not HybridChat, but does anyone think I'd be better off with a Fusion Hybrid or C-Max than a Gen 3?
I know! I only have 327,500 miles on mine and only had to replace the head gasket. At 301,000..... Everything else works.... What a crappy car!
I know nothing about the cmax, but my sister has a 2015 fusion hybrid...never had any problems with it and well over 100k miles on it. It only gets high 30's gas mileage though.
