There are a couple listing's for gen 3 Prius' that I'm interested in. A 2014 with 140k miles for $9000, and a 2013 with 170k miles for $6300. Would you guys recommend either of these cars for their price, or getting an older high mileage Prius in general? The Prius listing's in my area that are around 100k miles tend to go for $13k+ depending on the year. What are some of the issues I should be prepared with when buying an older high mileage Prius? Also what should I look for in the cars to make sure they were maintained well?
Tough to advise out of country I can't remember what CY is anyway if it's a country where getting repairs and parts is a big problem I might be looking at Yaris the other car that looks like a Prius kind of sorta they sell them all markets but I don't know what it is in your market or I would look for a generation too through 2009 the older body style they have a tendency to be able to be fixed anywhere and with minimal parts the inverter water pump and stuff like that almost any 12 volt pump can be used things like that where is the generation 3 with the head gasket problems and things that can arise not my cup of tea I went through two of them and we're not experiences that where I would talk about and be very fond of at all
I got my 2010 with 208k miles last October, have put about 25k on it so far. Mine has needed two or three wheel bearings and a new "a/f ratio sensor". I bought it for cheap transportation and it has delivered. The head gasket, battery, and brake system are all potential expensive problems.
My Gen3 has over 200K on it, with no problems [aside from brake pads, brake booster, and the body work getting brittle from UV exposure], no oil consumption though. If I were going to invest in a used high-milage Prius I would be tempted to replace the head gasket and manually inspect the EGR. I suggest that you get a quote for replacing the head gasket and cleaning the EGR, on both vehicles. Then make the decision.
It should be about the same cost on both of the vehicles If the car is driving when you buy it and you catch it before it becomes disastrous there's a couple places where you can go make a weekend out of it and come back with a new engine in the car for like $2,500
With those miles it’s common for Gen 3 to blow head gaskets. If they’re for sale, it’s as likely as not because they’re already showing symptoms, and had a stop-leak product added to the engine coolant, to mask symptoms, and gum up everything the engine coolant flows through.
This would definitely be my biggest concern. Especially since there really isn't a great way to tell if they added that gunk to the coolant without ripping it all apart.
Coolant appearance may tip you off. Just reading: coolant will appear darker/murky, may have particles.
