Hey guys, Glad to see there is this great community available to get input from. I'm thinking of buying a 2002 Prius with 91k miles What concerns should I have when going to inspect the vehicle?
Gen 1s are a cute car, they have better visibility and much better maneuverability than Gen2 and are much cheaper, however they have a lot more problems than the Gen2s (2004-2009). Around 91k you may be sitting on a time bomb. The two biggest problems are the HV battery (at least $1400-$1600 for a refurbished one to $3000 at the dealer) and Transaxle (aka Transmission) which contains the electric motors. This can cost anywhere from $1500 to $4000 installed. If you are a tinkerer, Gen1's can be a great deal. If you will pay a repair shop or the dealer for repairs, they can become a money bit. You might be better off with a Gen2. If you look at the Gen1, take it for a long extended drive, at least 30 minutes on city and freeway speeds. Listen for any weird sounds and especially stuttering when starting out very slow uphill or in reverse. If you get stuttering from the driveline, the tranny is most likely on it's way out. (it should be super smooth when starting out). If average MPG over the last few hundred miles is below 43-44mpg, the HV battery may be going. If the seller has reset the average MPG, that may be a flag. Also, if ANY warning lights are lit on the dash or come on while driving, do not make an offer until someone with appropriate Toyota scanning software scans the car for errors.
I've seen HV batteries and transaxles fail as early as 80k miles, and some go as long as 200k miles. You may be lucky...you may not. The HV battery is much easier/cheaper to swap than the tranny. If the car drives well but the MPG is below 40, most likely it needs a HV battery...a good rebuilt battery with Gen2 cells should be around $1600 installed, then battery should be good for another 80-100k miles. The Gen2 HV battery and transaxles almost never fail (compared the the Gen1s which have a somewhat high failure rate) Mention these issues to the seller, maybe you can get the car cheaper and set aside some money for future repairs. They are really nice little cars when in good shape.
