Is Prius suitable for Pakistan?

Did a search at toyotapartsexpress.com (online discounter) on 2009 Prius and found this for a new battery (here, it's also possible to buy used, from salvage yards):
HYBRID COMPONENTS / HYBRID COMPONENTS / BATTERY / BATTERY
BATTERY Prius MSRP Core ? Online Price
$2,588.67 1,350.00 $2,265.09

 

The length of the warranty varies by jurisdiction. In the US it isn't even the same in all states.

You need to find out from someone who knows what the Toyota warranty covers in Pakistan. It may also matter whether the car was originally sold be Toyota of Pakistan or not. If you get a copy of the warranty it should say where it's valid.

The 10 year 240,000 km hybrid system warranty is about the same as the warranty on new Priuses in California and some other states, so it's something Toyota has done in other places.

You might start here.

 

Toyota Pakistan does not cover Prius as this car is not available in Pakistan. The only way to get a Prius in pakistan is by importing from Japan or UK etc. The car may be under warranty in the parrent country but once imported to Pakistan it won't be covered.

 

Unless the car is only going to drive on paved areas. I'd get a Toyota HiLux diesel. Parts are plentiful.

 

Hopefully, someone who is more of a car guy than me will chime in, but you can find lots of posts here about people doing that to lower the car, just because they like that look. Don't know any reason you can't do the same thing in reverse. People raise trucks all the time. If done badly, I suppose it could have some effect on stability. Could also increase drag or wind turbulence when running on a highway, but probably not enough to worry about. I thought it was a bit more complicated than just changing shocks. There are also the springs and maybe the struts, but don't take my word on the mechanical aspects.

 

Higher ground clearance makes aerodynamics worse. So expect a drop in fuel economy at higher speeds, but no significant difference at lower speeds.

 

I don't know about a Gen II but the GEN III comes from the factory with about 3/4 inch more ground clearance in some countries, usually countries with a lot of bad roads. You would also need a wheel alignment (primarily front toe and camber). My semi educated guess is that 1 inch would be OK with some acceptable reduction in stability and some small reduction in fuel economy that you would never actually notice while driving on rough roads.

The suspension design is very similar to a Corolla, so you may be able to find out how well locally done suspension mods work on Corollas.

 

Shocks and springs need to be changed at the same time. Springs affect the travel, and shocks dampen the bounce. If you want to get as close to the original .cd, raise the front and the back the same height. Raising the rear more will increase your frontal area and increase your .cd.
Raising your car will raise the center of gravity. A 1" raise is pretty significant, as will the increase in clearance.

 

I did not get the original shocks changed. I got 1" aluminium discs (called spacers here in local market) installed between the rear shocks and the body. these spacers are shaped like the top plate of the shocks and have the holes for the studs. but it required changing the studs because the stock studs were not long enough to accomodate the 1" spacers. initially I was not very sure how much difference would these 1" spacers do, but as I have experienced these have provided good enough ground clearnace almost as much as our local Corolla.

 

Nice solution. Something most people in advanced industrial countries don't realize is how capable good mechanics in developing countries are. They are often more capable than the typical parts swappers we get in US shops.

 

Let's see a picture of your new vehicle in situ

 

Just signed up for this forum. I ve owned a Prius 2007 10th anniversary edition since Nov 2012. It did have low clearance but in Pakistan u have a solution for all auto problems no matter what car u have. I got spacers in the hind wheel springs only and it has worked. No more bothered by the speed breakers, the odd ones though still need driver skills. Flooding is not really a concern. Local mechanics r very talented and u can find maintenance support in all major cities. A visit to sultan ki khu in Pindi or Bilal ganj in Lahore is an experience u must have and rest assured there s no issue with the spare support or with the availability of hybrid battery. I ve driven Prius in Pindi, Islamabad, Lahore, multan and Karachi and never experienced bumpy roads that could give u a scare. Roads r wonderful and Prius gives u a great driving experience with excellent fuel economy. People have claimed doing 30+ km/l in city and just as much on motorway/GT road but I think 18-20 in city is what I get on the average. I drove to multan last year in summers and drove 120+ on motorway, 100-110 kph on GT road from Lahore to Multan. Prius gave me 19.0 km/l for the 1500 km (Pindi-multan-Pindi) of drive. I m very happy with my Prius and looking to buy the new shape inshaa Allah.

 

The UK 10th Anniversary model was released in 2011. I'd be curious to see a 2007 10th Anniversary model. Is it a JDM model as they were the only country to officially have a Prius from 1997.

So you know what I'm going to ask now Pictures?

Talking of the serenity of hybrid driving, you might like the latest UK hybrid advert;

 

Priu

In Pakistan only used cars from Japan r available. These r the JDM ones and that is why mine is a 10th anniversary edition, 10 years from it's date of launch in Japan. The sad part is everything is in Japanese and I ve been looking for a UK model which r rare to find here. I m trying to figure out how to post multiple pics. Hopefully I ve uploaded one successfully. Pl let me know how to upload multiple pics with a reply. Thanx