I just bought a 2001 Prius yesterday. It has 66,000 miles on it and seems to work/run great. Is there anything that I need to be thinking of?? I am considering taking it to a local Toyota dealer and having them give it a "once over" for the electrics and things.. I hear stories in reviews about the battery going bad and things like that...I did find a place on the internet that will "teach" me how to replace/rebuild the battery for considerable less than the dealer charges...(it's out of warranty anyway). Please help, I would rather do a little preventative maintenance than do a whole lot of corrective maintenance down the road. Love the car...and gas mileage. Thanks Darrin
Knowing what I know about dealers, I highly suspect if you took it in for them to check it over, they will drive it into the back and let it sit there for a while, then drive it back out. Then they'll give you a list of things they "checked" and then a bill. If I were you, I'd just make sure all of the fluids are changed, check for engine oil in the intake. Here's a video I made a few years ago showing how to do this: I'd also make sure the inverter coolant is flowing. Other than that.. expect a battery failure in the next year or two unless the HV battery has already been replaced.
Absolutely do not take it to the dealer unless you like throwing money away. Just keep up on regular maintenance, learn all you can from this site and enjoy the ride past the gas stations. They are very reliable. The one thing I can tell you (as a long time Gen I owner myself) is to not panic if/when you get warning lights. There are many things that can cause warning lights on a Gen I. Here's some of them: 1) If you put the shifter in R or D before the engine starts, you will default into Outofgas mode. This will cause several warning lights (TOD, CEL, Batt Fault). If this happens, you will notice all electric driving for a short period with poor acceleration. The fix is to turn it off, wait ten-30 seconds, turn back on (warning lights will still be there but it will drive fine). The lights will go off after 4-5 off/on cycles. 2) If you actually run out of gas, the same will happen 3) Low 12V battery willl cause intermittent lights When I first got my Gen 1, I freaked out when I got lights. Now, I just cycle it off/on and see what happens. In every case, the problem has gone away never to return. PS: It doesn't happen that often and less and less as you learn the idiosynchrosies (I think I spelled that right).
Thanks you guys...I thought of putting Cruise on it...I can go to the dealer and get the steering wheel and brake switch...or...can I go to the junkyard and get the same parts?? Is that all I need for cruise (just the steering wheel and the brake pedal switch)?? Thought of going to the dealer and having them do the safety recall about the power steering system...Good idea, or bad idea? Thanks again Darrin
Right ... these guys have a good price on a kit with everything you need. That was the first of my new-Prius projects. Kind of fun and didn't take very long. The "enemy nut" is easily reached with a crow's-foot, no extreme measures needed. -Chap
