Buying a 2001 prius?

[Debeucci]

Hi all,

First time here

I'm looking to buy an older 2001 Prius with 90k miles and a clean title. What should I be looking out for with the older hybrids? How is their reliability after all these years? Is there a lot of risk with the older priuses?

Any information would help!

Thanks!

[Tideland Prius]

Hi and welcome to PriusChat!

While an older Toyota should not be an issue, there are a few things you should keep in mind when testing the Prius.

- battery state. Does it drain easily or is the engine powering most of the time? In the summer time (assuming you're NOT on the highway), that may be a sign that the battery is nearing the end of its life. Now at 90K miles, it shouldn't be but you know, things happen.

- Note that the tyres are 14" with XL (extra load) so keep that in mind when shopping for tyres for the 2001 model

- Have the hybrid system checked out by a Toyota dealer you trust. This is to make sure that everything is running as it's supposed to be and that the Prius mechanic can plug in the OBD-II and check for error codes.

- So far, they've been holding up well. Very few (and I mean very few... < 10 maybe?) have had their batteries fail. The other battery replacements on these older Prius models is because of high mileage (200-300K miles).

- Check the brake rotors (and drums) for rust or what have you. Because we rarely use the brakes (thanks to regenerative braking), they may have "collected some dust", so to speak.

For more information, please check john1701a.com (there's no www in front). He had a 2001 Prius for 3-4 years so he has plenty of information on it esp. through Minnesota winters.

[FL_Prius_Driver]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Debeucci @ Jul 10 2007, 11:49 AM) [snapback]476140[/snapback]</div>

Hi all,

First time here

I'm looking to buy an older 2001 Prius with 90k miles and a clean title. What should I be looking out for with the older hybrids? How is their reliability after all these years? Is there a lot of risk with the older priuses?

Any information would help!

Thanks!
[/b]

I still have a 2001 Prius, running great, but has had various issues over 6 years. Please go to:
http://www.techno-fandom.org/~hobbit/cars/training/
and look at section 3. There is slide on "real life problems" that outlines what the most common problems (of the few) that would be seen on a 2001. Most all of these are straightforward to fix if diagnosed correctly. So the biggest worry is making sure your dealer can do this. Very reliable car.