(Also posted in Prius II main forum) Love the discussion here and learn a lot. I am in the market for a used prius and came across a 2009 prius on craigslist, which I test drove. I havent owned a prius before, but I loved the car overall. It is loaded with leather, nav, bluetooth etc. (I think it is with package #6). KBB costs it at about 19k. I have three questions: * The average mileage that this seller has gotten in 36 mpg, which was a huge surprise to me! Granted this is in SFO with hills, etc. but this seems to be a huge red flag to me. Any thoughts on whether this is a systemic issue with the vehicle vs just bad driving? * The car has about 45k miles, which is on the lower side. However other cars with much higher miles (70k to 110k) go for around 12 to 14k, and am curious why the price difference is so high with higher miles * There was a clapping sound when I braked hard, and slight rattling, should I be worried (is this indicative of a bigger problem)? Thanks in advance for all the insights and tips.
Re: the mileage, don't know, but Most fuel-efficient cars is what the 2nd gen Prius got in CR testing. If the owner is doing very short city only drives in stop and go, then that, coupled w/the hills could make the poor mileage believable, coupled w/underinflated tires and/or bad alignment. If you can, get the car warmed up and then take it on the freeway and reset the MFD (multifunction display aka touchscreen LCD), drive at least 5 minutes at a steady speed (say 60 mph using cruise control), then turn around and do the reverse trip. Let us know the mileage you see. I can't speak to a "clapping sound" but perhaps you're hearing ABS engagement or something? Forget KBB. Their prices are one the high side.
^^^ Sorry, don't know. I would check also check N.A.D.A. Home Page and New Cars, Used Cars, Car Reviews and Pricing - Edmunds.com. If you're curious about CR's FE tests, see the last page of http://www.consumersunion.org/Oct_CR_Fuel_Economy.pdf. The EPA test mentioned there are the old ones. If curious about EPA tests, see http://priuschat.com/forums/other-c...uth-about-epa-city-highway-mpg-estimates.html.
A couple more thoughts... Not sure if the tires are original. If the originals wore out, they might've replaced them w/non-low rolling resistance tires. Non-tourings shipped with 185/65R15 Goodyear Integrities. Tourings shipped with 195/55R16 Bridgestone Turanza EL400-02. What tires and size are on this car? Also, if the tires are new, there can be an apparent mileage drop (Tire Tech Information - Tire Rolling Resistance Part 3: Changes to Expect When Switching from Worn-Out to New Tires). And yes, there could've been plenty of bad driving by the original owner too, besides the other things I mentioned.
You might also need a new 12 volt battery. A battery that can't take a charge can cause strange things to happen - like poor MPG. But, I agree that non LRR tires and short trips Plus SF hills will push the MPG into the mid 30's. You also want 2 key fobs - since a new one can cost $200 or more. Loss of the only key fob can cost over $500 to tow and program the car to accept new keys.
+1 on what has been said thus far. Plus, * check tire pressure. Use 42Front/40 rear for improved MPGs * For possible weak 12V battery, See MPGs dropping?-Test-12V battery.
Register the VIN at Toyota Owners Official Website: Service Coupons, Owners Manuals, Service Scheduling and More to see the dealer service history.
