52k miles, "high mileage"?

Good deal?

It depends. When was it produced - August 2008 or July 2009, that's a big difference alone. What is the date on the driver's door jamb?

Maintenance is key. Did the previous owner change the oil and filter at the proper intervals. Was the car garage kept. Was there any evidence that the car had been in an accident?

Finally, the "high" miles. Properly maintained, today's cars can easily last to 300K miles. It wouldn't scare me to buy one like you did provided you plan on keeping the car for a long long time. If not, you will not recoup what you paid since mileage does greatly reduce resale value beyond 100K miles.

You made a good decision, though.

 

High mileage on a relatively young car doesn't bother me. It means a lot of highway driving and that's much easier on a car than short mileage stop and go.

I can't comment on the price since I don't know what used Prius are worth, but if you're happy with the buy screw all the naysayers.

 

The difference between a high trim and low trim Prius from 2009 is about $6000. You have to know what package Prius you have to come to any sort of conclusion.

The way to approach your question is to backtrack all the costs out of the 22k except for the Prius. So ... $22,000 - (5900 + tax + TTL + Warranty)

Tax is about $1000
Warranty for the mileage remaining is about $800 assuming this is Toyota branded.
Title & License ? $100
Total is $1900 + $5900 = $7800 so the car was sold for about $14,200.

If you did not accept a bad interest rate to finance the car I say this is a fair deal on a low trim car, and a great deal on a more expensive trim if the car is in good shape without prior accident, not salvaged, and not a prior rental.
The friends talking about upside-down stuff are clueless. Whatever is true is this regard for the Prius is multiples times worse with the Chevy.

You might find this website useful for future reference to calculate sales tax. If you did accept a high interest rate but have a good credit rating, check out penfed.org credit union. It mostly serves the military but anyone can join with a $15 donation.

Incidentally, my 2004 Prius is approaching 125,000 miles. No repairs, a total of ~ $600 not including tyres spent on pretty careful maintenance through 6.5 years. I posted details in another thread if you are interested. I want the car to last 20 - 25 years and reach 500,000 miles. If you are trying to not waste money on the car spend some time in this forum learning how to perform the simple maintenance yourself (or have your hubby do the work.) The car is very advanced, but the maintenance is surprisingly easy.

 

who are 'these people'? know nothings i say. you got a great deal on a great car. enjoy driving it, learning about it and watching your mpg's. malibu maxx indeed! you are part of the solution now.:welcome:

 

Yeah, I would say they don't know what they're talking about, don't worry. My dad was concerned even with my 34k miles at purchase. I think it's easy for some (I said "some", down PriusChat attack dogs! :-D) in an older generation to constantly associate 100k miles with the end of a car's life from the days when it could've been true for them. This train of thought is a relic.

Kudos to you for thinking about foreign oil dependency, you're doing a good thing.

 

I believe those videos were probably from Top Gear UK (Jeremy Clarkson). Don't worry, Clarkson's completely full of it. He's a big Prius hater and completely misrepresents the car. Unfortunately, there's a lot of propaganda aimed at the Prius. I guess that's what happens when you're on top.

 

Get a refund on the warranty. In an 09, you have a car where all of the bugs have been worked out. Major component failure is extremely unlikely. 2 fas 4 u is at 335,000 miles and counting in his 09 (see the 299,999 mile club thread). Change your transaxle fluid now, and every 60,000 miles thereafter.

 

Not necessarily true. No shame in having the warranty.

AStuke you bought a great car, and you've come to the right place. Hang around here. Read a lot. You'll rise fast and be able to beat the naysayers with the powers we teach you.

 

Point of sale extended warranties are among the most overpriced consumer products out there. What sounds like a better value, "extended warranty" or "mechanical breakdown insurance"? They are exactly the same thing! If you need an extended warranty, shop around just like you would for an insurance policy, because the dealer is guaranteed to be 2-3 times more than what you can find elsewhere. No shame in buying an extended warranty, but it is possible to save hundreds of dollars with a little legwork.

IMHO, there is no need for an extended warranty on any year of Gen II, most especially the 09. 09 has the redesigned engine water pump, making the car very robust.

 

The 125K mile warranty is probably a third-party or dealership warranty, not one offered by Toyota. I suggest you determine exactly who is standing behind that warranty.

There is a point to the criticism expressed about taking a 5-year loan on a car that already has 52K miles on it. The message behind the criticism is that you spent too much for the car if you must finance it over five years. It is reasonable to question whether the car will last for that duration (200K miles total) without needing an expensive repair, given your driving 30K+ miles per year.

The criticism is not necessarily directed to your choice of a Prius, except that particular vehicle happens to have a greater upfront cost compared to some other possible choices.

Although the probability of Prius needing an expensive hybrid system repair post-warranty is not high; if it happens to you and you must depend upon dealer service, you will be looking at a large four-digit repair bill.

I recommend that you study the warranty language very carefully. I seriously question whether it would cover incidents resulting from driver error or abuse. I also would question whether the hybrid-unique vehicle components such as inverter, hybrid battery, hybrid system ECU, and traction battery ECU are covered.

In retrospect it may have been better for you to have kept the Malibu for another year or two if it had been providing reliable service to you.

That means your car was built in October 2008, so it was among the earlier 2009 vehicles.

 

Note that the Toyota manufacturer's warranty will cover specific hybrid system components to 8 years / 100K miles. A few Qs for you to consider:

- Does the dealership warranty require you to pay a copayment each time you file a claim under that warranty?

- If your car should fail when you are out-of-town, will repairs be covered under the dealership warranty if performed by another Toyota dealership or some other third party?

- If the dealership should go out of business (which is not unheard of, with regards to GM/Chrysler dealerships recently) will your dealership warranty be honored elsewhere?

OK, if your Malibu was running at ~25 mpg, then you should see a ~50% reduction in your monthly fuel bill. That certainly helps the cost of ownership evaluation.

 

So, it took 8 years for Toyota to iron out the bugs in the Prius.

Wow.