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Does the Generation 2 prius last forever ?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by timfox123, Jan 20, 2012.

  1. timfox123

    timfox123 New Member

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    I have a 1996 honda accord with 350k miles on it, the wife says I have to get something that looks better ( I use it as a truck, has tow hitch and all ).

    I am an amsoil oil fan, is the tranny fluid synthetic in the prius ?

    Does anybody out there have more than 350k on their gen 2 prius ? Did the batteries hold up ?

    Does the Gen 2 make a good plug in hybrid ? I am in buying mode for a gen 2 ( 1996 or 1997 )
     
    #1 timfox123, Jan 20, 2012
  2. fotomoto

    fotomoto Senior Member

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    #2 fotomoto, Jan 20, 2012
  3. KK6PD

    KK6PD _ . _ . / _ _ . _

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    The extended warrenty I bought says it covers the car until the Sun goes NOVA! :eek:

    That's a good car!
     
    #3 KK6PD, Jan 20, 2012
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  4. qbee42

    qbee42 My other car is a boat

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    The Prius doesn't have a transmission in the conventional sense: it doesn't shift gears and it doesn't have the usual moving clutches and brake bands. Transmission fluid in the Prius acts as a gear lubricant, coolant, and insulator for the electric motors. Because of the insulating properties, the recommendation is to use Toyota's fluid.

    Tom
     
    #4 qbee42, Jan 20, 2012
  5. JimboPalmer

    JimboPalmer Tsar of all the Rushers

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    The Prius is rated to tow 0 pounds.

    The ATF in the Prius is used to cool the Motors, you want to use the ATF known to not conduct electricity.
    The Prius that are most used, have the least battery issues. Prius that just sit for months have more issues.
    There are no Prius sold in the US from earlier than MY2001, Gen 2 started in MY2004. Starting in MY2012 you can buy Plug In Prius.
     
    #5 JimboPalmer, Jan 20, 2012
  6. Bodgerx

    Bodgerx Junior Member

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    There are quite a few Prius chatters with Gen2s with over that kind of mileage. There are also a few Gen 3s I believe.

    I assume you mean 2006 or 2007...

    GT-I9000 ?
     
    #6 Bodgerx, Jan 20, 2012
  7. seilerts

    seilerts Battery Curmudgeon

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    Nothing lasts forever, but anything is possible.

    Jimbo uses his Prius as a van with excellent results: http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...yer-couple-questions-load-fe.html#post1446861

    Aside from Toyota ATF WS, there are fans of Redline D6 here. If I recall correctly, the AMSOil version had a very poor UOA and so no one has used it since.

    Battery life is multifactorial, depending on time, mileage, cleanliness, climate, and topography.

    It depends on what you mean by "good". If you are asking, will it ever pay for itself, the answer is no.
     
    #7 seilerts, Jan 20, 2012
  8. Eoin

    Eoin Active Member

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    Very hard to find a 1996 or 1997 Prius.
     
    #8 Eoin, Jan 20, 2012
  9. dogfriend

    dogfriend Human - Animal Hybrid

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    If you store the Prius in a climate controlled dry environment (possibly a museum) , I bet you could get at least 10,000 or 12,000 years out of it. :madgrin:
     
    #9 dogfriend, Jan 20, 2012
    2 people like this.
  10. jdenenberg

    jdenenberg EE Professor

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    Most cars last as long as you are willing to maintain them. My 2004 Prius is at 216,000 miles and has only had a few maintenance issues:

    • Steering column replaced at 150k miles - $1000
    • HV (Traction) battery replaced at 195k miles:
      • $3300 for a new one
      • $2000 for a ReInVolt (my choice at the time)
      • ~$250 to fix the battery myself (it takes about 3 weeks to do it correctly with two charger/rebalancer setups)
    • Struts/mounts/bushings at 150k miles ~$1000
    I have drained and refilled with Toyota Type WS ATF every 60k miles and suggest to all to do it as well with an early ATF refresh at 30k miles based on lab analysis (see attached) of the used ATF each time. Do NOT use Amsoil ATF, it leaches copper as tested in a Gen1. Some swear by Redline ATF, but my results show that the Toyota Type WS is fine in this application.

    JeffD

    ps. Our 1996 Subaru Outback is still in use at 240k miles, but ~$1000 in repairs every year on average.
     

    Attached Files:

    #10 jdenenberg, Jan 20, 2012
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  11. edthefox5

    edthefox5 Senior Member

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    Which is odd as the owners manual says and I quote:

    WS Fluid or equivalent.

    Wonder how many equivalents have insulating properties?
     
    #11 edthefox5, Jan 20, 2012
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