1. Attachments are working again! Check out this thread for more details and to report any other bugs.

Looking to add a second Gen 2. Is Touring package something to avoid or is it a bonus?

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by VFerdman, Nov 12, 2018.

  1. VFerdman

    VFerdman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2017
    1,148
    1,171
    3
    Location:
    Western Massachusetts
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I have been enjoying my '07 for about 15 months and almost 25K miles now. I love this car so much that I want to add a second one. It just so happens that our family is down to one car (the '07) and as much as we are enjoying less expensive insurance, we are finding ourselves needing a second vehicle. I wanted to go electric for this as it would be the perfect use case for under 100 mile range BEV, but my budget does not allow for that. And these things are super hard to find on the used market. So, Gen 2 it is, according to the budget. My preference would be to get one with a known bad traction battery for real cheap and replace with new battery (Toyota or 2kToaster one). Those are also rare on the market, so I've been checking out the Gen 2 cars with high-ish mileage (most of them are) with hopes to find one that is in pretty good shape and may need a battery soon.

    I've come across a pretty decent candidate, an '07 with Touring package. It has 7 spoke 16" wheels, all the bells and whistles (minus navigation, which is great for me as I use my phone for that), cloth seats. Single owner with dealer records going back to delivery of the car. Mostly oil changes and regular service, some recalls, catalytic converter, muffler, etc. It has 225K miles. No warning lights at all. Owner still claim to get upper 40's MPG. I drove it and it felt fine, very similar to mine, but suspension not as tight. I did not notice any of that "Touring" goodness in handling. Can anyone explain to me if it's a gimmick or something worth looking for or perhaps something to avoid? The owner says the car has been great since new and they love it, but it's time for them to renew. Nothing suspicious about the car. It's not in perfect shape, there are superficial scratches and dings, all normal stuff. The car looks like it has been well used. My main question is about the Touring package. Does that entail more expensive suspension components? If I need to replace struts, for example, will it cost more than non-touring? What else is different? I realize it has factory HID headlights. I know it's a mixed blessing and they can be expensive to fix. But do they really go bad that often? I am very handy in electronics, DIY most things on cars (exhaust and big suspension work is not my thing, but I've done it).

    What is the wisdom on Touring in a used gen 2? Good, bad, irrelevant?
     
    kenoarto likes this.
  2. DMC-5180

    DMC-5180 Active Member

    Joined:
    Dec 1, 2013
    292
    134
    0
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Just curious what your budget is other than Cheap as possible. Be realistic. First Nissan Leafs are quite cheap now on the used market. So are first Gen Volts.


    iPhone X ?
     
  3. VFerdman

    VFerdman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2017
    1,148
    1,171
    3
    Location:
    Western Massachusetts
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Leafs and Volts are near impossible to find and lack of good supply makes them pricey. Certainly well above a Gen 2 Prius. Different price ranges.
     
    PriusCamper likes this.
  4. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2018
    2,912
    1,494
    0
    Location:
    Northern California
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I think someone mentioned tires are more expensive. Have the struts been replaced at any time? They might be due again, that would explain the ride. Does the touring edition have larger sway bars?
     
  5. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2018
    2,912
    1,494
    0
    Location:
    Northern California
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I have the HID headlights on my Prius. They did go bad once, the lady that owned it had them repaired at lushous garage over 100,000 miles ago. They still work.
     
  6. DMC-5180

    DMC-5180 Active Member

    Joined:
    Dec 1, 2013
    292
    134
    0
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Where are you looking ? I have a Volt along with an 05 prius. As soon as We got our Volt a couple years ago, I started seeing them frequently in my relatively rural area. No leafs though. I’d have to live closer to a metro area for those.


    iPhone X ?
     
  7. VFerdman

    VFerdman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2017
    1,148
    1,171
    3
    Location:
    Western Massachusetts
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    So, more expensive tires, 195/55/16, more expensive HID bulbs, but perhaps not as big a deal as I think, larger sway bars, yes. Slightly bigger rear spoiler (irrelevant, but a fact). Probably needs struts at 225K miles. I did not see struts on the dealer rap sheet.

    I just looked on the Toyota parts list. There are two stabilizer bars listed. One 21mm OD, the other 22mm OD. Price difference less than $10. Shocks appear to be the same (only one version shown). So no real differences other than the stabilizer bar is 1mm larger in diameter.
     
    #7 VFerdman, Nov 12, 2018
    Last edited: Nov 12, 2018
  8. VFerdman

    VFerdman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2017
    1,148
    1,171
    3
    Location:
    Western Massachusetts
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I am looking in Western Massachusetts, but will give Boston area a look. Still, I doubt I will find a Volt or Leaf for what I am looking to spend on the Gen 2 ($3K - $4K).
     
  9. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2018
    2,912
    1,494
    0
    Location:
    Northern California
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    If the struts have not been changed you should replace them. Good time to replace the springs too. KYBs (OEM) are 50.79 each or 117.99 for ready to install (new strut, spring, bellows) from rockauto for the fronts. Rear KYBs are 60.79 they don’t show a full package for the KYBs but a Monroe full package is 83.79 each.
     
  10. DMC-5180

    DMC-5180 Active Member

    Joined:
    Dec 1, 2013
    292
    134
    0
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    You’re not going to find a Leaf that cheap yet. But l’ve heard 6k-8k is not out of the question. The other thing to consider is no more buying gas, but I’ve heard MASS has high electric rates so that could negate any savings.


    iPhone X ?
     
  11. VFerdman

    VFerdman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2017
    1,148
    1,171
    3
    Location:
    Western Massachusetts
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Our electric rates are close to national average ($0.11 - $0.15 per kWHr), but also our gas is not as expensive as some places like Cali. I just filled up for $2.58/gallon. The thing is, that 80 mile range (on a good day with Leaf, most of them have battery degradation) is almost not enough. I traveled about 80 miles today, for example. That would be right on that range anxiety boundary. Most days would be fine, though. And with my current Prius, I can just arrange those longer rides to be on Prius. Still, $6K is not doable at the moment.
     
  12. DMC-5180

    DMC-5180 Active Member

    Joined:
    Dec 1, 2013
    292
    134
    0
    Vehicle:
    2005 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Okay, well best of luck.


    iPhone X ?
     
    VFerdman likes this.
  13. VFerdman

    VFerdman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2017
    1,148
    1,171
    3
    Location:
    Western Massachusetts
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    I just checked and it seems that besides the stabilizer bars being bigger, the whole rear suspension seems a bit beefier on the Touring. Rear shocks and springs are different and more expensive. Here is the link. Still not that much more, but good to know that most of the differences is in the rear of the suspension on the Touring.

    Thanks for the KYB suggestion. I did not yet buy this car, just considering it as one of the candidates.
    The struts need to go, I think.
     
  14. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2018
    2,912
    1,494
    0
    Location:
    Northern California
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    • If you do decide to buy, you can’t beat the prices at rock auto. A complete drop in KYB replacement with all new everything for 118 a side (plus shipping).
     
  15. VFerdman

    VFerdman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2017
    1,148
    1,171
    3
    Location:
    Western Massachusetts
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    Yes, that is a good price. What about Monroe? Are they inferior to KYB? They seem to be made in US (for what that's worth)
     
  16. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2018
    2,912
    1,494
    0
    Location:
    Northern California
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    I don’t know anything about them. The KYBs are OEM so that’s why I recommend them. If you get the Monroe,s you can get all 4 fully loaded with all new parts. Hopefully someone can chime in on Monroe shocks for the Prius. Someone here must have used them.
     
    VFerdman likes this.
  17. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2012
    10,767
    4,370
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Northwest, USA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    Yes, touring edition has significantly more expensive tires if you're buy low rolling resistance to improve gas mileage... And those HID headlamps are expensive but you can convert back to normal. And yes better sway bars but at 225K miles the amount of sway will likely be bad even with new struts...
     
    VFerdman likes this.
  18. PriusCamper

    PriusCamper Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 3, 2012
    10,767
    4,370
    0
    Location:
    Pacific Northwest, USA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Two
    After market shocks will be higher quality than OEM if you buy the right ones. Also the suspension make look beefier, but the rear springs on Touring are actually a little bit softer than the standard version.
     
    VFerdman likes this.
  19. Skibob

    Skibob Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 14, 2018
    2,912
    1,494
    0
    Location:
    Northern California
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    N/A
    True but you can replace the bushings and it should be good as new.
     
  20. VFerdman

    VFerdman Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 5, 2017
    1,148
    1,171
    3
    Location:
    Western Massachusetts
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    Three
    It looks like everything can be converted back to non-Touring. Maybe keep the Touring sway bars. They are about $60 - $70 new to replace, so if the sway is too much I can always renew them. I do not use LRR tire because I live in New England and traction is the most important criterium 8 months out of a year. Still, 195/55/16 tire will probably cost more than 185/65/15.