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Tips On Buying A Salvaged Prius

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by ovni, May 29, 2013.

  1. ovni

    ovni Member

    Joined:
    Aug 1, 2005
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    Location:
    Sugar Land, TX
    Vehicle:
    2006 Prius
    Model:
    V
    I have inspected many salvaged Prii here in he SF bay area. Here are some tips.

    Sellers will always say it's minor damage and 99% of the time don't have pictures of the original damage. What a coincidence... Ask for the VIN and run it on google. Most likely you will find pictures of the crashed vehicle from the insurance company or the company(copart) selling it. Print out the pictures and take them with you. Ask the seller to describe the original damage. I bet he/she will down play the damage. Take out the pics and see what they say...

    Take pictures of the engine compartment of a Prius that has never been in an accident. Take the pics along with you and compare the location of the parts. i.e... the fuse box is against the fender in the salvage Prius..but not in the clean title Prius. This could lead to wiring issues.

    Take an OBDII scanner. Some errors will not trigger any lights to appear on the dash. One example is the A/C pressure error. 99% of the lights I have seen are brake related issues. Usually foreign object on the Driver side speed sensor.


    - Rear Crashed
    The biggest issue I've seen with rear end crash is leaks. Take everything out in the back including the spare tire and look for water/moisture. I've seen the aux battery compartment with several inches of water. The word at the auto body shops has gotten around about me telling my clients where to look for water. Instead of fixing the leaks, they have come up with new ways of "Fixing" the water issue. They throw away the rubber cap in the spare tire compartment. This prevents any water to build up. In the aux battery compartment they are drilling holes into the metal where the battery sits. This allows the water that's getting into the car to drain out.

    Check the bolts holding down the hybrid(Traction) battery. Have never seen a a rear end so damaged to where it reaches the battery. Signs the bolts were tampered with can mean they replaced the battery with a higher mileage battery or refurbished.


    - Front End
    Most sellers do not give any type of warranty. I suggest you at least work out an A/C warranty of 2 weeks or longer. That's the biggest problem I see with salvage Prii. The A/C is nice and cool when you buy it because they charge it right before you test drive it. If the seller doesn't want to give an AC warranty, walk away...

    Make sure your Coolant Heat storage tank is in the car. Inspected a Prius once where the tank was missing. No aftermarket tanks are made so the shops try to save money.

    If the hood feels heavy...its a sign it was replaced with a cheap non aluminum hood. No big deal.

    If the trim model your buying has HID lights. Take a look at the bulbs. No aftermarket light enclosure is made for the HID bulb. A used enclosure is about 4 times more expensive than a brand new halogen aftermarket enclosure. Many shops put in the halogen enclosure...I once saw a prius with one side HID and the other halogen.

    Lift the car up and check for any leaks. If the cars looks very clean underneath...The seller might be hiding something.

    Check for any suspension/steering component problems by comparing one side to the other. 90% of the cars I've seen are usually front end driver side crash. If you see anything welded underneath. Walk away!!

    Remove the side panels where the seatbelt go into and look for a resistor. Usually covered in electrical tape and right at the plug where it goes into the squib. This is placed there to fool the system that a new component has been placed. If you get into an accident, the pre-tensioner will not work.

    On most front end accidents, the engine coolant tank reservoir gets damaged. An empty reservoir will not trigger any alarms. Many sellers don't replace it as the OEM tank is attached to the fan assembly shroud. A lot of work to take out. Check for cracks, leaks and even glue.

    A salvage car can be a great buy or a nightmare.
     
  2. Cougarob

    Cougarob Junior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 23, 2012
    5
    2
    0
    Location:
    WA
    Vehicle:
    2007 Prius
    Model:
    II
    This is an excellent post and topic for discussion, thank you. I seriously considered buying a salvaged Prius last year as I desperately wanted a 2007 or newer but could not afford one. Test drove a 2009 that seemed to be in like new condition, it drove perfectly, but then I saw pictures showing that it had been smashed not just in the front but also the rear. Looked like it was involved in a pile-up type collision. I did a lot of searching online but was unable to locate any information as sound as your post on what to look for. Just a lot of "stay away" advice regarding salvaged vehicles. Decided against the purchase. Was amazed though how many salvaged Prii were for sale! Must be due to high resale value. And you are right, every one claimed "very minor damage" to one of the corners of the vehicle.
     
  3. lech auto air conditionin

    Joined:
    Sep 5, 2011
    830
    601
    261
    Location:
    san francisco
    Vehicle:
    2012 Prius c
    Model:
    Two
    I agree most of the burnt up a/c compressors and leaking condensers or kinked a/c lines or hoses I find on a salvaged Prius. Other times I find the refrigerant contaminated mixed with air or the a/c was over or under charged causing damage to the compressor. There is much more to say on this topic about the shops preforming the HACK WORK and BUTCHERING the cars in the San Francisco area and all of California. There is absolutely NO consumer protection in the state of California. Any one can fill out the state paper work to open a body shop or auto repair shop with NO experience working on cars and can hire any one off the street with the lowest skills to fix your car. I personally seen this hundreds of time in my industry and at one time I even works of some in my younger years for a short time, it was scary to see what they get away with on the public. Some the the shops have vary big names, and others have been in business for 20+ years, others are nation wide chain stores.

    The BUREAU of AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR in California IS A JOKE. At least they are there after the fact for the consumer but have NO prevention powers. there is no credentials, tests, mandated schooling or training to open a repair shop, it's like the wild wild west (any thing goes they can get away with). Only the SMOG vehicle emissions program have some test and requirements to license TECHs, it is vary easy but at least it is something and the one little CERT from the E.P.A for refrigerant handling that is so easy to get even a DEAD person can pass it, it is passed out to any body like candy to kids at Halloween.
     
  4. AllenZ

    AllenZ Active Member

    Joined:
    Jul 9, 2010
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    Location:
    Chicago
    Vehicle:
    2010 Prius
    Model:
    Four
    The best protection for consumer is that consumer learn how to evaluate the shop business and make their sound decision. Read google review, learn the process of the repair and estimate the complexity, risk and cost, etc. when they walk on street, they don't expect all grounds are smooth, flat and not slippery, do they?
    Which bureau in which state is not a joke? Actually, all of they are pretty expensive joke in my view.