Warranty up on 2008 Prius -- what to do?

Well, I have two Pri and both have been very reliable and trouble free. I do take good care of them but both have over 100,000 miles. I just have had a really good experience with the Prius. With only 64,000 miles, in a moderate climate, your Prius should give you many more years of trouble free operation. If it was me, I would keep it.

It should be noted that I am a big advocate of the Prius but, I didn't get that way overnight. I've learned to love these cars because of how they perform so well with so little problems.

 

I own the 2008 Prius, just turned 105k, the battery was replace under warranty at 60k. I have yet to buy brakes. So far the car has done very well, I get the oil changed every 5 k, the spark plus will be done at 120k at $300 bucks. I've decided to try and keep this car for another three years and push it to 160k. I've seen lots of other owners pushing their car well above the 160k. I know I'll have some kind of repair expense coming, just don't know what, but it's cheaper than a car payment.

 

Unless you are the type that likes to make car payments all of the time, I would suggest you hang on to the car. The Prius we own has 71K on it and has been very dependable. You can expect to change the coolant in both loops at 100K. If you have not already changed the fluid in the transaxle, you should have it drained and refilled. A flush in NOT necessary and a waste of money. Also at 120K, have the spark plugs changed. Just keep an eye on the inverter pump flow and monitor the water pump for leaking. As long as you keep your oil changed regularly and rotate the tires along with keeping the front end aligned your Prius should last quite a lot longer. There are many Prii out there with 100K and 200K on the odometer and still going. I would expect yours to last longer than you will be making payments on it.

Best of luck to you and welcome to Prius Chat.

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Ron

 

welcome to priuschat! most people who buy extended warranty never use it. that's the way insurance works. many pay the bills of few, and the insurance company gets rich. it's really just a matter of what you're comfortable with. all the best!

 

Honestly, the biggest problems not covered by the hybrid warranty are, NONE!. I know that sounds cliche but from my experience, its true.

 

On that statement I would agree!

 

Got 200K miles on yours?

Few Gen IIs make it past 200K without an unscheduled, non-maintenance repair.

 

Jennie: Maybe to give you a little more confidence -- read the thread right below yours...........
FWIW: We have a 2005 with 187,000 miles on it and it still has the original hybrid battery and NO major repair bills at all.

 

Jennie1031, I'm surprised you changed the brake pads at 64k miles. Was it necessary? Most people report they last 100k+..

 

My 2008 is at 145K with no major repairs or replacements. Just the recalls and I replaced the aux 12V battery and the ICE water pump. Having said that though, I now full well expect some calamity to befall. Along the lines of not looking a gift horse in the mouth ...

 

Jennie, start saving for your next car. Figure replacement sometime after 2025. I would guess 2030, but as you say, Boston winters ...

Look at my log of repair/maintenance costs for the past ~ 9 years with my '04 Prius. As inexpensive now as it was when the car was four years old.

 

Other than the traction battery, the Prius is bullet proof. If you bought a Chevrolet Impala and it just got out of warranty, then I would start panicking. Note that sales tax alone on a $30K car is $1875 in Massachusetts, about 2/3 the cost for a traction battery replacement. Don't expect the car to fall apart after warranty's over, but don't expect 300K miles either -- that is TAXI mileage, not Johnny 9-to-5 over a 15 year period mileage.

 

It's not just the hybrid battery you have under warranty - it's the hybrid system too. Yes - MA follows CARB reg's which is part of what enables the 10yr/150K mile warranty.
That said, several cab companies have logged over 200k miles and above on the Gen II Prius. Those include the harsh weather states like your. Some Prius will go into the 300K mile range range. Doesn't mean yours will. One of my co-worker's (owns a Gen I) traction packs just became mortally wounded at 175K miles. After shopping around, it cost him $2K to get the pack re-built. He figures any other car he purchases will cost a lot more than $2K ... and for another car costing $2K - it'd likely not get him down the road anywhere near as far as his Gen I Prius, and no where near the mpg's. If I were you, I'd wait - but that's a personal choice. iirc, MA is a roll-out state for the PiP ... and that'd be mighty tempting for me

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