Looking at buying first Prius (used & overseas)

Hi all, I'm 7. I just moved to Lisbon, Portugal and started looking for used cars.

I found what appears to be a really good deal on 2005 Prius. But, then I found this forum with the and started reading about all the potential issues and things you should check, soI'm going to read through all the stickies before I go check it out so that I know what to look for.

I'm open to any input or advice.

 

I've heard things are a little different here when buying a car, so we will see how it goes.

I have heard that they won't actually let you do a test drive for insurance reasons. But, I have had one guy let me so far (Yaris, not a Prius), so that may not be true.

I've also heard that dealers are much more regulated here than in the US and they aren't allowed to hide any problems (how you would prove they knew about it is beyond me.) The fact that it comes with a 1 year warranty makes me feel a little better about it. And, I'm only going to be here for 2 years, so the warranty should get me half way home and hopefully anything that would go wrong would do so in the first year (yeah right, more like day 366.)

I have a welcome party tomorrow with some of my local co-workers, so I'm going to talk to some of them about it, see what they say about the buying process here, and hopefully enlist one of them to help me overcome the language barriers.

 

Apparently, one of the reasons it seems cheap is that people here don't like or want automatics. Also, if you have an automatic and your transmission goes out you have almost no chance of finding someone to fix it. From reading, it sounds like the Prius doesn't have a normal automatic transmission.

Is what they do have more reliable or easier to repair/replace than a conventional automatic transmission? Are they prone to problems or fairly reliable for a while?

The car I'm looking at first only has about 58,000 miles on it even though it's a 2005. In the photos, it looks like it's in great shape, but of course looks aren't my #1 concern.

 

I just found another, newer (2008) model with even lower miles (about 38,000) that looks really nice. But, it is from a private seller with no warranty and is listed at about $5,000 more (though both prices are listed as negotiable.)

I've emailed both to see about test drives, so we will see if I hear back from either of them or have to call. So far, emailing people in English hasn't gotten much response.

As I mentioned, I'll only be here for 2 years, then depending on where I move I may have to sell it which leads me to go with the cheaper option. Since it's a EU-spec vehicle I don't think I could import it back to the US. But, chances are pretty good that I will be going to another EU country, so I could probably drive it another 3 years.

From what I've read, there is no big difference between 2005 & 2008 models are there? They are both 2nd Gen, right?

 

Thanks. I am an American. My employer has a mechanic that handles all of the business cars and it seems that most of the people also use him to service their personal vehicles on the side.

There are also a few official Toyota dealers in the city. I know one of the cars I'm interested in (from a private owner) the owner has the service book showing all of the service dates and details. I'd probably just keep going to that dealer. But, I might change my mind for simple oil changes depending on the cost.

The other I'm looking at is from a used car dealer that has their own workshop and offers a 1yr warranty. So, if I got that one I'd probably take it back there under warranty (plus it's only about a mile away.)

 

I've found a 3rd contender, but it's about a 3hr drive away. It is in between the other two in price and age (2007), but the most mileage (about 60k). Also, it is the "High" package with NAV, cruise control, heated seats and mirrors, and all that while the other 2 are more basic.

Over the last few days, I've read the entire 30pg newbie thread, plus the 67pg Gen-II pdf I found a link to. I have pretty much made up my mind on a Prius for sure.

 

Well, I hit a little road speed bump in that apparently I have to have a "NIF number" (Fiscal ID#) to buy a car. And, it will be a few weeks before I can get one of those.

In the mean time, I've found 2 more good looking options. Both local here to Lisbon, but with better options, a few more miles, and lower prices than the other high options I was looking at before. They are from individuals, so no warranty, but the one I talked to so far says his is flawless and he has all the service records of all the scheduled maintenance being performed by Toyota. I believe that I'll be test driving that one tomorrow.

 

Drove my first Prius today. I thought it was a 2006, but apparently it's an '05. Has about 67k miles. Has had all the scheduled maintenance performed by Toyota dealer and recalls performed. It's the High Package with NAV, voice control, prox sensor key fob, and the JBL stereo. It was in almost perfect shape except for a few small crease dents behind the back door on the driver side (one at the roof line and one above the wheel) where a small tree apparently fell.

Driving it was definitely a little different than other cars I've driven before. I went to pull out on the highway and the lack of a high revving engine gave me a slight pause. And, when I'd step on the gas and didn't hear it drop to a lower gear I had the feeling that I wasn't getting enough power. But, I think that was all psychological as I had no problem keeping up with or even passing traffic.

His trip meter for the last 300km was at 4.4L per 100km (so about 53mpg). He's asking about $10,250.

I've already talked to another guy with an '07 that has fewer miles and maybe even more options (rear camera) that is asking about $10,500 (but, it's listed as negotiable). I'm going to try to drive it in the next day or so.

 

Offered the guy with the '05 7,000Euro ($9,230) and he came back with 7375 ($9723). I think I'm going to go ahead and take it as I haven't heard back from the guy with the '07 since I emailed him yesterday saying I wanted to test drive it today or tomorrow.

 

Oh! One thing I noticed is that manuals are all in Portuguese? Anyone happen to have a link to manual for a 2005?

Thanks!

 

I did go ahead and buy the Prius. It rode great on the way home. I did the 12v battery test that I found on here and as I suspected (since it's > 8yrs old) it probably needs to be replaced at some point in the near future. Everything seems ok, but the battery read a little under 12v in the beginning and then dropped to 9.4v under load.

Since I haven't seen any issues yet, is this something I need to do ASAP?

 

Thanks. I already ordered a replacement battery from that elearnaid site.

When you change the battery do you lose a lot of settings and have to reprogram things?
Can you hook a spare 12-volt battery to the jumping terminal while changing the battery to prevent the loss of settings?