My Gen3 was totaled; considering a Gen2

On New Year's Eve, some guy ran into the front of my 2010 and totaled it. Insurance gave me about $7k, which may be what it's worth to the market, but it was paid off and worth more to me than that. I'd like to get another Prius, but I see there are issues with the 2010, probably extending into 2011 until the serial number associated with the TSBs on engine knocking. Mine did that, and I didn't realize it was an issue.

I liked the 2010, except for really hard seats and the blind spot created by the A-pillar if you sit high to minimize the blind spots created by the slope of the rear door windows. It had decent power, storage, quietness, etc. But I can get CARB 2008's with under 100kmiles and no accidents by Carfax, for around $7k. Low mileage 2011-1/2's and newer are around $11k. I want lower miles so I can be more sure of the maintenance history.

Special considerations. I towed my 16 foot catamaran sailboat around, including up my steep 1/4 mile driveway with no issues. I've connected an inverter to the 12v battery to help me through power failures (car in Ready mode). I want to be able to run my sump pump if I lose power in a storm, about 800watts steady state, twice that at startup. I kept my 15" snow tires and 1-year-old Altimax tires from the 2010, which would be 8 less things to buy (yes, I know they are a little bigger, but the forum threads say they'll fit). Next year, my company is moving into the city where I live, so I won't have a 50-mile roundtrip commute, and I plan to bike to work most days, so my car needs will drop significantly, though the cabin with the sailboat is three hours away.

Concerns with a Gen2 vs. Gen3

-Smaller ICE, 25% less torque, less power: How does that affect engine noise on highway? How is acceleration onto highway? Towing (usually low speed backroads)? Engine wear? Will removing the air intake resonator really help (please don't answer "in theory" if you haven't tried it)?

-How does 12v battery compare? I read the Gen2 had a small battery. Is it smaller than the Gen3? Effect on using an inverter?

-How does handling compare? Should I get a Touring model? What's the difference and how can I tell? Does Touring have larger wheels making my tires useless? What extra features are worth looking for? (If I get a cheap enough car, I can replace the stereo with an Android Auto-compatible one.)

How is braking with rear drums, particularly with moderate towing? The 2010 was fine.

I had planned to run my 2010 into the ground, until someone else did it for me prematurely. I don't think it's worth the price difference to get to the "fixed" Gen3's, unless I can't use a Gen2 for towing and as a back-up generator. However, at 120k miles, my 2010 might have been ready to suffer the oil consumption blues. I also have a smart kid getting ready to go to a top college, but I lost my wife to cancer a couple years ago, so he has an underfunded college fund on my single income, and I'm trying to be frugal.

I'm thinking of getting a 2008/09 with the CARB warranty. I guess the main question is: should I get one set up nicely to last, or buy a cheap one and live with it until the Gen3's come down in price, then trade up in a few years?

Also, what else should I know about Gen2/Gen3 differences in terms of performance and durability? I'm a car guy, though I ready to not deal with all the inattentive and obnoxiously aggressive Boston-area commuters, but I like my cars to handle well and be controllable in emergency situations. I am also mechanically inclined.

thanks,
---mike...
Cambridge, Mass.

 

Thanks oil_burner and MilkyWay. Those thoughts were helpful. I was set to pick up a 2008 with 96k miles for $6k from a reputable Toyota dealer, but last week they got a 2012 with 120k miles they were offering for under $9k, so I went to see both. The dealer offers a 12 month, 12,000 mile powertrain warranty. It's probably my history with low-end torque, but I felt the Gen2 needed to rev higher than I wanted to get going, which added more engine noise. My first car in high school was a 1970 Dodge Dart with a V-8, and my first purchase was a 1990 Dodge Spirit turbo (with peak torque at 2000 rpm) which felt similar. It seems from oil_burner's experience that the higher revving doesn't translate into significantly shorter ICE life, but I like the Gen3 engine response better, and know there's power mode when I want it. Both cars are CARB-state originating, so the extended emissions warranty will end about the same time for both, one on years, the other on miles.

I didn't realize the Gen2 doesn't have height-adjustable seats, and although I liked the steering wheel response better, the car seemed a little less stable. The 2012 has bluetooth/JBL and Nav/back-up camera, all of which I wanted (would upgrade from Crutchfield if it didn't), and decided to go with it, since I think the main question would be "only" head gasket. It had a light tapping noise on start-up from dead-cold (at least overnight in Massachusetts), sounded more like tappets than the pronounced knocking on my 2010. (Getting totaled might have saved me from an impending head gasket repair!)

The 2012's Carfax showed a coolant change at 83k, so if the coolant-acidity-affecting-head-gasket-life theory is correct, hopefully that helped. Oil changes at 10k, initially and final ones at Toyota dealers, so presumably synthetic. Middle changes were at Sears, so, some uncertainty. The dealer is now doing a 128-point safety check/oil change. Said they'd also do the 120k service. I'm thinking that when I get it home, I'll check the ECG tube and intake manifold for carbon and oil. If not too bad, I'll do the whole EGR system cleanout and an oil catch can when the weather warms. If it's bad, I might start earlier, and continue to use my kids' car, which otherwise usually sits.

Do you think doing a preventive head gasket change over the summer, before my son (also a gear head, but more on the computer vs. actually holding a wrench) goes off to college would be a good idea? I figure if I get to it before it leaks, there's less likelihood of warping.

Then I could get an upgraded gasket, and only have to worry about the piston rings. Or should I just wait and see...?

Thoughts?

thanks again,
---mike...

 

2014 for the piston; 2015 for the rings

By 2012, they didn't require the intake manifold TSB.

Mid-2012 they changed the p/n for the head gasket. The one I'm looking to buy is early 2012, though

 

I plunked down the money for the 2012 yesterday, but this morning I realized I was thinking about the preventive part, and my car search, all wrong. Because of the one-year powertrain warranty, I should be hoping that it burns oil per TSB 0168/0169-16 within the next year so they replace everything to new specs, including the newer head gasket and pistons/rings. Actually, I should have been looking for the one that was most likely to need the work, not the best maintained one!

So... should I do all the EGR and oil catch can stuff to keep it running longest, or nothing to get it to fail early? When I asked for the repair sheet, it noted "oil leak," but the sales rep said since they didn't fix anything, it was likely that there was oil spilled from a fill. I'm guessing it might have been PCV into intake manifold.

I'll pick it up next week, make sure the oil is at the top of the dipstick line, and monitor the oil level. Any other suggestions?