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Passing along my 2005 Prius

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Care, Maintenance and Troubleshooting' started by CindyLouWho, Dec 8, 2019.

  1. CindyLouWho

    CindyLouWho Junior Member

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    I bought a 2010 Prius yesterday and plan to pass along my 2005 Prius to my 23 yr old son. My 2005 has 231k miles on it. It's still in good shape mechanically, as far as I know. I will be having a mechanic look it over this week. I know it needs front brake work before my son drives it 1400 miles. I also think the 12v battery needs to be replaced. Can anyone suggest anything else besides and oil change and tire rotation to have the mechanic check before my son drives it away?
     
  2. Raytheeagle

    Raytheeagle Senior Member

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    Where’s your son moving to?

    I’d have the hv battery checked out too as if it is original, it’s now 14 years old.

    Is your son the DIY type?

    Good luck with your new to you 2010(y).
     
    JC91006 likes this.
  3. CindyLouWho

    CindyLouWho Junior Member

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    My son will be driving from central TX to southern CA. He's made the drive before but never in a Prius. He is not a DIY guy.
     
  4. Leadfoot J. McCoalroller

    Leadfoot J. McCoalroller Senior Member

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    Chances are it will arrive safely, pass CA smog and everything will be OK.

    I have some doubts about how long it will stay that way starting with a 14 year old car, but I think the starting position is good and even if it eats $3k in the next 12 months that's still cheaper than almost any other transportation solution in southern California. It has enough other qualities to keep it up. (y)
     
  5. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    keep in mind the cali cat thieves
     
  6. CindyLouWho

    CindyLouWho Junior Member

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    cat thieves?
     
  7. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    catalytic converters. they cut them out in 15 seconds and sell for a few hundred bucks.

    you pay 2k for a new one, and more for protection
     
  8. pasadena_commut

    pasadena_commut Senior Member

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    Does your son have a lot of money or a good job?

    The Prius is inexpensive to drive - until it isn't. We bought ours used with a 3 month warranty and during that period the dashboard died (the notorious capacitor problem, which would have been a $1K repair) and the A/C was in and out (probably would have been another $1K since it was in the shop two times and they had to replace parts of the tubing). Shortly thereafter the inverter pump failed, which I replaced myself but it would have been around $500 at a dealer. Then one of the tire air pressure sensor's battery died. That would have been $100 to replace, but we didn't, since we check our tires regularly. That was all in less than 4 months. $2.6K out of pocket, plus probably rental car fees, would have been too much for a lot of kids that age to cover. The big battery on yours should be good for 2 or 3 years more, but eventually that will go too. $2k to replace it himself, more at the dealer.

    For that reason when the youngsters ask on the forums about buying a used Hybrid I generally suggest that they consider a used Corolla, Civic (not the hybrid!), or Mazda 3 instead. They are very reliable and the pieces that break tend not to cost as much to replace as they would on a Prius.
     
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  9. sam spade 2

    sam spade 2 Senior Member

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    This.
    I don't think that giving a family member ANY car that old with that many miles is doing them any favors.
    If it still has the original HV battery.......or a refurbished one......you are WAY DEEP into borrowed time.

    Consider this move carefully. And what the next move will be if it doesn't turn out good.
     
  10. TMR-JWAP

    TMR-JWAP Senior Member

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    Odds are good that whoever "repaired" your AC put the hurt on you. Quite often, one of the first indicators for inverter pump failure is the AC becomes intermittent. Many people have thrown away a lot of $$ trying to find a cure for an AC system that doesn't have a problem, except the inverter stops sending power to it due to loss of cooling to the inverter.
     
  11. pasadena_commut

    pasadena_commut Senior Member

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    Not in this case - it was leaking freon.
     
  12. CindyLouWho

    CindyLouWho Junior Member

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    It's always interesting to read the various thoughts/opinions. To answer a few of the questions, the hybrid battery was replaced at 104K. The inverter pump was replaced last year. The dashboard panel (can't remember the official name) was replaced last year for $225 (by a guy who does nothing put replace and recycle them) vs the $1000k a local repair shop told me it would cost.

    My hope is that this car will get my son through grad school (18 more months). He mainly drives to/from home/campus and occasionally an hour or so north to visit his sister. Since his Honda was totaled a few months ago, he's been riding the bus but in the suburbs of LA where he lives, that makes for a long commute as public transit is not good out that far.

    I had the front brakes done as well as bought a new set of tires for the car. Oil change also.

    When the car quits or he can afford to buy something newer, I'll try to remember to post here. I have faith in my Prius to be a reliable car for my son for a while longer. Fingers crossed he'll be able to get the use out of it he needs!!

    Thanks for the comments/opinions.
     
  13. pasadena_commut

    pasadena_commut Senior Member

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    Replaced with what? A brand new battery or a rebuild? Either way the 2nd battery has 126K miles on it when the first only lasted 104K. Presumably the same driving conditions the whole time? It might last for the needed 18 months. Probably a good idea for your son to get an OBD2 reader appropriate for this car and learn how to use it. Then when something goes wrong he will not be immediately at the mercy of the repair people.

    Yeah, bus transportation in LA is not very good. My son had to ride a bus for a while just a couple of miles between his apartment and UCLA and it took at least 30 minutes each way. That said, the traffic around there is truly hideous and a car would not have been a lot faster.