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Potential New Prius Owner

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by jazz-n-prius, Jun 2, 2021.

  1. jazz-n-prius

    jazz-n-prius New Member

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    Oh wow even with protectors!?! I’ve seen people weld plates onto them to try and stop it. Any options that are better than others?
     
  2. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    you'd have to read through all the threads. check out @Kaptainkid1
     
  3. ETC(SS)

    ETC(SS) The OTHER One Percenter.....

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    If you’re going to be parking it on the street at night, or your local DAs name rhymes with George Gascon a G2 Prius would be a hard pass for me.
    I like the fact that its reputed to have had biannual maintenance, and the G2 that you’re looking at is probably a great 15 year old car - but it’s STILL a 15-year-old car.

    Offer them $8500 in cash.
    If you cannot write a check for the car and again for a $1500 battery replacement or a $1500 catalytic converter replacement then I’d consider a Corolla instead.

    Good Luck!
    Let us know what you decide!!
     
    ColoradoCrow and donbright like this.
  4. oldtechaa

    oldtechaa Active Member

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    Or consider a much newer PHEV or even full EV depending on your circumstances, without the Toyota price premium but with the simplicity and maintenance costs of a mostly EV drivetrain. Some of them depreciate much faster than Toyotas, so it's possible you could get a much newer 2015-2017 PHEV/EV for $10k-ish.
     
    donbright likes this.
  5. ColoradoCrow

    ColoradoCrow Active Member

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    Hi. I own 2 08 Prius. Bought white one with 53k and bought red one with 58k. Paid $6800 average for them. This was 2 years ago. Now have 101k and 108k on them. Had to do some work as with any car but would do it again in a heartbeat. We drive 100 miles a day on weekdays so saving gas is super important. I do all the oil changes, fluid replacement and tire rotations myself so that saves even more. We love them. If the interior dash plastics are not dryer out and cracked and the interior is sound I would offer $8,500 as well. With gas at $3.25 a gallon up to $5.00 a gallon in Cali you will save $10-$20 a fill up over a conventional car. The airbags, hatchback design for groceries and mechanical engineering makes our Prii great transportation choices. Especially now that they are both paid off. We have 1k in reserve for repairs but only dipped into it for tires over the past 2 years.
    When we buy again I’m going for a Gen 3 2012 or newer. But that plan hopefully won’t be needed for 4-6 more years.
    Park in a garage at night if you can. We have security cameras, 3 of them, dogs and motion lights so so far we haven’t had any security issues.
    Best of luck. Keep us posted.
     
  6. Charlie34609

    Charlie34609 Junior Member

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    Sounds like a peach. But I think the asking is rather high.

    Additionally, I wouldn't touch a car of that age with so few miles. Cars don't like to sit, and especially the Prius. So while it's intuitive to seek a low mileage car, do so within reason. And keep in mind as you look specifically at the Prius, that these little cars go a long time, so don't be put off by the ones with some miles on them.
     
  7. fleafrier1

    fleafrier1 Junior Member

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    I’m pretty sure hybrid batteries don’t like to sit, which is obviously a legitimate concern when buying an older Prius with low miles. In my case I think it will be an issue I’ll have to contend with in the next few years. But I’m not sure it’s bad for the car itself to be used infrequently if it has been properly maintained. It makes me smile when I see my oil still a lovely shade of caramel when I check it just before it’s due for a change.
     
  8. The Lizard King

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    Link?
     
  9. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    i would have to search, but there are posts here first hand experiences :(
     
  10. The Lizard King

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    OK. No problem. I thought that it might be an article that you read.
     
    bisco likes this.
  11. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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  12. jazz-n-prius

    jazz-n-prius New Member

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    So I purchased it. I waited it out and was able to get them to drop their price to where I felt it was a good and fair price. With that said, on my trip home I was able to average about 44 mpg. For the majority of the trip I had a really strong headwind but then the last couple miles it was down hill. I was hoping that I would get a bit closer to 50 mpg, but time will tell. Everything works well. I use to own a 2019 Rav4 Hybrid but life changed and didn't want the payment any longer. I am noticing that the battery does not power the car as often as the Rav did, granted I was driving through the desert and it was over 100 degrees and the AC was set on Max so maybe the battery was just trying to keep up with the AC.
     
  13. bisco

    bisco cookie crumbler

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    congrats!
    the heat, plus 11 more years of battery degradation compared to the rav, plus the tech improvements.

    can't really compare them.

    all the best! (y)
     
  14. ToyotaGal

    ToyotaGal Member

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    Funny you should ask this question now. I just went out to the car and it looks like a dead battery. No lights, Beeps, or life of any kind. I purchased this car 1 year ago in May. 12V was strong but I have not had that checked in a long long time. This car is a 09 both original batteries.
     
  15. Moving Right Along

    Moving Right Along Senior Member

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    Car prices now are so high it’s ridiculous. For a 2008 Prius with low miles and a complete service record like you described, I would recommend buying it if you can. Obviously negotiate down if possible.

    Aside from maintenance and common replacement items (tires, 12v battery, brakes, etc), the most likely expensive repairs you may have to face are the catalytic converter if it gets stolen (a protection shield is highly recommended) the headlights if it has high intensity bulbs (replacing them is surprisingly pricey and they tend to fail more often than the normal bulbs), and the multifunction display failing.

    Everybody talks about the high voltage battery, and records are patchy, but from the research I did when I bought my 2009 Prius 4 and a half years ago, less than 1% of HV batteries die before they’re 10 years old or have driven 100,000 miles, around 3% of HV batteries die between 10-15 years old and with an average of around 150,000 miles, and 1st gen Prii had roughly 10% of batteries fail at 15 years old or more with roughly the same average mileage (150k), although some 1st and 2nd gen battery failures were from cars that had gone over 300,000 miles.

    So based on the research I did when I got my car, you are less likely to run into an HV battery problem than the other potential expensive repairs I mentioned. On mine, I had to replace the radiator when it got a leak, brakes and rotors, a few minor things, and the catalytic converter when it got stolen (twice).
     
  16. dolj

    dolj Senior Member

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    Now that you have purchased the car, I'd do a full recondition on the hybrid vehicle (HV) battery and then call that done for another 100,000 miles. There are some CA-based members that might be able to help you out with that.

    Otherwise, I see no problems with the car for quite some time.
     
  17. jazz-n-prius

    jazz-n-prius New Member

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    @dolj Thanks for the advice, I will look into that and see if I can find a good reputation in Southern California.