If I end up letting go of my Gen 2 Prius, I'd be seriously in the market for a low-milage Prius V. Always wished I'd gotten one. I know almost nothing about the V other than basic storage capacity specs -- what is the difference in feel? What's important to know? Any years to avoid? Etc. Tell me what a new Prius V owner should know.
It rides better than the hatchback with bigger tires and pitch and bounce control. It has a larger ac system and a lower numerical final drive ratio. The transaxle has more cooling. The rear seats slide back and forth like the front seats and can recline. The rear seat room and comfort along with effective ac made them popular taxis in Europe. This model was sold overseas through 2021. The front passenger seat reclines and folds forward for additional space. It is possible to carry a few 10 ft sticks of lumber or conduit and close the hatch. It is a good highway cruiser but is noisy just like the hatchback. The rated mpg is lower at 42 mpg. In 2015 the v came with better pistons and rings. Crash test results improved with the 2015 v's. The 2015-17s had a slight styling refresh which was an improvement but sales slowed due to the popularity of the similarly priced Rav4 hybrid with a better engine. I would get a 2016 or 17v if you can find one.
Bigger and slower and gets worse MPG... But if you got a family and need way more room inside the car for passengers & stuff it's the best option to keep your Prius love going.
Great highway cruiser with ample cargo room. Replaced a Dodge Grand Caravan at triple the MPG. Install the TRD rear sway bar for an even better experience.
I'd say you already missed this party. They were nice big highway cruisers, but the good days are past and now most of these are worn down and getting closer to money-pit status. There are still some in nice condition with reasonable future utility, but those aren't the ones that are for sale. They had a few more reliability/durability issues than the 2nd generation car you are looking to get out of. As far as years to avoid I'd say all except 2016 and 2017.
Earlier this month I bought a one owner 2017 Prius v 5 with the Advanced Technology Package. It had 114,020 miles on it. It was a trade in at a Subaru dealer in Riverside, California. I found that this car was regularly serviced at the Riverside Toyota dealership since it was new. I told the saleslady I wanted to do this in "modules". By that I mean I want to go one step at a time, the first being an inspection by me. If that was OK, then we'd do a test drive. If that was OK, then we'd go to the Toyota dealership to get it inspected (cost $190.00). If they liked it, then we would talk price, no trade in. It came with both key fobs and all the owner's manuals. It was detailed, inside and out. It had new 215/50R17 inch tires, a four point alignment, new windshield wipers, all filters were changed and it had a fresh oil change. We negotiated price. I did not want any extras added to the final negotiated price except Tag, Title, Tax and Document Fee. And I was paying cash. They said $16,995.00 was the "Internet Price." I said, "No and offered $13,000.00." We went back and forth. I went up to $13.5K and the Sales Manager got involved and came down to $13,990.00. I said, "Let's split the difference." "No." I finally said, "If you drop the price $100.00 to $13,890.00, I will give the saleslady $100.00 cash right now." (The saleslady was stuck with me for over 2 hours at Toyota for the inspection and she also picked me up at the train station when I went the next day to pick up my car.) Right in front of her, the sales manager said, "No." What a crappy way to treat their own employee! The final out-the-door price with Tag, Title, Tax and $85.00 document fee was $15,666.38. Anyway, the next day when I picked up my Prius v, the saleslady walked me out to my "new" car and I gave her $100.00 cash anyway. She was pretty speechless and quite happy. I told her NOT to tell the sales manager about this. She did admit I got a good deal. The car runs perfectly and I love it! The Subaru dealer didn't know anything about the Advanced Technology Package, just that it was a Trim level 5. I got lucky, I think and I'm quite happy. - I got 50 MPG on the 70 mile trip back to Los Angeles! Thomas Also, I plan to change my water pump and thermostat to keep ahead of that potential problem. I ordered an Aisin water pump from straight from Japan. Shipping was free and it took about a week. Cost was $122.00 plus some tax from eBay. Replacing it shouldn't be too hard after watching a couple YouTube videos. I picked up an Aisin thermostat and housing for $40.00 as well. Might as well change that while I'm in there. Everything else, maintenance-wise should be up to date. We'll have to see about that.
Might as well change the sparkplugs while you have the windshield wiper cowl off for the EGR cooler removal. If you can get a spare EGR cooler and clean it ahead of the tear down on your new to you V, that would be the way to go. The EGR cooler will be pretty hard to get the oily carbon deposits cleaned out of, depending on what kind of cleaning resources you have (pressure washer, lye, etc).
Not too bad for a low mile 2017v. Change oil at 5k and coolant at 50k and someday you too can be at 335k miles.
I was briefly able to see the service records at the Toyota dealership when I got my car inspected. I do remember seeing the EGR valve and the spark plugs were replaced, the coolant and transmission fluid changed and oil changes were all between 5000 and 6000 miles. Also, Toyota replaced the 12 volt battery and serviced the main battery cooling vent filter at least twice. I was surprised to see that Toyota turned the front rotors and replaced the front pads. I could have missed it, but I didn’t see that the water pump or thermostat had been changed, so that’s why I plan on doing that myself. The Toyota rep told me that this car was very well taken care of and that whatever they recommended was done on that visit or the next visit. I did ask for a copy of the service records, but Toyota wouldn’t citing customer confidentiality. On the inspection the Toyota mechanic said the lower ball joints were “weeping”. I’m not exactly sure what that means. Maybe a little wet? From what? I’m more used to working on cars from the last century, but I’ve never heard of lower ball joints weeping. Toyota estimates the repair cost is in the $800.00 range. Not going to happen by them.
The oil that is in the grease might separate and weep beyond the ball joints seals, but that Is not an indicator if a defective ball joint, If the ball joints tight and the seals are not deteriorated or torn, I would not worry about them. They will have many tears and miles of life left in them.
Georgina, I think you’re absolutely right. I’m not used to dealing with car dealerships and the ways they take advantage of unsuspecting customers. All of my cars are from the last century and I’ve done all the maintenance on them. The reason I bought this Prius v is that they get great gas mileage, can haul a lot of stuff and are very dependable if you can keep up with the maintenance, which I plan to do. I’ve wanted a Prius v for years now. I’ve read up on them and have a pretty good idea of the problems they have. I even talk to owners about their cars. And there’s tons of how-to videos on YouTube about servicing, getting parts and repair on them. I appreciate all the suggestions and advice you all have offered me. I’m sure this is the perfect Prius forum for what I want to do with my car. And I know I’ll have lots of questions as I get more and more into it. Thank you, everyone!
We have but an '08 prius 2 w/160,000 miles and a '17 v w/55,000 miles. I prefer the v for the leg room and overall size, better for road trips an honest 40 mpg (35 in winter and 45 in summer) My wife prefers the '08 prius. It was her mail carrier car when she was working. It's getting tired and still gets low 40's mpg but over 60 mph it's hard to pass, (original traction battery) so it's her grocery getter.
Be real careful about eBay (and Amazon) parts. Both sites have been overwhelmed by junk counterfeit parts, and when the water pump isn't doing its thing it can cost you the whole engine. It pays to be suspicious with those. Lube weeping out of ball joints isn't usually urgent. I mean, it means the seals are torn, which means grit and grime can get in and wear down the bearing surfaces, but it takes a while before it becomes an action item. Classic pry-bar test and being vigilant for sharp knocking sounds on bumps is good enough for a while.
