Considering 2011 Prius with 100K miles

At 100 k new plugs (they ain't cheap) other than that I would follow the maintance schedule in the owners manual. Expect another 50k with few problems, after that it is a crap shoot, you might get lucky to 200, you might not.

 

what mpg should I expect?
Since you are in a warm climate- you should get 45-50 mpg (It WILL depend on how you drive it, however)

 

I have a 2011 Prius with 100k miles on it.

At the 100k servicing, I was told that it will need a brake job soon on the rear brakes [$350], and the valve cover gasket is leaking and will need to be replaced [$1200].

Otherwise it has not had any problems.

I spoke with the Service Manager, about his thoughts on trading it in. He told me that he routinely sees these coming in with 200k and 300k on them, and in the same condition as mine is in. He urged me to keep it and not trade it in. [I am sure the sales staff would advice otherwise].

We are still getting mpg in the high 50s.

I take it in every 10,000 miles for synthetic oil change and tire rotation. I will keep doing this routine as we go toward 200k.

The car body is mostly plastic. Roads here get pretty bad at times with frost heaves and potholes. Various pieces of body work attach to one another via plastic/rubber tabs. Those tabs let loose sometimes, as they age and fatigue. I have hit frost heaves that caused the front tire to bump the wheel well and knocked that plastic loose. So that needed more holes drilled and zip-ties hole it together now.

As plastic and rubber age they slowly get brittle. Don't freak out if you see a part of the under-body splash-guard hanging loose. Just ask your service tech to re-attach it.

 

I went 230,000 miles in a 1996 Subaru Legacy with zero problems. It used a quart of oil every 3000 miles, but even brand new cars can't get repaired under warranty for that. My point is that expecting only 150,000 trouble free miles seems unimpressive. Needing a valve gasket at 100k is absurd.

Heck, I have 100k on my 2006 Acura TSX, and it has needed absolutely nothing. Still on the original brakes, and it doesn't even benefit from regenerative braking.

All modern cars should go 200k trouble free miles. The Prius, having no belts of any kind, should be even more reliable.

 

$1200 to replace a valve cover gasket seems like an awful lot to me. I would get someone else to look at the need for both jobs and if they think the work is needed give you a price. You could also get some cost feedback on the maintenance forum.

 

I would expect a 2011 to deliver mid to upper 50's if it isn't a Five. If you are going to drive it like you stole it or only on short hops then low 40's. Enjoy.