considering a prius. thoughts ?

Taxis are using Prius sedans and wagons and running strong through 250k miles and more on original batteries. As gas gets more expensive, the bargains in high-MPG cars gets scarcer.

I bought mine based on the experience of others and my son's multi-year ownership of the fastback, yet I choose the wagon. I expect it to last at least 10 years with me and then go on to someone else.

Maybe if you post your budget, location and your expectations, some comments appropriate to them can be posted.

 

Yep.

OP should look at Lifespan/Operating costs - Prius Wiki.

 

You need to give some ideas of your situation. Prius is an extremely practical and useful car, plenty of room for a family, plenty of room for hauling (not towing) things, top notch reliability, and low cost of ownership. If you need a muscle car going 0-60 in 2 secs, look elsewhere. If you need a luxury car, its good but not that good. If you want to save on fuel costs, can't beat it.

 

In CARB states the hybrid warranty is 10years/150000 miles. That initial fear was just FUD. You should be more concerned about replacing an engine or tranny in a conventional car.

The Prius is low maintenance, low operating cost, high reliability.

 

Before I bought my Prius, I researched it for a good year beforehand, and on both sides of the fence (pro & against). I took the plunge this past September and am very glad I did.
Prius met all of my expectations and then some. With a set of snow tires, this things a ROCKSTAR in the snow. The car has insulated me somewhat from the volatile gas prices here in Michigan. Not to mention, the gas savings alone from my old SUV make the car payment and pay the insurance every month

My advice to you: If you havent already, take one for a lengthy test drive. They arent for everybody and thats OK.

 

Sounds like a Prius works to me. I saved one minivan but use Prius 80% of the time. If you put a roof top box on there (for the times you need it) you can sub for a minivan. You can fit a bike in the back with seats down, maybe with seats up if you take wheels off.

 

Yeah, any Prius you look at take the VIN# and go to the Toyota's Owners Site and plug in the VIN. It will give you the full service history and any open recalls. You can get a really good idea how the car was maintained right there and see if any unexpected repairs came up.

Pull a carfax. Salvaged Prius are out there. You might not want one of those.

Make sure that if you are looking at a higher level Prius (equipped with HID headlights) that they both work. Drive the car and listen for any unusual noises. The Prius does have its share of sounds from various pumps and electric motors. Any grinding, etc.. is not normal.

If you know somebody with a scan-tool that can scan the car before you buy it to see if any pending codes exist or historical codes. Could save you some $$.

Just a few tips. This site is awesome and Im sure other members will chime in with some good stuff to look for. Good Luck!

 

Where in IN are you? You might check this guy out.
Plug In Hybrid Electric Vehicle PHEV

 

Re: ...the snow, I have not had a problem with it (had fun in Pittsburgh snowy hills a few week ago). But there is a generic design issue in that the front wheels cannot spin much due to electric motor burn out. If you live on the top of a long steep driveway covered with ice, we might advise against a Prius. When you buy tires, you have the choice of high MPG or good grip in wet and snow. I go with the latter and still get 47 MPG average on 2006 Gen2.

 

That is Autobeyours.com. It is run by Steve Woodruff (imwoody36 on here). He has been rebuilding Gen II Prius for a long time. I bought mine from him. He is willing to work with you on the price.

Yes he does charge more than most for a rebuilt/salvage titled vehicle but he also gives a 12 month/12,000 mile waranty. The blue 2008 looks like a good deal to me (I'm expecting you could talk him down about $1000.

I just figured I'd point it out to you as an alternative or something to consider. Not everyone is comfortable purchasing a rebuilt vehicle but Indy is close enough to Scottsburg to take advantage of the warranty.

 

Priuses work well for Gauls.

 

If nothing else PLEASE run the vin number like Prius guy said. It will save you time, money, and headaches. I bought a prius without looking up the vin and put over $1500 into it (inverter) within 60days of ownership.

2nd prius I wanted, I ran the vin and it is looking like it needs a new battery pack, new window actuator, and also is throwing Catalytic converter codes. They wanted 10,900 for the car and if I replaced everything listed above, I believe it would be close to another 5-6,000 through the dealer.

 

You'll find that Steve sticks with Gen II Prius cars to keep costs down. His reputation around here seems good.
The main advantages of the Gen III cars are high speed fuel economy and less intrusive traction control. This is all heresay from me--I have no experience with the Gen II.

 

Hi detroit. You would be better off sticking to a Gen III (2010-current) with less miles and toys. Stay away from rebuilds of any kind, especially with your budget and having small children.