Considering a used Prius v wagon...

Buy the newest car you can afford. You'll thank yourself later

 

If you can’t diy a Prius, with that kind of mileage, I’d buy a gasser

 

I am not exactly sure what your question is.
A 2012 w/ 75K mileage sounds like a good used car.

Some could say the hybrid batteries have a 10 year hassle free life.
You drive nearly 30K miles a year.
Many have over 200K mileage on their Prius'.
You choice of the 2012 sounds reasonable and may not
"nickel & dime" you with repairs.

I too agree buy the newest year Prius you can.

The 2008...just may be a little too old and failures, here and there, may occur.
That's just a FWIW comment.

I like our Prius V...very functional, roomy, comfortable and we average about 40 mpg combined.

 

I traded off a 2010 Prius 2 for a 2013 Prius V and am happy with it. Lots of room in the back for cargo and it drives very well.
As you state not a pretty car but a very practical one and in 4 months of ownership I have no regrets. This vehicle only has 35,000 miles on it but other than that it is not a lot different than the one you are looking at. My anxiety levels were very high also buying my first used Prius,
not high at all on the second purchase. If you can find someone with Prius experience to help you look it over I'm sure that you would feel better about the deal.

 

The V...oh wait....it's lower-case "v", I think....is a really great fit for your application providing that a garden variety hatch will not suffice.
They tend to be more adult driven (NO kid wants a station wagon!) They're geared a little differently, and the extra heft in the v allegedly makes it a better interstate vehicle....albeit a significantly less efficient one as compared to the garden variety hatch or the c-type.
I think ten percent, real-world, is a good guesstimate to start with.

However (comma!!!)
I'd lean away from an ATP and try to get a newer basier model.
It will still have everything you need for road warrior duty, excepting perhaps for the DRCC, but just remember that you're potentially paying a lot of money for just one or two options, and the fact that you're a high mileage driver who is repair-bill sensitive might might lead you to more reliability problems and less cash on hand to confront them with.

If you put "US" in the location because you're to safeguard PII, good on you!
There are a lot of creeps on the inter-webs.
You might or might not also want to read up on some specific issues for Priuses in a state that rhymes with Falicornia......because there are some good things (CARB warranty extensions) and some BAD things ($1,800 catalytic converter repairs that are about $200 in the other 49 states) that will apply (or not) to you specifically.
Remember....a 60-mile one way trip to work is hard in flyover country, but I can do that in way less than an hour.
If you're sitting in traffic looking at other people's rear bumpers for an extra hour or more per day, then it's going to be a LOT harder on both you and your car.

Whatever you decide....read....read.....read!
The Prius will be the best, most efficient, most reliable car that you've ever owned or the biggest money pit that you ever imagined, because most of the owner horror stories have nothing to do at all with the traction battery, which is what everybody is always worried about.The difference between creme puff and lemon are going to probably be determined by YOU more than anything else in a car with less than about 75,000 miles on the clock.

Remember.....Priuses ALSO have CVTs (I believe that they are called 'power splitters' by those who are smarter than me) inverters, and regenerative brakes in addition to the battery and all of the other zany things that can leave you with a repair bill with a comma in it that you MIGHT NOT EVEN HAVE to have done in the first place (timing cover leak/weep.)


@ maintenance records......this doesn't necessarily mean that the car was "well maintained" and avoid ANY delaer that tries to sell you a CPO - or certified pre-owned warranty, because if it's a FACTORY CPO WARRANTY, then it's an over-priced product at best.

If it's NOT a for-real, gen-u-wine factory CPO warranty, then the only two things that you are guaranteed are that (1) you just got ripped off and (2) the car is certified to have been pre-owned.


Good Luck!

 

i had a 2009 Prius until a semi ran a red light. Now I have a 2012 Prius v 3. It is much larger inside, especially for cargo.

Here are my mods:
I bought a sunshade for the display. About 8 inches of aquarium air tubing along the sides makes it rattle MUCH less.
wwwamazon.com/NaviShade-Navigation-Screen-Protector-Slots/dp/B012PK0NRW
www.amazon.com/Python-Airline-Tubing-Aquarium-25-Feet/dp/B000255NYQ
I got a generic cargo mat to cover the gap between the back seats and the load floor.
www.amazon.com/OxGord-WeatherShield-Heavy-Rubber-Trucks/dp/B00E9HWSV4
I got a OBDII gauge display/programmer. If you have a spare android phone, there is software for MUCH less.
www.amazon.com/ScanGauge-Automotive-Computer-Customizable-Real-Time/dp/B000AAMY8
Torque — OBD2 Performance and Diagnostics for your Vehicle

 

I have an old Prius. What is ATP and DRCC?

 

ATP = Advanced Technology Package, not in Glossary

"Advanced Technology package adds a pre-collision safety system. This system tightens the seatbelts and activates the vehicle's braking if it senses that a crash is imminent. The Advanced Technology package also includes Toyota's Safety Connect telematics system, and this system features emergency assistance and a stolen-vehicle locator. Lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control and automatic high-beam headlight control are also part of the Five's Advanced Technology package." - Compare 2016 Toyota Prius v Five vs v Four Differences

DRCC = Dynamic Radar Cruise Control, in Glossary (The Adaptive Cruise Control mentioned above)

PriusChat Glossary | PriusChat

 

Thanks jimbo. I’ve used that DRCC in a Toyota Mirai. Hated it. I just figured out recently that you can reduce the radar distance, it’s horrible on the longest distance.

 

I have DRCC on my 2010, it's a scary system. Hopefully the one in the Mirai is a bit more refined

 

all the best!

 

It was weird. A car would pass you then get into your lane the cruse control would hit the brakes then just stay at the slow speed while the car in front just kept going. Worthless, I wished I could turn the radar off. I found out you can turn the radar down but I have not had the chance to try it yet.

 

I didn't like how the car would accelerate full speed to get to the set speed on your DRCC. If a car cuts in front of you, it'll slow down to whatever speed that car is going, then when the car gets out of the way, it'll go full speed to 70mph (or whatever you set). Kinda scary if you ask me (especially on wet roads).. I would prefer a gradual safe acceleration.

 

I never saw it accelerate. Could have been the highway I was on. Always someone passing.