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Hello, Noob here

Discussion in 'Gen 2 Prius Main Forum' started by ladius, Jul 19, 2005.

  1. ladius

    ladius New Member

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    Hello everyone,

    New to the forums here and glad to be able to tap into some knowledge.

    I currently have an '00 Honda Accord that gets 22 mpg. I've been considering a Prius off and on for a while but the price of entry was a little high. Now I see some '01 and '02s that have gone down in price and put me back in the market.

    I'm going to look at a '01 with 71,000 miles for $12,500.00 very soon. The seller is the 3rd owner who bought it CPO from the dealership. What would you suggest looking for when inspecting the car and what kind of questions should I ask?

    I've done a rudimentary search under "buy*" and "used" and "classic" and got pages of posts that don't really have what I"m looking for. I did however find out that there are some TSBs (steering rack and battery) that I should ask about. Also, it seems people are wary of private sellers and that a car should be inspected by a Prius mechanic.

    Any other suggestions would be most appreciated.

    Thanks in advance!
     
  2. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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    Hey Ladius and welcome to PriusChat!

    Well, with any used car, I'd get a certified mechanic that you trust to inspect it. Get a dealer to inspect the battery SOC and see that it's in tip top condition. Ask to see the full service records and check that all required maintenance has been done.

    Not crucial, but check what tyres they have on the car since that would affect your mileage. The Classic came from the factory with LRR tyres. Switching to regular AS tyres will drop the mileage by a few mpg but in favour of better handling and possibly comfort.
     
  3. jimofdg

    jimofdg New Member

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    Tideland has not spoken Noob for a while. :wink:

    LRR = low rolling resistance

    AS = all-season

    Good luck and stay informed!
     
  4. Tideland Prius

    Tideland Prius Moderator of the North
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  5. kirbinster

    kirbinster Member

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    Good luck with your search for a good used one. Have you checked ebay - there are quite a few there and maybe there is one in your area. I just purchased (5-6 weeks ago) an '02 Prius. I paid just over $16K for it -- BUT -- it only had 7,100 miles on it and I actually knew its previous owner even though I bought it from a BMW dealer. I have already added another 2,000+ miles to it and it is a great car and has been giving me 53+ mpg.

    I think you will find the vast majority of Prius owners take very good care of their cars.
     
  6. ladius

    ladius New Member

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    Thanks everybody. gotta catch up on the lingo!

    one other concern I have is the high mileage (71,000). is that of concern? i know there is a warranty up to 100,000 miles or 7 years and for toyotas, 71,000 miles is nothing. however, with the prius, i'm not too sure.

    thanks again.
     
  7. kirbinster

    kirbinster Member

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    Here is my 2 cents, I hope it is worth that much. A Prius with 71,000 miles should have less wear on it than a normal car with that many miles driven in a similar manner. Remember there is no starter motor and the car is up to 600 rpms before it starts - that should put less wear on the engine. Second, the engine has run much fewer hours than a normal car as the electric motor operates the car a good portion of time. There are fewer parts to go wrong than in a conventional engine/tranny setup. The brakes should get a lot less wear and the MG does a large part of the braking.
     
  8. ladius

    ladius New Member

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    yeah, that makes sense. is there a break-in procedure for the car as well? i've seen a few on ebay in my area. there was a '04 but a salvage title. not too sure i want to go that route.

    btw, what is MG?

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  9. kirbinster

    kirbinster Member

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    MG = Motor/Generator - there are two MG1 and MG2