Question: why shouldn't I buy this high mileage gen 2?

Hello and welcome!

You will have problems with your Prius. It really doesn't matter what I say because from your monologue, it seems your mind is made up.

My gf has a 2005. In her first year of ownership, another $4k and serious time went into her car; which was on top of the $5k that she spent buying it. It was the nicest of all the Pri's we test drove. By my standards, I think she needs another $2k worth of work but she wants a newer one. That will be a problem for the next owner.

$11k for a car that's only worth $5k (on a good day).

 

In my opinion, that old of a Prius will cost you money in repairs. You have to understand that many of the components that will go bad on it will be expensive to replace due to the age of the car. It is a Hybrid and not a regular car, where parts are a dime a dozen. If you want a Hybrid, I would try to save up for a 2015 or later model. More parts are available, less chance of needed costly repairs in the near future, etc. Just my opinion, and I clarify, my opinion.

 

don't buy a hybrid until you can afford one. old high ile hybrids are for diy geeks. it's a computer on wheels

 

I understand exactly what you are saying. Everytime I ride in or drive her gen2, I am amazed at the build quality of a fifteen year old car. But, it's a fifteen year old high-tech car!

I convinced my sister's husband to purchase a 2015 recently. He's a youth pastor with another baby on the way so money is a bit tight. It took about three months of research, saving and convincing for them to find a low mileage 2015 in their budget. They did it and so can you.

Oh yeah, my gf is saving up for a 2015, too. Cash is king right now. Hot deals will be made in 2020. Especially since gas is so cheap. Happy hunting!

 

you probably need about 10k to get a hybrid that isn't likely to give you trouble. a non hybrid is likely to be less

 

@Tom Ato wrote...

What am I missing? Why shouldn't I buy a high mileage gen 2 Prius?

Because I can give you a MUCH better deal?

 

Don't buy a "used up" hybrid without either a large repair fund available or the necessary DIY skills and knowledge.

 

Well as you admit, you've already read existing posts covering the similar question, and you seem willing to accept the major reasons NOT buying one create.
So I think you are going into it Eyes Wide Open. I'm not going to repeat what you have already read.
If you go in knowing considerable repair and maintenance and further investment may be necessary and are willing to accept those parameters I'm going to say....go right ahead buy it.

As far as the Dr. Prius App?
I don't have personal experience using it. But it is a tool for gaining at least some information. I would personally look at any information it gives you about the HV battery health as a "electronic" 2nd or 3rd opinion, but not anything I would take as definitive as representing undeniable battery health. It only tells you what it evaluates at the time of the test.

But what worries me? Is I think you have to go into the deal, not really caring about HV health. It's rebuilt at best. I think you have to go in, again prepared for the worst.
If you are worried enough or concerned enough to even want to use the Dr. Prius App, what do you want?
I would go in, assuming the HV battery will need replacement. If you get X number of miles, or years great. But whether the Dr. Prius App represented a high percentage of efficiency or warned of approaching failure, I wouldn't buy the vehicle without the attitude the it's very possible HV battery "pain" is coming.

 

That might be worth a follow-up. If you settled on getting a Gen 2, and are willing to drive outside of your immediate area, you probably couldn't do better. Jim knows these cars like no one else and could make a trip down to SC worthwhile, assuming he is serious.

In the upper Midwest, I would be concerned about rust damage on a 14 year old car, in addition to the fact that it has a battery that we would consider suspect. Have you driven the car you are interested in and others like it? If you have a few months to decide, I would think you should take your time.

I became intrigued with the Gen 2 Prius when my wife and I were looking for our daughter's first car about 5 years ago. She was about to graduate with a degree in Electrical Engineering, so I thought this type of vehicle would be a perfect fit for her. I wanted her to have some skin in the game, so I thought she should be willing to pay $3 to $4,000 out of the total $6 to $8,000 that I thought it would take to get a fairly reliable car. Well, it turned out she was not willing to pay anything, knowing her mother would eventually cave and give her as much money as she asked for (within reason) to buy a car. She and her boyfriend went car shopping, and I expected she would come back with something like an older Mini Cooper or Mazda Miata, but to my surprise, they picked out a plain Nissan Sentra with about 100k miles for a little more $4k I believe. With what they paid and for that brand of car, I did not expect much, even though I was relieved they didn't buy a guaranteed money pit like a Mini Cooper. I can now say assuredly that they made a better choice than I would have, although with purchases like these luck always plays a large role. In her 5 years of ownership, the car has needed one wheel bearing, a new battery and tires. She does know enough to take it in for an oil change every 5k miles or so, but other than that, I don't think she ever opens the hood, and I don't think her interest in learning about cars would have been any different even if it were a hybrid or a full electric.

In the meantime, I found I couldn't quench my thirst for a different driving experience with anything else, after having test driven the Gen 2 I had picked out for our daughter. About a year later, I needed a car to get around Vancouver for the month or so I would be there, so I took a total leap of faith on a 2007 Touring that I found on Craigslist in that area. According to the Toyota owners website, the car is a Package 6 (the highest available for that year, I believe), but had 211k miles, although you would never know it by its condition. 75k miles later it is still going strong, with no major repairs, but it does burn a little oil, so I know it would never be suitable for someone like my daughter who is not willing to develop a relationship with the car she drives. Like I said, luck always plays a role.

 

Can you run the app and post your results here before buying the vehicle? There are two tests. One shows simply whether the battery is functioning normally and the other shows estimated reserve which is an estimation of how long the battery may last. It would also show any fault codes.

Regardless of what Dr. Prius shows, you should assume that the battery is about to fail. Most "refurbished" hybrid batteries don't last 2 years, so this one is on borrowed time. If you buy it you need a plan on what you will do when (not if) the battery fails. One option, if the rest of the vehicle seems to be in good shape, would be for you to not wait for it to fail and buy a $1600 kit to put in all new cells from newpriusbatteries.com (or have a plan to do so when failure happens).

 

Overthinking it. You'll get much more and better data by comparing the age of the battery pack to today's date.

Lots of people scoot right past this because it's simple and not nearly as sexy as an app that talks to the ECU, but there you have it.

A "rebuilt" prius battery is just one that has had its more symptomatic modules swapped for ones that were less symptomatic. They're still all old, and while there is no hard age limit 14 years is really up there.

I think you can still get one and enjoy it, but be realistic. Hybrid go eventually also means hybrid fail. You're going to have old car problems, electric car problems, gas car problems and high mileage car problems all between the same two license plates. If you acknowledge this and go in with your eyes open, you'll do okay.

Good luck!

 

Good advice has been given in the other post. I sold a 2008 Prius last may. We had bought it new in 2008 and really liked the car. It had 150,000 miles on it and was still getting close to 50 mpg.

However in the last few years of ownership I had to replace the Brake Actuator- $2,300 for part, front drivers side wheel bearing and hub- $230 for parts and machine shop work and alignment. Replace rear shocks and struts. I did all the work myself and saved the labor which probably would have approached another $3000.

After doing all the above I still had a 13 year old vehicle that had 150,000 miles on it.

Thinking it through for us we decided to trade the Prius in even though it was running fine at that point. We needed a rock solid reliable car for our family and while the Prius served us very well it was time to move on.

I hope things work out for you but as a few other said go into this with your eyes wide open and a good amount of money in your checking account for future repair knowing you have a vehicle rapidly approaching 20 years old that in some instances requires considerably technical expertise to repair and keep on the road.

On the up side a Prius can be very economical to drive as far as fuel cost are concerned.

 

I have a 2009 I bought as repaired salvage in LA, 2012. Cost about 1/2-2/3 what a non wreck would have cost. About 2 days after I bought it, it lit up the big red triangle after I bought gas 100 miles from home at 8 pm and wouldn't start. I frantically called the seller, who recommended I detach the 12v battery cable, wait 30 seconds and reattach. Except for seeming a little confused, the car ran fine after that.

For a few days. I had a code reader, and a few days later, it lit up 'check engine' and it had all sorts of wacky codes, from like 4 different systems. I came here, and someone suggested I check the 12v voltage which was ?10.8 (very very low) I replaced the 12v and all was well.

It overheated in the desert, worked ok after cooling off, but careful observation showed that while running, the inverter coolant reservoir was perfectly smooth instead of w little ripples it gets when coolant is circulating. The inverter coolant pump is in the front left quadrant where it had been hit, and the wires broke somehow. Once that was fixed, it's run fine for 8 years with no more than regular maintenance, and it's a GREAT car.

We've put about 10k/year on it.

In snow country, I would worry about rust damage. My daughter bought a 12 yo car in the Adirondacks, and it turned out the frame was almost rusted through.

I'd suggest you have a mechanic check it out, but if the above story doesn't have you running for the hills, it could work out. However, I'd suggest you look around for a salvage vehicle in the South, either Fl or Georgia, SC etc., then drive it back north.

Google Salvage Prius and see what you find.
YMMV , but considering more options will usually get you a better decision than "this car or none."

 

Interesting. I just bought a used 2011 Prius at 163k miles and honestly, it doesn't have any problems beside needing new front tires, just took it to a mechanic to see how it was. Am I in for trouble?