Who Bought a Used Gen 1 (or Older Gen 2), and was Your Experience Good?

Your "mileage" info seems quite vague. The lower MPG is only by a few. I've owned both...

CLASSIC (2001) = 59,827 miles averaged to 45.4

HSD (2004) = 92,989 miles averaged to 48.1

.

 

Well, if nothing goes wrong wtih the car, the "Classic" would be a better buy IMO, because of the over-inflated prices on used '04-07 models. But I think a failing cat converter or battery may be things to prepare for. I personally experienced the failing cat converter and that costs about $1700 + labor to replace with an original (quite a bit more if you let toyota do it for you). I used a junk-yard replacement and it set me back "only" about $450 since I installed it myself - should be good for another 100K miles I hope! Similarly a battery (if it fails) would set you up $500 + from the junk yard (or less if someone helps you with individual module replacement). Or $3-4K from the dealer.

I think I would recommend the classic buy only if you could get it at a very good price significantly below retail and it is a late '02 or '03 with all work done on it with a paper trail.

Also, I think the value of the Classic will continue to fall as they age, so I suspect paying a premium for it now will not come back to you when you sell - it will be too old/risky for the next owner is my guess.

I paid about $2,000 belw dealer trade-in value, almost $4,000 below retail for my '02 when it was at 116K miles. A that price and with almost a full set of tools at my disposal I felt comfortable with the risk of having to replace up to $2K worth of things. So far I had to spend the $450 for the exhaust, and about $100 or so for the engine and transmission fluid changes, air filter (engine and cabin), and about $500 for a set of new tires (cheaper alternatives can be had for $250 if you are not picky). I figure I'm still ahead of the game for the time being. But would not feel comfortable paying retail as I said unless the car was in perfect shape at very low miles.

One other thing - the Prius is not a large car, especially the Classic. If your family consists of tall people, it will feel a little cramped. So the new Prius would be a better option space-wise.

I also looked at the Yaris and the hatch is really small. The sedan seems the better option, plus it has better fuel economy than the hatch I think. I had almost decided to buy a brand new Toyota Corolla LE (auto or stick) with power options for $14K out the door or so (fitzmall.com) since this is a good deal on a new car that is very competitive and fuel efficient (IMO better deal than the Yaris). But then I stumbled on the Prius and could not resist - it is a great car and it changes the way you think about gas and can change your driving habits for the better

Obviously, I bought used. I whish I had bought new when they were $21K plus $3K tax credit but I hesitated . I would consider buying new again, but I hope to wait it out till the next generation comes out. A used car is always a better deal if it has no problems but is more risky and is somewhat of a lottery no matter what. I'm mechanically inclined and except for magor engine issues can fix just about anything else, so to me used is the way to go. But the peace of mind with a new car is not to be underestimated, plus if you keep it long enough and do not pay outrageous insurance and loan rates it could actually be a similarly good deal as well due to generally lower expected maintenance cost and time/aggravation with fixing an older vehicle.

 

I found a relatively recent (2006) Prius that came off of a 24 month single-owner lease with high miles (~60k) but in excellent condition (I used Carfax.com to check the service records, inspect for accidents and ownership history. I also had a local Toyota dealer do their used car pre-purchase inspection before I bought it). The price was good -- much cheaper (~$7k) than new. So far, I'm delighted!

 

I found a 2001 with very low miles about 18 months ago that the PO bought as a certified used car and kept for only a few months (he was a veterinary student and needed cash). Aside from some new tires, a new auxiliary battery and some scheduled service (60K coolant/transmission fluid changes, plus spark plugs and filters) I haven't had to do anything but put gas and oil in it for the last 20K miles.

My wife is the primary driver, and she loves it. I replaced the tires with one size wider than stock (and one size lower aspect ratio) and she feels like she's driving a go-kart.