Toyota Prius second hand

M

muffin1973

Registered User
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Hi all

Looking to get a new (used) car within the next couple of weeks. I wanted a Ford Focus but husband has vetoed! We're looking at a Toyota Prius now mostly because it's a similar shape to be honest, we don't know much about them but just really wanted to know if they are reliable and if the hybrid thing works ok, does the engine cut out when you're stopped or anything like that?? Sorry totally clueless about this.

Anyone got one??

Thanks,

Muffin
 
Oh really Deiseblue, that's good to know. We are looking at a 2007 one that costs Eur10,500 do you think that's a good price? We have a Ford Fiesta that we are hoping they'll take as trade in...

Muffin
 
Towger, yeah i was worried that might be the case, is it expensive to bring it to a Toyota garage if anything did go wrong with it (our current car has been so reliable we've only had to get it serviced twice in 8 years). Actually that's probably a stupid question, it would depend obviously on what was wrong with it

M
 
engine doesn't cut out when idling, it just runs on the electric motor

work colleague of mine has one for the last 4-5 years and has over 200,000miles on board and not missed a beat. he drives all over europe.
 
Just watching Top Gear, apparently the MPG ranges from 45-60 which is no better than any decent diesel (if economy is a reason youre considering buying it)
 
muffin1973 said:
our current car has been so reliable we've only had to get it serviced twice in 8 years).
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If you've only serviced it twice in 8 years I'd expect your car is about to become VERY unreliable indeed . You engine oil will have a consistency somewhere between Marmite and Molasses.

Why oh why oh why???
 
One good reason why not to buy that prius is that every normal mechanic won't touch one.
Now imagine your car breaks down in the middle of nowhere and cost of recovery/toyota garage charges etc. How you're going to get to work/bring kids to school etc. Renting a car isn't a cheap option either.
Also, I don't even want to imagine how expensive the replacement batteries are (they will die over the time).

Those cars will be worth next to nothing very soon.
 
Hi,

I had a 2000 Prius for a good while and must say that it was absolutely fantastic, no problem whatsoever. The economy is far better than a diesel in city conditions as the hybrid motor runs the car on its own in heavy traffic. However, it would less economical than probably even a diesel on fully loaded long runs, as the car is extremely heavy.

I have no idea where Driftmad is coming from in terms of the battery - they require zero maintenance, and last for life. They are probably one of the most reliable things in the car and nearly never fail. I certainly disagree that these cars would be worth next to nothing very soon - they hold their value and are reliable.Though I do take Driftmad's point that in case things go wrong, it would be much more easier and simpler to fix if you had a 'normal' car.

The key point to consider is - if you going to do a lot of running in heavy traffic, city conditions, the Prius / Honda hybrid would be great... if it is mainly motorway driving, I would buy a diesel.

Hope this helps.

~ Kman100
 
Like every car component, batteries fail (google for it) and the fail rate is very low now but it will change on older cars. The cost of repair then will exceed the car value. There is ebay and crashed cars etc but still, it'll be an old battery.

For reference about the mechanics, I'm familiar with car electronics and electronic diagnostics, I've done numerous engine swaps on RWD Nissans (doing one tomorrow on my drift car as well if weather permits), I have no problem choosing right parts for 350 BHP from 1.8 or 2.0 turbo etc. I wouldn't touch Prius and there's nothing unusual about it. But my friend which I call when I'm in trouble (he can start every car with electronic problems), electronic technician, also trained as a car mechanic which I respect a lot, said one day that a prius came to his garage and he said "thanks god it needed new brake pads"

There is no car that doesn't break down unfortunately. There's toyotas being repaired as well, also with problems leading to terminal engine damage.
 
Hi again all
Am dragging up my old thread, as I have the same question. We bought a Megane in the end but want to get rid of it at this stage, and are looking at a 2004 Prius. Has around 90000 miles on the clock. I’m worried still that if we ever had to fix anything in it, it would cost a fortune. At this stage it’s 8 years old which is older than we wanted. The car itself looks very clean and my husband loves the look of it. I’m not so sure.
Any opinions?
thanks
 
Take a look through the HonestJohn review, particularly in relation to issues/recalls. If you are buying one of that age, get the batteries independantly tested for capacity. If the car hasn't been regularly driven long distances, the batteries will lose capacity to hold a full charge.
 
We have a 2005 Toyota Prius with 97,000 miles. We also have a 2009 VW Golf Diesel.

The Prius is a pleasure to drive in town and gets good MPG. On the motorway it is fine but needs to be pushed hard to keep up with traffic. MPG will only be reasonable on long journeys. The VW Golf gives about 20mpg more on a long journey.

The Prius has been 100% reliable. The VW has had two major faults with only 31,000 miles on the clock.
The hybrid batteries in the Prius are never fully charged which extends their life. This is part of the design to extend the life.

What Leo is talking about is the auxilary battery which operates things like the alarm etc. This is nothing to do with the Hybrid system and if needs to be replaced is a simple job and costs around €260.00 With our car we have not needed to replace it.

I would have no worries re servicing. The engine is a standard Toyota engine and only needs oil and filters etc. There are millions of Toyota Prius's all over the world and a handful of cases of batteries failing. There are plenty of examples with over 300,000 miles with no failures. It is a huge seller in the USA.

Most negative comments you read is down to ignorance with no proof to back up claims.

Seriously consider importing a Prius from the UK. VRT is around €360.00 This is what we did.

Forget that the car is a Hybrid and just treat is like any other 2nd hand buy and do all cartell and crash tests.
Automatic, Climate control 5 star NCAP, ISofix . Great if you have kids.
 
Don't buy a Prius.... from either an environmental or economic perspective its nothing more than a cleverly marketed folly and distraction.

Buy a Golf Bluemotion Diesel and run it for 20 years. You'll save yourself money, be kinder to the environment and drive a much better feeling, riding and performing vehicle.
 
Thanks everyone for replying, lot to think about there. Still not convinced on the Prius and we're not in any rush really, but not ruling it out either for the moment.

M
 
muffin1973 said:
Thanks everyone for replying, lot to think about there. Still not convinced on the Prius and we're not in any rush really, but not ruling it out either for the moment.

M
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I'd highly recommend them. I imported one from the UK a few months back (mainly for the amount of choice available there, plus slightly cheaper), after a lot of research into their reliability. What I found was that whilst there's plenty of mis-informed comment and opinion, if you look at the facts the actual reliability is exceptionally good (certainly better than a VW diesel).

It takes a bit of getting used to (complete silence when stopped in traffic and when it's running on the battery), but it works very well, and before long it's hard to contemplate driving anything else (apart maybe from a sports car: nobody would claim it's an exciting drive).

In short: very well equipped, comfortable, relaxing to drive, reliable and cheap to own (fuel, tax, insurance etc.). They also seem to hold their value reasonably well.
 
We're looking at a 08/09 Prius to replace a 04 Honda Accord that is very heavy on petrol and road tax. It will mostly be used for a 45min each way commute on motorway so based on some of the feedback above maybe it's not the right choice? In the future (18 months or so) it will likely become the '2nd' car and will be used mostly for city driving so maybe it still makes sense.

Other cars we're considering are the Honda Civic Hybrid, Honda Insight Hybrid, Skoda Octavia Diesel, VW Passat Diesel, Toyota Avensis Diesel.

We'll spend about 14K and main priorities are fuel efficiency and low tax band. We have one baby and hope to have another in a few years so boot space is also important.

I'd appreciate any thoughts / advice!
 
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