Need some advise on this used 2005 Prius, worth buying?

The biggest risk by far is the traction battery - it could fail tomorrow or five years from now.

Until you test drive it, you really don't know anything about this particular car. Have you ever driven a Gen 2 Prius before? If not, you won't be able to tell if there's anything wrong with it unlike someone who drives one every day.

Do you know anyone who owns or used to own a Gen 2? If so, have that person drive it. If you don't, go to a stealership and test drive a low mileage 08 or 09 so you get an idea of what they are like when they are in good condition.

If you decide you want it after the test drive, then have a certified mechanic inspect it for obvious problems. A talented mechanic will spot problems the average joe will miss.

You're taking a big risk no matter what. You might luck out and get a reliable one (like mine). Be prepared for the worst just in case.

 

I would get that car thoroughly checked out by a mechanic, but there is always risk.

The service records show that the person went to the Toyota Dealership for every oil change and paid them to do things like the cabin air filter. To me, this says they were dolts. Or at least they knew nothing about any kind of maintenance on a vehicle and when the dealer says something they did it. That can be good in that the dealer likes to replace and fix things that really don't need to be replaced or fixed, but it is also bad because these are also the people that cannot tell when a part is about to go bad. Can't distinguish a good sounding engine from a poor sounding engine, and if anything outside of the routine goes bad, they would never know.

That's why a good 3rd party mechanic should have a thorough once over. Have the struts been changed? Sparkplugs replaced? The ATF doesn't look like it was done, so it is about 100K miles over-due for that. The quick-lube express oil that has been in the car, who knows what crap that is. Who knows if it is even 0w20, it is probably bottom of the barrel 5w30 or whatever was cheapest that day.

 

Or some have money to burn, like the previous owner of my Prius must have had. This lady had the 30K, 60K 90K, and 120K services performed on "our" Prius. Not to mention other services she should have declined. She was clueless, but must have had the bucks to throw into the wind. I should be so fortunate .

 

If you are going to pay someone $85 for 5 minutes of work and a $10 part, then you better make over $900/hr for me to not consider you a fool.

 

Reasonable price at the mileage, yes. But everything depends on condition. Battery (12v) age? Tires? But it looks like it was maintained. Beats no record.

Could any car ever made fail tomorrow, sure. Any particular reason to think this one will be more probable to fail? No.

Do you know someone local who knows something about these cars enough to know by driving it there isn't something you might think a quirk of a hybrid but which is abnormal and an indication of a problem? Remember, age and wear add up to probability that a part is on the other end of the failure probability curve.

So will the seller warranty it for any length? Permit a Pre-Purchase Inspection?

 

Like any old high mileage car the cost is low but repair costs can be high.

The Prius is a reliable car but a rebuilt battery can set you back 2 grand. As long as you are aware of that best to you and happy motoring.

You may want to consider an older Honda Civic. Maybe it is me but they seem to go on and on

 

If all you can afford is a $6200 car, then you need an older Toyota or Honda sedan. I'm not one that subscribes to the theory that the HV battery will outlive God, because they can fail at any age/mileage really. This one is obviously out of warranty (even in a CARB state), so if you don't have 3 grand laying around, then forget about it. Gambling on a Prius could hurt your wallet more than a 25 MPG Camry.

 

Did you ever own a Honda Civic, JMD? I don't recall you mentioning that you had.

Civics are very reliable (I owned two of the same model and the same year off and on between 1992 and 2010). But they have their own Achilles heels too. Not quite as expensive as a traction battery, I'll grant you that. Civics have been known to have transmission problems (automatic and manual) when they reach 200K miles and above. And repair of a front wheel drive transaxle is so much fun - not! Been there, done that, don't ever want to do it again.

 

Don't forget the timing belt at the 100K mark. There's some money I'm glad I didn't spend when I traded my Civic @97,000 miles for a Prius.

 

The OP might just like a bargain. He might be able to afford more but doesn't want to deplete his bank account or go into debt for three or more years. If he can snag a older Prius in good condition in that price range, it's still worthwhile, despite the risk of having the traction battery fail on him soon after buying it.

You might not have noticed but used car prices are insanely high right now. Some optimist wanted $1200 for his 93 Dodge Dynasty with a red vinyl top with 120K miles on Craiglist today. Correct me if 'm wrong. but I doubt many people are clamoring to own a Dodge Dynasty today.

 

Oh yeah, forgot about that. I changed out two timing belts on the Civics. Fairly easy repair though. Piece of cake compared to lowering the transaxle from the engine bay and repairing the tranny and installing a new clutch.