Buying a used 150k mile Gen3 Prius in 2026

Oh my, voice commands? Seems bad to me, as a very verbal driver….

 

At >160k, my 2011 doesn't consume that much oil. It's not likely the only one that doesn't.

It's not guzzling coolant, either.

 

Looking at a used 2010 Prius for $3700 with 220 K.
One owner and suppose to look really nice.
My understanding is that the EGR valve and Head gaskets are major issues?
Can I preemptively simply replace them?
If I do so, a video that is not time lapses seems to be 30 to 35 minutes
How long is the replacement job and is it something one person can on their own reasonably easily?
How much for a shop to do these things?

 

It would cost more than the $3700 price of that car. Do not buy that car unless you can do the work yourself. The head gasket replacement is very involved.

Please keep this discussion in the thread that you created, https://priuschat.com/index.php?posts/3588731

 

Was a dealer and I get there and it has the triangle of death.
If what the mechanic said is correct about the code, inverter coolant sensor.
According to Car Fax though, it looks like the head gasket had already been replaced.
Buying no car with the triangle of death though.

 

There are a lot of misconceptions about "red triangle of death". It does not literally mean that the car's life is over. But yeah, buying one seldom makes sense unless you are able to fix it yourself and have the knowhow and experience (and $$$).

 

That is a must be solved before I consider buy it and I drive it off the lot and if it comes back within 100 miles, I will see you in court. Likely more like 1000 miles but that may be a bit harder to argue.

I have replaced on my own, one inverter coolant pump, one inverter, and five total battery replacements.

 

The EGR system very obviously went into production untested. It clogs, often asymmetrically, with cylinder one end starved first, overheat ensues, and head gasket fails, typically on the exhaust side of the common wall between cyl one and two..

 

I hope this was not a new car dealer selling a broken $3700 gen3 with 220k miles. Most likely it was an auction buyer who paid $1000 plus $500 in fees and would have given you a "deal" at $2500 if pushed.

My take on gen3 issues is quite different than Mendel's based on a local shop who has changed about 1000 gen3 engines in the last three years along with hundreds of brake boosters and a few inverters using junk car stock.

Toyota knew the downsides of low tension rings but were pushed by management to improve mpg while reducing costs on a rather complex drivetrain. At the same time they were engineering advanced safety systems for gen3 and went to 10k oil changes with the first two free reinforcing that unfortunate schedule which aggravated the low tension ring problem.

Gen3s typically do not overheat even when head gaskets start to fail. Months later some drivers might lose enough coolant to eventually overheat but most rebuilt or exchanged engines never overheated the original. The gen3 death rattle forces action first. Sealant can mask the head gasket leak for weeks or months which is great for flippers; terrible for buyers.

Egrs were not used on gen2s so they used very expensive catalytic converters that later became a thieves best friend. Gen3 used a less expensive cat along with an existing egr system that worked fine on conventional Corolla 1.8s but proved inadequate on a stop start hybrid. Dramatic thermal cycling of gen3s added to the issue. Gen4 1.8s used reengineered pistons, rings, head gasket, cylinder walls and egr systems along with good results. However gen3 owners were left holding the bag.

Brake boosters were a problem on gen2s as well and really did not improve until gen4 and were dramatically improved in gen5 hybrids.

Gen3 inverters were also a poor design and would strand drivers without warning. They are still covered due to the only successful gen3 class action suit. However being stranded with something that takes a week to fix is absolutely no fun. Ask me how I know.

Better to look elsewhere for a reliable low cost of ownership used car. And we did not even discuss hybrid batteries.

 

I think they likely bought it at auction. I will say that there are a lot of third gen driving around my local area. They are not rare currently but there are still a lot of second gen as well.

I know 2nd Gen (and 1st Gen) much better. Likely be a better option to stay with them for the moment.

If I had about 8 k, I have been seeing some "older" (2017 or 2018) Chevy Bolts around and spoke to the owners. They said it gets 200+ miles and most seem to really love them. Nissan Leafs don't usually have enough range to get back and forth to work unfortunately.

 

have you considered a used ev?