Hey guys - I'm going back and forth betwen two 2016 priuses. One has 14k miles and is CPO. The other has 10k miles and does not have CPO but is $1500 less, and has an inservice date of June 2016. I'm not sure how to look at these vs. the premium for the CPO. The non-CPO Prius only has warranty coverage until June 2019 and 2021 I believe (3-year, 36k mile basic and 5-year 60k mile for powertrain). The CPO has the same, but also extends the powertrain out to 7 years or 100k miles (so to 2022)? I believe that's the only difference? We plan to drive this about 20k miles per year, so I'm guessing the mileage limits will kick in before the year limits. Any thoughts on how to think about these two cars? Also, I know 2016 was the first year of the "new" model. Any issues with this year? Thank you!
CPO = Certified Pre-owned, I guess. If they're both still under factory warranty, I'd go for the cheaper, lower mileage one. If possible, bring a mechanic to look at it, but if not, it would have had to have been badly abused to be an issue. Usually, there would be some outwardly visible signs of that.
i agree, no need for a cpo on a car that new, as long as you know the ownership and accident history. you have 10/150 on the hybrid battery, that's the important thing. are they the same package?
As @bisco said, the hybrid rivetrain is already covered for 10 years / 150K miles if the vehicle was originally purchased in a CARB state. The important date for 2016s is not the In Service date but the manufacturing date (month/year) which is on a sticker on the drivers door. Cars made before February 2016, IIRC, could not switch between mph & kph on the speedometer.
I'd say, in general, the Prius is very reliable, so I would not pay extra for a CPO warranty. Are they both the same trim level? Either one has only had one oil change at 10K miles, so they are essentially the same car (10K vs. 14K miles is essentially the same). To my mind, you're kicking in $1,500 for a warranty they you'll never take advantage of.
Buy whichever is cheaper... The warranty and Certified Pre-owned are designed to be emotionally appealing, but I know of only one instance in a hundred where people actually saved money with a warranty. Also buying from a private seller is way, way cheaper than from a dealer. If I could do it all over again I wouldn't let my uncertainty in the purchase get me wanting to buy from a dealer rather than a much lower priced private seller. A great tip for buying from a private seller is to do the transaction at your bank. Plenty of security cameras around and not much of an issue paying in cash or check if you're doing it inside your own bank.
