2004 with 176k miles, original battery, silver (preferred color), $2800. Everything seemed okay 2010 with 171k miles, $5200. battery seemed to drain significantly faster than the 04, same route. The engine sounded like it was stalling during one start from a stop sign in heavy traffic. Only happened once. Both have some small cosmetic or minor issues. Both are from a dealer. 2007 with 121k miles, recently installed Dorman refurb battery, $4500 (haven't test driven yet) private owner. Red color (not really what I wanted. I am in TX and want to minimize cabin heat for multiple reasons.) I am confident with doing small repairs and battery work. My idea was to spend 3500ish originally. I'm sort of leaning towards the 04 because with the money saved, I could put that to repairs down the road.
Get the one that 'speaks to you'. No matter what you get keep about $1500 in contingency funds--you have to do that buying a used car with high mileage. I just bought a 2009 Prius with 230,000 Miles. I just spent $300 to get 4 wheel/tire combo that were in like new condition used for 1 season. I had kept $2500 aside for emergencies and $300 is gone on the wheels/tires. I am keeping my fingers crossed for any big item repairs but am prepared. I never buy a new car--I can afford to but choose not to. Simba
dorman won't likely last more tha a few years. if you're willing to tackle the battery, i'd go with the 2004. all the best!
I'd pass on the 2007. The refurb battery is a bad gamble. The 2004 seems like a good deal, but the battery is likely near the end of its life -- not because of miles, but because of age. So you put a new battery in for $2500 (DIY), and you're at the same cost as the 2010. I'd go with the 2010. But get it checked out by a mechanic first to figure out what's going on with that drivability issue you experienced. Could be something as simple as needing new plugs, or injectors cleaned.
Thanks for the inputs. Are any of these a particularly a good deal? I missed out on a 07 with 120k miles for 3200 last month. The 04 here has been for sale for at least a month. I don't need a car really urgently, but don't have forever either. Also, a small dealer told me that this time of year the $3-4k cars will sell quickly due to tax refund season. Is this at all true?
If the battery that seems to drain faster in the 2010 model is the hybrid battery (on the display screen), then that would make me want to stay far away. While they're rare, hybrid battery failures for 2010 models have happened, and that car's out of warranty. One sign of a failing battery is the battery charge level quickly going up and down while driving the car, so if the 2010 you're looking at is doing that, it's bad news. The stalling would make me want to look elsewhere as well, especially since it's from a dealer. Mechanical problems on cars sold from dealers either means the dealer didn't check for them (which makes the dealer no better than a private party seller) or they did, but their service people don't know what they're doing and/or couldn't fix it. Bad news either way. I'd eliminate the 2007 based on the remanufactured battery pack. There are stories of those failing within a few years, and you don't want to pay more and then have to replace the battery again. While the 2004 is the oldest and the likelihood that the hybrid battery will fail increases with age (currently between 3-15% risk for a 2004 model), it seems to be the best option of the three you mentioned. And since it's the least expensive, if you do end up needing to replace the hybrid battery, your total cost would be close to the same as buying the 2010. The 2004 is around $300 overpriced for a vehicle in average condition, but you can probably negotiate that down.
I had talked him down from 3200 to 2800. I agreed I would do 2800 once my inspector gave a me a good report on it. They really don't get any cheaper than that without >200k miles or serious issues, or rebuilt titles. I am leaning towards that one, I just not 100% certain to pull the trigger yet.
Not really too big of a gamble for $2800. Even if the car blows up, you can sell the battery for $800 So it's basically a $2000 risk for a car with under 200k miles
I was able to find some history on the car using the Toyota website with the vin #. Mileage looks correct, it had services done at the dealership, did have a new inverter pump installed. Oil changes only showed every 10k miles at the dealer. Maybe they went to a cheap lube place in between?
I bought the 04. The dealer said they had toyota replace the hybrid battery, which I have my doubts due to cost. They couldn't provide paper work. The inspector didn't find any real issues. I've been getting around 55mpg doing test drives and on my drive home 13 miles highway 65mph. (75 degrees, 35psi tires) Not trying much to be efficient or slow. It's fun and an interesting piece of engineering. The battery seems good, didn't go below 5 bars. I really like the keyless entry and start. This will save significant time as I get in and out of it 20 times a day. Power steering feels almost effortless.
Sounds great! Like the armadillo said halfway across the road, "So far, so good." Hope it stays good for a good long time.
2006 Prius+ comes with Aux jack and you could get cheap bluetooth adapter for audio. (to me must have feature) It is possible to put in aux jack in 2004-05 Prius if you know how to take the dash apart. For cabin heat you could install some window tint.
