I am thinking of getting a used gen 1 prius with about 60k miles on it and I am wondering if it is smaller than the current gen 2 prius? I would need to seat 3 people in the backseat sometimes. (all kids). Can this be done in a gen 1 Prius? Or am I better off getting a gen 2? Thanks, Jessica
Better yet, maybe someone can invite some friends over and post a picture of the back seat with 3 people in it ?
I have a Gen2 and can't answer about that model. But three people can fit in the back of a Gen2. More if they are laying down.
I have a 2003, NHW11 Prius and it can fit 3 small people in the back but only if they are young. Young people have a tendency to get larger over time. I would recommend going with an NHW20 model primarily related to the ability to fold down the rear seats for over-sized loads. It is a more practical layout and the vehicle includes significant engineering improvements in the NHW20 (2004-current.) I just checked Kelly BB and they are showing a suggested retail price of $13,610 (highest) for a 2003 Prius with 60,000 miles. Ebay is showing them going for $6-9,000. The only caution is the battery warranty is good for 8 years, 100,000 miles. I don't like to recommend a used vehicle unless you have a backup. Also, you need to realize that unplanned, variable rate, maintenance costs come with a used car. It is how life is. GOOD LUCK! Bob Wilson
There's lots of room. The pic actually shows less of the rear seat than I'd like though. I've often had three adults, and four kids, in the back of my G2 Prius. I guess it depends on location, Canadians tend to be less wide on average than Texans.
Texans need the extra room because of their superior brain sizes. Canadians can get by with a much smaller space. :boink:
Bob I have also noticed that older people can also get larger over time, but in the orthogonal direction. NHW11 rear seat is suitable for 2 1/2 people, but the used car buying decision should be largely based on vehicle condition. As implied above this is not easy to discern in Prius, accounting for some of the concerns.