Hi everyone, my sister is looking at getting a 2013 Prius v 3. While I know a decent amount about cars I don’t know much about hybrids so I’m looking for your advice and figd why not come right to the gurus! Unfortunately she’s pretty far from me to be able to go check it out and drive it for her, and also unfortunately, she’s in a rush into getting a car because her other just quit. What are the common problems on these, and what should we be looking out for and checking on one with ~75k miles. Thank you for your time.
I would have her pay a dealer to check it out. In general a 75k mile Prius has lots of life left but your in NY and rust is a thing plus who knows about the suspension, brakes and tires, much less the hybrid system without checking it out.
what state is she in? different states have different hybrid battery warranties. either 8/100 or 10/150.
Typically the v is a great car in terms of reliability but there are always the exceptions and without knowing the history of the car, who knows, I'd suggest getting the current owner to go to the dealer they have used with the buyer and have the service advisor pull the service history in front of both. That reduces the asymmetry of information (buyer knows nothing, seller knows everything) that can occur when buying a used car. If it is a used car lot, then have it inspected.
If the car has been serviced by Toyota dealer and if you know the VIN of the vehicle, you can see all of the service record of the vehicle by going Toyota Owners Official Web Site. Of course, if independent shop has been used, the record will not show up except major ones that will end up on CarFax.
Get the VIN, plug it into the Toyota site, ask for a carfax, if it’s never had an accident or a major problem and visually it’s nice, they make great taxi’s.
The problem won't be past mechanicals, it's potentially current issues. Probably none but I would spend $100 if necessary to have a dealer do a complete check.
