Our daughter is in grad school and for 7 years has been driving an '98 Honda Accord with 139,000 miles. We are starting to put more $$$ into it. A friend is selling a 2004 Prius with 175,000 miles for $4000. She has done regular maintenance, recently replaced the small battery, has new tires. Daughter needs old car to last 2 more years until she gets out of Grad School , gets a good paying job and then she would like to buy herself a little nicer car. We are going to talk to our mechanic today who knows the Honda and see what he thinks. Daughter does not drive a whole lot so gas mileage is not a big consideration. We just want a dependable car for her and the high mileage on the Prius is a concern for us. Thanks for any input!
I bought my daughter the cheapest new car I could find when she was 16, it lasted thru high school, college, her first job, marriage, her first house, it lasted about 10 years, then it was running fine when she got a new car. My point is, put $4k down on a Hyundai Accent, Nissan Versa etc. and make the payments till she can make them on her own, it eliminates the drama of unexpected car repairs, dead batteries, the need for new tires, new brakes etc. She has enough on her plate finishing her education.
if it's the cheapest thing you can find, and she's just tooting' around town, it will probably be fine. if the accord isn't rusted out, she may be better off sticking with it.
Unless this is about rust issues, I don't see how car with 175,000 miles is more reliable than 139,000 miles. Probably the 2004 prius needs new battery since yesterday.
The 12v was just replaced. The WARRANTY on the traction battery is 10 years/150000 miles. I don't know Toyota's value for the expected useful life but it has to be much higher than 175000 miles. Is an 11 year old Prius going to need more maintenance than a 25 year old Accord? I doubt it. 175000 miles in 11 years is ~15900 per year. That's not considered high mileage any more.
Don't rush into anything. Shop around. I think you could get a car with under 100,000 for about $4K. Another Honda or Camry or Corolla maybe. The car you are considering would be at least as big a gamble as the one you already have.
Whoops - I did originally write '89 Accord - sorry - it is an '98! One of the years with the horrible paint job but daughter doesn't care. Thanks so much for the feedback. With your comments in mind, she has decided to hang in there with the Accord and buy a bit nicer car when she graduates Grad School. Thanks again!
I think if your friend has kept good maintenance of the 2004 prius, it's worth buying for $4000. Just drive it and get a good feel of the hybrid technology. Better than throwing money at a car from 1998. If things don't work out, you should be able to sell the prius easily for the same $4000
