Thinking Of Buying A Prius

[tompaterson]

Hello all,

This is my first post and I'm after some advice. I've been looking at the Prius for sometime now, been a SAAB man for 15 years, but fuel prices

and low mileage makes the Prius a more sensible car.

I'm looking at either a 54 plate T-Spirit at £5700 with 77k or an 07 T-spirit at £8000 with 69k on the clock.

Can anyone tell me if the 54 plate would have reversing sensors fitted as standard. I know the camera

wasn't standard until 56 plate. Everyone says that I'll like the Prius, but it will need an adjustment

from a 3.0 Turbo to a 1.5 Hybrid. I think it will just be motorways where I'll notice the main difference.

Any advise would be appreciated on weak points and any main differences between the 54 and 07 models.

Thanks

Tom

[ian rooke]

hi as far as I know the reversing sensors were never fitted as standard but you will not be disappointed with the Prius if you use it as a

family car and not a sports car for which it was never designed.

[Chris Dance]

You will not regret getting a Prius. Mine is a 57 plate T Spirit; it has no reversing sensors but does have a reversing camera. I have not found any weak points at all but I would like folding door mirrors like there was on my Avensis. The other thing is always ensure you close the boot and all doors properly or the internal lights will remain on and you will flatten the 12v Battery. Only let a Toyota dealer service and repair the car. Other garages not knowing how the Prius works could cause major problems. I am a very low mileage motorist so the mileages on the cars you have quoted seem a bit high to me. Other members of this forum may think differently. Let us know how you get on.

Chris.

[cootuk]

The 56 plate was a facelift year - slightly changed styling and traction control as standard.

That swayed me over getting an older one.

[Jolly English Gentleman]

Hello all,

This is my first post and I'm after some advice. I've been looking at the Prius for sometime now, been a SAAB man for 15 years, but fuel prices

and low mileage makes the Prius a more sensible car.

I'm looking at either a 54 plate T-Spirit at £5700 with 77k or an 07 T-spirit at £8000 with 69k on the clock.

Can anyone tell me if the 54 plate would have reversing sensors fitted as standard. I know the camera

wasn't standard until 56 plate. Everyone says that I'll like the Prius, but it will need an adjustment

from a 3.0 Turbo to a 1.5 Hybrid. I think it will just be motorways where I'll notice the main difference.

Any advise would be appreciated on weak points and any main differences between the 54 and 07 models.

Thanks

Tom

The 2007 year models have Intelligent Parking Assist as standard (i.e. with reversing camera). It was an optional extra in 2006. My 2007 56 plate has IPA so the 2007 model should have it. Parking sensors have always been an optional extra on the T Spirit 2nd Gen, and are still an option on all 3rd gen models. You can get them retrofitted for a few hundred quid, but if you go for the 2007 model with the camera you won't need them. The front is a different question - because the bonnet is short there is a tendancy to leave too big a gap at the front when parking. After three months I am still doing it, so front sensors will be on my list at the next service.

I have never driven a 3.0 Turbo but suspect that you will also notice the difference going up hill. I certainly did when comparing with my old 1.6 1999 Corolla. I think this is one of the reasons why the 3rd Gen has a bigger engine. On Motorways there is no doubt that the Prius is smoother and quieter than my old Corolla.

Looking at the choices, both are close to their next service. Indeed if I were you I would try and see if they would service the 2007 one as part of the deal, and obviously check the service history on both cars.

I suspect that the 2007 one will be ex lease. You might be lucky as I was and find that it had a service and a fresh set of tyres a couple of months before the car was handed back to the Company - mine had 63K on the clock and I paid 7K in March when the market was being hammered. The other thing with the 2007 model is that you will still have a longer period left on the Battery warrenty (although many have done 100,000,s miles and are still going strong). As they all come from the same place the US 8 year 100K and California 10 year 150K warrenties are probably reasonable guides as to how long Toyota expect them to last. The UK warrenty is 8 years on the Battery, so depending on the period you expect to keep the car and your annual mileage the older 54 plate may make less sense if the Battery is a concern (they are expensive to replace).

The other thing is the sat nav system (standard from October 2004) - not the most user friendly, but you will be guarenteed of having more up to date maps on the newer car. The stereo system was also upgraded in October 2004 to a JBL system.

The boot is not the largest due to the battery and as the rear seats do not fold so that they are flush with the front seats it does not result in the biggest carrying space that they could have had if the rear seat lifted with the back being folded down in the more conventional manner. However the boot with the seats up have a nifty folding cover which reveals a deeper second boot (the battery is under the rear seat), which will take two large suitcases without having to remove the rear sliding cover.

Things to watch out for are the usual things on used cars, but primarily because of the high number of system controls from the steering wheel it is worth checking that all the buttons function as it would be costly to put that right, and paying particular attention to the rear bumper for scratches caused by loading/unloading heavy items in the boot.

The Saab reputation for reliability and durability is easily matched by Toyota despite recent events.

[Grumpy Cabbie]

The jolly chap above has offered some pretty good advice, esp the part about the batteries. If Toyota are happy to warrant the Battery to 150,000 in California, then it should be a good indication of how long it will last.

One part of advice I'd offer is make sure the car has a full Toyota service history. Also, I'd be very tempted to only buy one from a main dealer. You pay more, but the Prius is a very specialist vehicle and whilst exceptionally reliable, gaining top marks in many consumer reviews, if you get a dodgy one such as a badly repaired crashed car it could become the biggest money pit you've ever had.

I don't want to frighten you or put you off what is a fabulous car, but either buy Toyota approved with a warranty or get the car fully checked by the AA or RAC at the very least.

There are a few members on here who have purchased their Prius but had similar concerns to you. I'm sure they'll be happy to give you their experiences buying their second hand Prius.

[tompaterson]

Thanks for the replies. All the information is very useful. I had a look a t a 54 plate which was being sold from part of a Toyota dealership yesterday.

It was a black T-Spirit with 77k for £5750. The car looked very rough, with only the first two services carried out by Toyota and another five by a local

garage. They wouldn't come down on price. There were a lot of scratches and some bodywork damage. So I walked away.

I'm hoping to have a look at the 07 plate T-Spirit tomorrow. I have check and it does have full Toyota main dealer service. The last service was at 62000

miles with 69000 miles on the clock. The car also has leather and looks totally unmarked. Hoping I can do a deal and drive away. The car also

has three months warranty included. tax and MOT until April 2011

My other option is another 07 plate at Autoquake again with full Toyota service and 77K on the clock. This one is silver with cloth trim, MOT till April 2011,

but no road tax. Although I think I can afford the £10 tax.

I'm getting closer to taking the jump into a Prius. I've liked my time with SAABs, but GM have destroyed what was once a very good car. GM were cost cutting

with the 9-5 and using bits from the Vauxhall parts bin. I'm hoping that now SAAB is no longer GM, that the quality will return. However the fact I'm living with

is also I don't do alot of mileage these days, so a smaller car is the way to go. Prius seems to tick all the boxes and I know Toyotas are very reliable. I drive

a Hilux for work and have been very impressed.

[Jolly English Gentleman]

I think you were quite right to walk away from the 54 plate. If they don't offer to put right the damage they won't sell it and end up getting far less at the auctions. I often wander what some dealers think they are up to when they put such cars on their forecourt. Especially a main dealer - it does them no favours.

Hopefully the 07 plate will appear better in the metal. Check the terms of the warrenty though. I brought mine from a dealer 200 miles away but made sure that the warrenty allowed me to take it to any garage I choose - a 12 month RAC warrenty which includes a full comprehensive check in the first 12 months cost £400. Pretty much as good as what you could get from a Toyota dealer. Given the mileage I would try to see if they could offer a longer warrenty (say 6 months) that will take you through to the next service, although the look of the car inside and out and the paperwork should normally give some peace of mind. A recent MOT helps, if it has not travelled far since.

[tompaterson]

Hi All. Thanks for all the information.

I went to Leicester today and picked up the 07 plate T-Spirit in unmarked red, with leather.

So I had a run down the M1, A roads and a few B roads, and am very impressed with the car.

Car came with full documentation including all the main dealer service sheets/invoices,

and a fully stamped book. Hybrid warranty is intact for another five years or in my case

30000 miles. Was also very happy to fill the tank for less than £40. Big change from

the £70 it cost for the SAAB.

Enjoyed the run round the M25 tonight. I was next to a BMW M3 going slow in the roadworks

on electric only. We were only going 25 miles and hour.

So far so good. The satnav was also very good in the journeys I've gone so far. I liked the feature

that shows the next few junctions on the motorways, with distance and time. Something that is missing

from TOMTOM units. So really a good day. Already thinking about saving for the new model, about a year

old.

So thanks again for everyone who offered advise.

[Grumpy Cabbie]

Hey well done.

Glad you're loving it. You must keep us updated.

Nice to fill a car for less than £40 isn't it! You'll also get used to covering more distance for that £40 than you did for £70 with your previous car.

Enjoy

[Jolly English Gentleman]

Hi All. Thanks for all the information.

I went to Leicester today and picked up the 07 plate T-Spirit in unmarked red, with leather.

So I had a run down the M1, A roads and a few B roads, and am very impressed with the car.

Car came with full documentation including all the main dealer service sheets/invoices,

and a fully stamped book. Hybrid warranty is intact for another five years or in my case

30000 miles. Was also very happy to fill the tank for less than £40. Big change from

the £70 it cost for the SAAB.

I felt that the 07 plate was the best of the two options available to you. If its Vermillion red, wait until the sun's out! This colour seems to sparkle particularly well and takes on a completely different shade to the darker shade apparent on a dull day like today. Photographs just do not seem to do the colour justice at all.

You will also be in an exclusive club as there are not many red Pri-i about.