Should I Be Wary Of A New Battery?

September 12, 2012

I've found a private seller who is selling a Gen 2 T Spirit with 100k on the clock. The asking price is £5250. The thing is that 'it has had waterpump and Battery replaced by Toyota for £2637'. Now I know that batteries are supposed to last a lot longer than than so I'm a bit confused! So there's two ways of looking at this;

It's got a new Battery and therefore will last me a LONG time! :clap:

OR

This car has underlying problems and should be avoided! :hang:

Obviously I'm going to talk to the seller about it but I was wondering if you experts (flattery intended :flowers: ) had any input?

Much appreciated.

P.S. When I take it for a test drive should the car run on silent up to a certain speed? I took one out yesterday and the engine kicked almost instantly every time which suggested that the Battery didn't want to know.

September 12, 2012

the way i look at it is if there was any underlying problems with the Battery. it's now been replaced, you should be fine for a while. And the fact that was done by Toyota, they would have done a good job on it and the job carries a short warranty period so if anything goes pop, you can take it back.

any slight bit of power on the go pedal would prompt the engine to assist, unless you set it to EV mode. you have to be really patient and gentle for it to move off just on the Battery. another thing is if Battery is not charged, it will just automatically use the engine. i think your experience was normal.

September 12, 2012

Sounds plausible, this is a well-known reason for the Battery to go belly-up.

You could talk to the dealer who fixed it and see if they reveal anything more?

September 12, 2012

is this the one?

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201237484725592/sort/default/usedcars/maximum-mileage/up_to_100000_miles/price-to/6000/model/prius/make/toyota/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/radius/1501/page/1/postcode/gu27xh/keywords/spirit?logcode=p

September 12, 2012

Got it in one! That's it.

Good spec like the colour, seems clean from the pictures. I'll take it for a test drive and if I like it I'll get an RAC inspection done. Like I said, the new Battery could work in my favour (particularly with resale in 3-4 years) but as long as I'm not walking into a minefield (i.e. underlying problems) then it'd be reasonably good value. I've seen other T Spirits for less but they've all been a bit scruffy.

September 12, 2012

THe thing with full service history is for example a owner never has it serviced after the warranty is finished it may have missed several services.but when a dealer, be it toyota or other they can soon stamp the service book to appear that all services have been carried out.

Workshop sevice sheets covering all services gives peace of mind,because i dont beleave a workshop would supply doggy records to a sales dept.