2006 Prius near me for $1,700.

[Xist]

I posted this here:

Originally Posted by Xist

It is at that questionable dealership. It looks good. As I understand it, I show up when they open, show enough cash to make the purchase, ask how much it would be out the door, and take it for a test drive. I would plug in my OBD-II reader, test-drive it to the nearest shop that can look at it, see if it is worth buying, and if I go through with it, go directly to Hatch Toyota, do not pass go, do not collect $200. If the Toyota technicians find dealbreakers I try to get my money back.

How much do you guys think the dealership fees would be? What problems do you think the dealership may be trying to hide?
https://showlow.craigslist.org/ctd/d...303388009.html

The private-party blue book value in good condition is $3,582, so in theory I could have $1,887 in dealership fees and come out ahead.

Sale-Tax.com says the sales tax in that ZIP is 9.43%, so tax would be at least $159.84.

Their site says they are out of the office until Thursday. Apparently they don't have the staff to stay open and pick up new inventory.

JSH indicated he expected it to cost around $2,000 or more. I made sure it was there while running errands. Here are the dealer's pictures:













It has 231,309 miles.

Can anyone tell me which shot they left out and what is different between the last two pictures?
These are the pictures they didn't take:


Just kidding! That is a 2007 for sale that I passed on the way. It has half as many miles and they want three times as much for it, but since it is private party that would be more like twice--and I could take it to the dealership before buying it.

This is the $1,700 one!


Well, we seem to have an explanation for that price!

I don't know that the hood is worse than either of my cars', although it would definitely benefit from a new bumper. I got CarFax and AutoCheck cheap. Both show a clear title, but oddly, each owner had it for significantly shorter than the previous. The original owner had it for 11 years and 5 months; I think someone flipped it, it was sold twice in 11 days. Someone owned it for 2 years and 4 months and then 11 months.

I think that fourth owner traded it in and somehow this dealership bought it from that one.

Here is a $150 bumper in Phoenix:


They also want $150 for the hood, but I think that I can pull out those dents.

Hopefully the hood opens and closes well enough!

Hopefully everything else checks out, too!

[redpoint5]

Offer $1,000 and let him negotiate up to $1,200. Let that car sit on his lot for a couple weeks and he'll let it go.

[Xist]

I haven't driven a Prius worth more than $1,700, so I don't know how the transmission is supposed to feel, but it felt like it was always too low--on level ground.

I also didn't like how many functions are controlled through the screen.

It is weird how the speedometer is just below the windshield, but I need to look at the information system to control many things.

The information system that often goes out, like the transmission, and hybrid battery--at least based on the Prii that I see for sale.

I never saw the battery health. Does one of those magic buttons show all of the hybrid information?

One of the employees does come along on the test drive. I don't know why I thought otherwise, but I couldn't take it to a mechanic, not that anyone was available nearby.

Hatch said they couldn't tell me about this car in particular, but they sell all of the trade-ins with insufficient profit margin to smaller dealerships--or the junkyard.

The guy selling the Prius said about as much, but he said they bought packages from local dealerships.

I wanted to buy a 2003 Civic they had for $400. Making a car run and drive is always exciting, but I already have a Civic needing that, and I know what is wrong.

[Xist]

I am going to test-drive an expensive 2006 Prius to see how it is supposed to feel.

Someone posted a 1998 Accord for $850, calling it a mechanic's special, but allegedly it just needed a cat, oil pan gasket, and AC lines.

A cat like the one that I bought was going for a little under $160 on eBay, but it just sold.

Gaskets are cheap and I replaced the pan in my 2000 Civic and one in a 1997 Accord, so that would have been fine.

I couldn't quickly find instructions for the AC lines, but YourMechanic and RepairPal estimated that it would cost $400.

AutoZone has the hoses for $40 each and I found a dealer willing to ship them for $85.

The cheapest cat that RockAuto has is $155 shipped, but $102 before taxes and fees.

The cheapest OEM-style with an O2 sensor in the right place is $271 and the only Improved Designed cat is $371 shipped.

So, the parts might cost several hundred, but I happen to have a full set of known-good parts...

By the way, there is a Prius transmission in Mesa with 137,000 miles and a 90-day warranty.

[Xist]

I drove down, got lunch with my girlfriend, needed a nap, and didn't make time to test-drive a Prius, but I am positive the now $1,400 one doesn't shift right--or whatever CVTs do.

I guess you aren't supposed to notice them shifting because they have infinite gears.

I looked for cars after my nap and didn't see anything interesting and decided to check one last time.

$2,700 is too much for this 2002 Accord, right?

It looks good, but it is just a nicer and slightly-newer version of my car with 20,000 fewer miles--and leather seats, which I have never wanted.

I pulled up Brave because I can use KBB there without excessive problems due to intolerance of my ad blocker. The last car that I viewed was a 2001 Accord with 200,000 miles.

$2,700 was way too much.

However, Kelley says that a car just one year newer, with the same mileage, is somehow worth much more!

So, for academia's sake:

1998:--$2,010
1999:----2,109
2000:----2,301
2001:----2,288
2002:----2,757

Yeah. That's weird.

[Isaac Zachary]

I bought my 2006 Prius for $300.

But it a bit more damage and was starting to show signs of HV battery problems.

IF that 2006 hasn't had the battery replaced ever it will need one soon. You may get a couple more years out of the battery if it's original, but that's probably it. Same if it's a "refurbished" battery or off-brand battery. Unless there are receipts proving the battery is a new Toyota battery, consider it pretty much on it's last leg because of the years of the car. Also, the less it's driven the harder it can be on the battery, so don't consider low miles as a good indication.

To see if it has HV battery problems now test drive it a couple times (drive a few miles, restart and drive a few miles). The red triangle of death should appear. Or at least you should hear the battery fan turn on while driving slowly or stopped. If you can hear it the battery is bad. If not you got a few months or years left.

[Xist]

First of all, are you a wizard?

Thanks for the advice on the battery. What kind of fuel economy should it show for five miles?

How is the transmission supposed to feel? Should I just not notice it?

[Ecky]

There can be a gentle shudder when the engine kicks on, but for the most part it should feel like nothing. The transmission is a planetary gearset, and the speed of the wheels is a ratio between how fast the engine and MG2(?) are spinning.



I'm not a Prius expert but I'm guessing if it feels like anything at all, the engine probably needs something. Spark plugs? Air filter? I know some Prius engines begin to burn oil, and I imagine that can foul plugs or an O2 sensor, possibly without immediately showing a CEL.

[Isaac Zachary]

Originally Posted by Xist

First of all, are you a wizard?

Thanks for the advice on the battery. What kind of fuel economy should it show for five miles?

How is the transmission supposed to feel? Should I just not notice it?

5 miles, better than 20mpg, deepening on the start temperature. You might get 30 tops.

The transmission is pretty seamless. You just might notice the engine turning on and off at times, which is about it.