*** Original Owner *** No Reserve *** Low Mileage *** Reliable & Fuel Efficient

2009 Toyota Prius Base Hatchback 4-Door Description

This is not a typo. The bidding will start at $1, and there is no reserve. So if nobody else notices, then the car could be yours for one buck! However, please note that Iwill not abort the auction before the 7-day scheduled ending date/time (Sunday, May 21st, around 9 PM Pacific Time). And the top bidder shall win. Good luck!

Why we are selling

We are a Prius family. Currently, we have three: the one listed here, a 3rdgen.MY 2013, and a brand new one we've just purchased (4th gen. MY 2017). So now we have one too many cars in our small 2-person household, and sadly, we need to let the 2009 Prius go and find a new home.

Why we love the Prius

This car has been like a good and trusted family friend to us. There are 3 main reasons why we remain loyal to the Prius brand:

1Reliability

2Fuel Economy

3Practicality

Reliability

Both JD Power and Consumer Reportshave through the years consistently ranked Toyota Prius as one of the most reliable vehicles on the market (please google it... since eBay does not allow any links pointing to sites other than eBay). Consumer Reports has even had a couple of tests of the older generation Priuses to test how they hold up in real world high mileage driving.

In the interest of further research, I strongly recommend that you copy and paste the following text (shown in italics) into Google search field:

Second-generation Toyota Prius still reliable

Then click on the first search result.

Also, copy and paste the following text in italics into Google search field:

How does the Toyota Prius hold up?

Then click on the top (first) search result.

We can attest that, through all the years we've owned it, we have had absolutely zero problems with this car. Nothing, zilch, nada, and we really mean nothing has ever broken down or failed on us.

Overall, this car has not been driven too much. So at about 69K miles on the odometer, we believe it will keep on running for many more happy miles of driving. This car is just warming up.

We cannot stress enough how how happy we have been with this Prius's reliability. Nobody wants to dealwith the cost and hassle of repairs. Our experience with Toyota dealers (for scheduled maintenance) in California has been rather poor. They are so annoying when trying to upsell the stuff and services you do not need. But, really all this car needs is regular engine oil changes, tire rotations, and occasional air filters replacements. Just follow the official Toyota Scheduled Maintenance Guide as we did. No worries.

Fuel Economy

Actually, we are neither tree huggers nor environmentalists (even though we applaud those who are). But saving money on gasoline makes simple financial sense. Based on various reports, depending on your driving style andmiles driven, you can saveseveral hundreds dollar (or even over a thousand) annually when driving the Prius instead of any (non-hybrid, non-electric) average medium-sized vehicle.

My wife says she hates going to gas stations (I'm not clear why...). With this car, she says she is often taken by surprise when she hears the low-fuel beep alert and blinking light, when the car tells her that she should really consider going to that smelly place where the gasoline flows. Well, she has only a short 6-mile drive to work, so she refills every month or so. She really likes that.

Myself, as an ex-car-engineer, I love testing and playing games with fuel economy. Thus, as a quick demonstration, I took a quick 7-mile test drive, in a relatively heavy traffic (both highway and city, keeping to posted speed limits). It took me about 25 minutes. Check out the picture of the vehicle main touch screen showing theConsumption histogram from that test drive. As you see, the average fuel consumption over the 7-mile drive cycle was calculated by the car computer to show 52.2 MPG average. That's outstanding. Based on my automotive engineering training and experience, this car is a wonderful accomplishment!

Practicality

You'd be surprised to know that the second generation Prius is not exactly a small car.It is considerably roomier than you might expect given its compact exterior dimensions and aerodynamic five-door liftback shape, but with 96.2 cubic feet of passenger room, it's classified by the EPA as a mid-size car. If you sit inside, you will be pleased how much legroom is available there.

The rear hatchback is aphenomenally convenient feature of the car. We have used it so many times. Just drop the folding seats and you can transport semi-large furniture pieces inside (we did that a couple of times), or two mountain bikes (we did that too,but you need to detach front wheels). In fact, when the rear seats are folded, this car willswallow more stuff than many small size SUV's. You'd besurprised how much stuff it can haul when needed.

The ride comfort is still really nice. The suspension soaks uproad imperfections without any shudder orfloaty, boaty feeling. This car does not exhibit any objectionable rattling or creaking inside. This car is great for extended road trips. Everything seems tight and holding up pretty much like new.

The car is also reasonably quiet. At normal highway speeds,there isonly some tire hum and wind noise. Engine buzz is muted away and not too objectionable. Sure the car is not as quiet as a BMW 5-series or Mercedes-Benz E-class. But this is not an luxury car, it's a practical car. And of course, the Prius is morereliable and dependable than either the BMW or Mercedes (according to both JD Power and Consumer Reports).

Vehicle Condition

Themostimportant thing is, to the best of our knowledge, all the mechanical parts, low-voltage systems, high voltage (hybrid) power components are in normal working condition. Everything seems to be working as if the car was new. As mentioned before, the car has relatively low mileage at 69K, and we think it can easily keep going twice as far (or more).

The car feels solid and tight. The doors close smoothly with satisfying clunk, probably not much different from when it was new. There are no known squeaks or rattles.

As you see in the pictures, the factory original classic silver metallic paint job looks very clean and shiny, with no signs of aging, or flaking and no rust spots whatsoever (butsee alsoDefects, Wear and Tearsection below).

Thedark gray cloth interior upholstery is in very good condition. Not even the driver seat shows any signs of wear, scuff or rub marks. There are no broken seams either. In fact in the other 2 newer Priuses we have the so-called SofTex artificial leather that looks and feels like the real thing, but we actually do prefer the breathability and the comfort of the older Prius fabric upholstery. They feel so much nicer especially on those really cold or really hot days.

The car is also very clean. Of course, during the years of living with the car we had some minor spilling and staining (see Defects, Wear and Tear section below). But there are no stains, except the small one listed below.

The car has been always garaged. We don't like to park our cars out on the street or the driveway.

My wife and I are non-smokers. If anybody ever attempted to light up a smoke or a vape in our cars, that person would promptly be left kicked out of the car, stranded on the street curb. We are rather ruthless about that.

History / Repairs / Maintenance

Even though we reside in California now, we purchased the car when new in Michigan (Fox Automotive, Rochester Hills) on 11/20/2008. Then, on 12/2/2010, we relocated permanently to California, and the car was shipped here on a freight auto transporter (not driven).

The car was diligently maintained as prescribed by the Toyota Scheduled Maintenance Guide, as follows:

•Regular engine and oil filter changes. Two points to mention... Firstly, we have always used the original OEM Toyota oil filters (I recommend this). Secondly, we have always used the Mobil 1 fully synthetic oil (expensive, but the best engine oil, based on my retired auto-engineer's opinion).

•Rotated tires.

•Replaced engine air filter

•Replaced cabin air filter

At about 43K miles, we replaced the original tires to Michelin Defender XT(expensive, but these are the best tires for this car, based on my retired auto-engineer's opinion). These tires will probably last additional 40K miles (depending on your driving style).

Of course, we will provide all the maintenance records at the time of vehicle pickup / delivery.

We also replaced rear bumper cover due to a small bump while at a local mall parking lot. An elderly lady backed out with her Mercedes straight into our Prius's rear bumper. She was not looking around. The little bump occurred at a very slow speed (about 2 mph). Actually, my wife did not even feel any impact, except that the lady kept on insisting on pushing very slowly on our Prius bumper with her Mercedes. The damage was rather minimal. But the insurance paid for the brand new bumper cover, and new right rear light assembly (which was cracked), and the professional body shop installation, so this section of the rear end is now in pristine condition, like brand spanking new. I guess that's a good thing. Thank you very much!

Defects / Wear and Tear

The last few pictures show the most significant bumps and bruises we know of. None of them will diminish your enjoyment with your car, but here they are.

A couple years ago, I was moving some heavy exercise equipment, weights, etc in the back of the car, with rear seats folded down. On a highway, somebody suddenly swerved, another car suddenly hit the brakes hard, and I was also forced to slam the brakes to avoid hitting the car in front. Thankfully... no accident! But the heavy load slid forward and hit the back of the armrest and the passenger seat pretty hard causing some damage (good it didn't hit my head 'cause I wasn't wearing a helmet). The armrest remains fully functional so the back side folds down to reveal rear cupholders. This didn't bother us, so we never thought about fixing it.

Another picture shows a scrape on the right side front spoiler bottom lip (called "air splitter"). This happened several years ago when my wife drove onto a very high curb while parking the car. But this does not affect the vehicle driving or performance in any way, so we did not think there was any need to fix it.

There is a small stain at the deep end of the front passenger seat. My wife left a bottle of crazy glue partially closed on the seat, and some of it leaked. This is rather unobtrusive unless you know where to look.

The windshield has a tiny star crack located high up near the rearview mirror location. The crack has been stable for about 4 years, and it is not even in the field of view, so we have left it alone.

And... as is to be expected, for a used vehicle, there are also a few other minor surface scratches, or some small dents and dings from tight parking lots where other people surreptitiously smacked their door against our car, or where shopping carts rolled and bumped into our Prius. But there is no significant paint damage anywhere. These are not glaring defects that you would immediately notice unless we show them to you. If you need more pictures, I will be happy to send them to you. (eBay is limiting the number of photos I can submit.)

Major Options We Wanted

1. Vehicle Stability Control. Nowadays, the government(NHTSA)mandates that all new vehicles sold in the US must have VSC as a standard safety feature. But in 2009, it was an optional thing. For us, from safety standpoint, we absolutely decided we had to have VSC. Just think about it, you really don't want to skid and slide out of control on slippery surfaces. The VSC computers and individual brakes keep the car going in the direction you want to go even if you brake really hard on slippery roads. The key point here is not to lose control.

2. Backup Camera. In 2009 it was a relatively rare feature. But it is a super useful safety feature when backing up. You want to make sure you see all family pets or kids behind you (and the rear mirrors do not show all you need to see). Every car should have it, and next year it is supposed to become a mandatory standard safety feature for all new cars sold in the US.

3. Smart Key System. This is just an awesome item of convenience. This let's you open and close the car without taking the key fob out of your pocket or purse. The system also senses when the key has been accidentally left inside the car, in which case, the car will warn you and won't lock the doors. And of course, you don't need to do put the key into any slots to start your Prius. The car will sense that the key is with you, and you're ready to push the Power button and go. Awesome. (By the way, this is a feature you must pay big extra bucks on some BMW's or Mercedes's.)

Warranty

Even though some warranties have expired because of the car age, this car continues to be covered by various Emission Control Warranties. For example, if you live in California, emission control components are warranted by Toyota for 15 yrs. or 150K miles. What it means is, if it were to fail future smog tests, Toyota will fix it free under warranty.

Shipping / Delivery

The buyer is responsible for vehicle pickup or shipping.If you are thinking of shipping the vehicle, make sure you research the fright quotes and adjust your maximum bid accordingly. If you plan to fly to LA to pick up the car, likewise figure out the flight and taxi fares.

On May-15-17 at 09:45:16 PDT, seller added the following information:

Addendum: Accident Reports Confusion

There is some really confusing (inaccurate) information coming from eBay/AutoCheck. Ithink AutoCheck is a wonderfully helpful service (usually), however, their data accuracy might be leaving something to bedesired.

06/10/2013 CA Police Report LEFT FRONT IMPACT COLLISION ACCIDENT REPORTED (Case #:13-80466)Yes, that in fact happened. I basically forgot about it because it was so insignificant in the life of the car... So on that day, a young lady drove into the rear bumper of my wife's car on an intersection... As my wife started moving forward on green light, she was forced to hit the brakes hard due to oncoming traffic. As she came to a sudden stop, a young lady failed to brake in time and rear-ended our Prius gently. The whole incident happened at a very low impact speed, I'd say about 3 mph. My wife barely felt any impact. The confusing part in the police report title says "LEFT FRONT IMPACT". That's misleading. The impact area on our car was the rear bumper. The other young lady's car hit our Prius with her car's left front area. Anyway, the other party was deemed at fault by the police officer report. The insurance paid for our repair in full. But it was just a minor scratch damage to the rear bumper cover, so the cover was repainted.
09/24/2014 CA State Agency ACCIDENT REPORTED, Event Date is datereported to AutoCheckWe have absolutely no idea what the heck they are talking about. Nothing, absolutely nothing happened on, or around, that date. Our Prius was notinvolved in any accident. And we would have known of course, because if there were any accident, then repair would have been needed. There was nothing. The car was humming along in 2014 without any incidents, accident,hiccups, bumps or bruises whatsoever. I think that the database from AutoCheck is simply nottoo reliable...
By the way, as a side note, both my wife and myself have perfectly clean driving records. No traffic tickets at all. Not even a single speeding ticket. Also, we are receiving a "Good Driver Discount" on our car insurance (AMICA) policy. Sorry... do not mean to brag, or anything. :-)