Japanese import Prius?

zilog_jones

I'm considering getting a 3rd generation Prius and noticed there are quite a lot of used Japanese imports for sale, both here and in the UK. Does anyone have experience with these? Any significant differences or potential pitfalls? I noticed most seem to have aftermarket stereos fitted, not sure if they've been replaced to work with the local FM band or what. I believe the trip computer will be stuck in km/l but haven't heard much besides that.

I found a few threads about people importing them only to find the batteries dead once they come off the boat, but these posts were from quite a while ago - maybe the exporters are better at preparing hybrids now, or the newer models are just more resilient to being left on a boat for a month?

I've not heard of dead batteries coming off the boat however NiMh batteries of that time do loose a lot of charge when left idle compared to Lithium. The NiMh cells need to be kept topped up and if they go low enough they need to be taken out of the pack and charged on a proper Nimh charger and that usually sorts it out.

You can even now get NiMh batteries today for consumer products like AAA and AA size that are LSD or low self discharge and some of the best are made by Panasonic called Eneloop. Unfortunately most off the shelf battery chargers are Junk and you need a quality charger and preferably not a fast charge one, they're junk.

Anyway the highest mileage prius out there yet I think is it in Canada ? 750,000 miles or kms ? can't rem.

The are good cars but you should be able to find one in Ireland 2nd hand.

Also the Nissan leaf 2014+ battery is much improved from the original and worth checking out if the mileage suits because they are cracking cars to drive and you'll probably pick one up cheaper than the prius.

zilog_jones

Yeah the Leaf is cheap and tempting, but I often drive to Limerick and further afield so it just wouldn't be practical for me.

I've driven a couple of Priuses and like them a lot, but it seems at least half on the used market are Japanese imports - they can be significantly cheaper than Irish models and are usually better spec, but I'm not sure they can be trusted (could get screwed with insurance too). My other problem is there are too many boring colours over here, so may have to go to the UK to get what I want anyway.

Del2005

zilog_jones wrote: »

Yeah the Leaf is cheap and tempting, but I often drive to Limerick and further afield so it just wouldn't be practical for me.

I've driven a couple of Priuses and like them a lot, but it seems at least half on the used market are Japanese imports - they can be significantly cheaper than Irish models and are usually better spec, but I'm not sure they can be trusted. My other problem is there are too many boring colours over here, so may have to go to the UK to get what I want anyway.

It's getting difficult to insure JDM cars so ring a few companies for quotes before buying.

zilog_jones

zilog_jones wrote: »

Yeah the Leaf is cheap and tempting, but I often drive to Limerick and further afield so it just wouldn't be practical for me.

I've driven a couple of Priuses and like them a lot, but it seems at least half on the used market are Japanese imports - they can be significantly cheaper than Irish models and are usually better spec, but I'm not sure they can be trusted (could get screwed with insurance too). My other problem is there are too many boring colours over here, so may have to go to the UK to get what I want anyway.

The 30 Kwh Leaf should do 260 Kms with a 30 min QC or maybe 280 kms with a 40 min qc. It does charge a good bit faster than the 24 kwh and your fuel is free while charging from the public chargers and you can't fast charge a Prius.

You'll be surprised how bad your mpg would be in the Prius with 40-50 max kms ev range. 200 mpg highly doubtful unless you can keep the battery topped up most of the time.

Anyway if that weren't an option then I'd wait for the Leaf II or Tesla model 3 or possibly the Opel Ampera -E fully electric in 2 years, that's not that long to wait other than that i'd buy a MK III Prius 2nd hand and save a tonne of cash for the proper long range electrics. The PHEV 8.8 Kwh Prius won't be available until 2017 anyway so another year to wait for the 300 km electrics isn't much.

Fully electric is vastly better and no maintenance. You'll have to give the leaf in for an inspection once a year or every 30,000 kms mainly for the warranty and I suppose good to track the mileage.

Don't get me wrong, I'm sure the Prius is a great car but the new Opel Ampera would be vastly better and have about 80 kms ev range.

The Prius PHEV would have been better if it had arrived 4 years ago but Toyota are so far behind now that it's embarrassing.

zilog_jones

Del2005 wrote: »

It's getting difficult to insure JDM cars so ring a few companies for quotes before buying.

Yeah I noticed that too, thanks.

Deleted User wrote: »

The 30 Kwh Leaf should do 260 Kms with a 30 min QC or maybe 280 kms with a 40 min qc. It does charge a good bit faster than the 24 kwh and your fuel is free while charging from the public chargers and you can't fast charge a Prius.

I thought the range was more like 170-200 km in real life? It's certainly something I'd consider once they've got the range over 300km, but I don't think it would be a practical option for me right now.

You'll be surprised how bad your mpg would be in the Prius with 40-50 max kms ev range. 200 mpg highly doubtful unless you can keep the battery topped up most of the time.

I'm not sure I understand your figures. I'd be expecting around 55 MPG with a Mk. III Prius, which will be a significant improvement over my current car (it will at least offset the cost of petrol vs. diesel). Range in EV mode is about 2km - it's more a gimmick than anything else (though could be useful for parking manoeuvres). Or do you mean the PHEV? That's more like 65-70 MPG with a 15 km range in EV mode. Either option will mean lower running costs (especially maintenance and tax) compared to my current car.

The Prius PHEV would have been better if it had arrived 4 years ago but Toyota are so far behind now that it's embarrassing.

It did arrive 4 years ago, just not here There are many used examples available in the UK, but I'm not sure I'd go for one as they seem like too much of a compromise - the short EV range would only cover about 80% of my commute, luggage space is reduced, and the fuel tank is smaller so HV range is also reduced.

zilog_jones

zilog_jones wrote: »

I thought the range was more like 170-200 km in real life? It's certainly something I'd consider once they've got the range over 300km, but I don't think it would be a practical option for me right now.

The 30 Kwh leaf should be easily able to manage 140 kms with 160-170 possible in warmer weather.

What I meant by the 30 Kwh Leaf having 260 kms I meant including a 30 min fast charge.

If you have the 6.6 Kw optional charger in the Leaf you may find that when you reach your destination that you can plug into a standard street charge point, or SCP and get a significant charge in the car in 2-3 hrs enough to either reach you next destination or to seriously reduce the time you need to spend on fast chargers. I suggest you take one for a test drive for a few days, the 30 kwh that is with the 6.6 Kw charger but most dealers don't import the 6.6 kw charger because it costs 900 Euro's less and they want to keep the list price as cheap as possible. The standard 3.3 kw charger is fine for most usage except when you want to take the car on longer trips and can find some SCP's then the 6.6 kw charger is extremely useful.

zilog_jones wrote: »

I'm not sure I understand your figures. I'd be expecting around 55 MPG with a Mk. III Prius, which will be a significant improvement over my (it will at least offset the cost of petrol vs. diesel). Range in EV mode is about 2km - it's more a gimmick than anything else (though could be useful for parking manoeuvres). Or do you mean the PHEV? That's more like 65-70 MPG with a 15 km range in EV mode. Either option will mean lower running costs (especially maintenance and tax) compared to my current car.

I could get 60-64 mpg int he MK II Prius after some practice, 55 mpg if I drove it like I stole it.

The MK III Prius should have about the same 1.5 miles full ev range up to 30 mph however this is the thing most people don't get, you only use EV mode when stopped at lights if the engine doesn't want to turn off it's much better then to let the car decide when is best to use ev power and that's mainly for acceleration and slower speeds up to 75 Kph where you can use a blend of battery only power and neutral or also known as pulse and glide and this doesn't mean you have to drive slow it means you can use the hybrid system to it's full advantage when road conditions permit. If you run the battery very low then you'll have a lot less power and the car becomes more inefficient.

Beware of online posted mpg figures and also those in U.S mpg. A lot of people reset the trip computer before each trip to see what mpg they got on this trip and base this on their idea of fuel calculations. Ideally you never reset the trip computer. Resetting before each trip isn't accurate in the slightest.

If the 8.8 Kwh PHEV 40 odd KM meets did you say 80 % of your driving needs then the PHEV makes no sense at a cost probably 10-12 K Euro's more expensive and possibly more than the 30 Kwh Leaf which would meet much more of your driving needs. As I said you really should give the 30 Kwh a spin for a few days and if you genuinely think the 30 Kwh Leaf is unsuitable then I would wait 2 years for a 300 Km range ev with possible twice the fast charging power.

zilog_jones wrote: »

It did arrive 4 years ago, just not here There are many used examples available in the UK, but I'm not sure I'd go for one as they seem like too much of a compromise - the short EV range would only cover about 80% of my commute, luggage space is reduced, and the fuel tank is smaller so HV range is also reduced.

Unfortunately for Toyota they have spent far too much on a flawed technology, Hydrogen and refuse to invest on EV tech.

Unfortunately you can't have the Opel Ampera, the new model with 80 km EV range because you have nowhere to have it fixed if something goes wrong and Opel Ireland probably wouldn't even service it. Same with the PHEV Prius.

My advice to you would be pick up a MK III Prius and wait two years for the 300 Km range electrics to arrive and make your mind up then , provided you are sure the 30 Kwh leaf is not suitable for you but you really should give it a few days test drive.

colm_mcm

I just need to pull you up on the "55 mpg if I drove it like I stole it" bit. You will not get anywhere near 55mpg on a mk2 Prius unless you drive very carefully. It is of course to get more than 55' but even you would have to admit that takes a big adjustment in driving style. Beyond taking it handy.

colm_mcm

colm_mcm wrote: »

I just need to pull you up on the "55 mpg if I drove it like I stole it" bit. You will not get anywhere near 55mpg on a mk2 Prius unless you drive very carefully. It is of course to get more than 55' but even you would have to admit that takes a big adjustment in driving style. Beyond taking it handy.

I never got less than 55 mpg in the Prius no matter how hard I drove. Most people don't drive hard all the time and it's the average that's calculated over a tank.

Driving more carefully (not "very carefully") saw me get 60-64 mpg. And it't not just how carefully you drive it's about how you learn how to exploit the hybrid system.

Please don't tell me what I got or didn't get in the Prius I had for 4 years.

colm_mcm

I don't doubt what you got. What I'm disputing is how you inaccurately describe your driving styles. For someone looking to buy one, it's setting a totally unrealistic expectation.
Unless you have a magic Prius - in which case I apologise.

zilog_jones

Deleted User wrote: »

What I meant by the 30 Kwh Leaf having 260 kms I meant including a 30 min fast charge.

I occasionally have to go to Dublin for work, and if I wanted to go there and back in one day it would make it too impractical with the extra charging - not to mention the additional time of walking to and from the nearest charging point once I do get there. Once the range is up and charging points in workplaces become more common (which I'm sure can happen if the government continue to incentivize EV use), I'd be more likely to consider one.

I also drive to Belfast maybe once a year or so - I can currently go there and back on a single tank. I know that won't be achievable with a Prius and its relatively small 45 litre tank, but it would be only adding 2 minutes to my trip, not several hours.

Beware of online posted mpg figures and also those in U.S mpg. A lot of people reset the trip computer before each trip to see what mpg they got on this trip and base this on their idea of fuel calculations. Ideally you never reset the trip computer. Resetting before each trip isn't accurate in the slightest.

I would consider the trip computer not particularly accurate in general - more of a guideline than anything else. I've seen Prius owners saying they can be off by about 2 MPG or so.

I'm basing figures off Fuelly, based on actual figures of distance driven vs. fuel used (no trip computer input). And yes I am looking at imperial MPG (you can change preferences on the site). Averages based on about 4200 Prius users are 56.5 MPG for the Mk. III and 53.4 MPG for the Mk. II (assuming 2009 = Mk. II, which is true for the yanks). Of course these figures will biased towards the kind of people interested in recording their fuel consumption.

I can get >55 MPG in my 406 if I really try (mainly by not exceeding 100 km/h), but it goes down to around 30-35 MPG driving around town - I'm hoping the Prius will do much better in the latter.

If the 8.8 Kwh PHEV 40 odd KM meets did you say 80 % of your driving...

I'm talking about used cars here, not one that hasn't even been launched yet. The Mk. I Prius PHEV will do 80% of my commute (with 4.4 kWh battery and 15k range), and used prices are barely any different from the standard Prius. Yes, they are ridiculously expensive new in comparison.

Unfortunately for Toyota they have spent far too much on a flawed technology, Hydrogen and refuse to invest on EV tech.

I think there is potential with FCVs. The problem is that petrol ICEs and BEVs have both been around for well over a century, along with the required infrastructure. It's probably another few decades from being practical, but I don't think it should be discounted.

Sounds like PHEV or EV then is out if Cork to Belfast trips are common.

There is no way a PHEV Prius justifies the cost. At least the BMW I3 Rex can go 70 odd miles on EV then the Generator takes over and it probably wouldn't cost much more than the Prius PHEV. You can also fast charge a BMW Rex on the fast charger.

The BMW I3 is also available to buy in Ireland now and they're upgrading the range in the Summer so for 2017 should have about 50 kms more range at least.

A 300 km ev will do the Belfast trip with one QC. so if that also doesn't suit then you'll be in for a very long wait for electrics to reach 500 km range. And for most of the time it's unnecessary. Or if money is of no concern then a Tesla Model S P 90 D should suit you much better. Should easily manage 450 kms.

If I were you and looking to get away from Diesel then a MK III Prius or BMW I3 Rex would make excellent cars, particularly the BMW.

A Prius PHEV makes no financial sense.

zilog_jones

Again, I'm looking at the used market - somewhere around 2012-2013. There is no difference in price between a decent spec Prius and PHEV in the UK at this age - depreciation's great, eh? The durability of the Li-ion batteries are a bit more of an unknown as they are newer technology (for Toyota anyway), although I've heard of no serious problems so far.

BMW i3 is out of my league, and I think it's too small.

zilog_jones

zilog_jones wrote: »

Again, I'm looking at the used market - somewhere around 2012-2013. There is no difference in price between a decent spec Prius and PHEV in the UK at this age - depreciation's great, eh? The durability of the Li-ion batteries are a bit more of an unknown as they are newer technology (for Toyota anyway), although I've heard of no serious problems so far.

BMW i3 is out of my league, and I think it's too small.

Yeah sorry I was mixing this thread up with the Prius PHEV one.

If the difference in price between the current gen plug in and the normal prius is minimum then think about it it would certainly help efficiency but that greatly depends how much you can keep the battery topped up.

I think it's got about 4 Kwh in the Current gen PHEV and about 1 Kwh (500 watt hrs usable) in the normal Prius with NiMh battery.

Either way you won't go far wrong with a Prius, they are very reliable cars and in my opinion far better than Diesels.

Lithium battery tech is improving pretty quickly. The current gen leaf battery for instance is a lot more durable than the original from 2011 - July + built Leafs.

The Opel Ampera (called Chevy Volt in the U.S) for instance, one was tested recently at 300,000 miles and showed 0 capacity loss. But the Ampera uses only about 50% capacity of the battery which greatly helps but as cycle life improves that will reduce the need to hold so much of the battery. The Leaf uses about 97% of the battery so there are far greater stresses on it.