Buying a 2nd hand hybrid: What to consider?

homerun_homer

We’re considering getting a second hand petrol hybrid. I found one that I’d love to test drive and potentially buy. It’s a 2018, respectable mileage, with 3 years warranty from the brand’s dealership. What worries me are the hidden costs, like repairs, maintenance etc, and how long could you realistically get out of the battery.

I’d love any advice on this before we potentially make the jump. We are not bit car purchasers, have always had hand me downs from family and don’t replace our car until we have to. If we kept this attitude with a hybrid would the battery eventually fail and cost a bomb to replace, or become harder to sell or trade in?

User1998

Repair costs are the same as any other car. Hybrid batteries are designed to last the lifetime of the car and generally don’t need repair.

Telling us the make & model you are buying would be useful.

pauly58

We have a Honda Jazz Hybrid from 2022, no problems at all, averages 62 mpg, I have had 80mpg driving gently, loads of room & the magic rear seats are very clever.

joe1303l

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058344328/buying-a-2nd-hand-hybrid-what-to-consider

On a 6 year old PHEV, the HV battery would be my primary concern. Low mileage may well mean the car has been used primarily on Electric hence the HV battery would be cycled heavily. If the 3 year warranty covers expensive components such as the HV battery, Inverter etc. you should have nothing to fear. If it’s a Mapfre or Carprotect type of warranty, read the fine print as they don’t like to pay out.

electricus

If you’re looking at a Toyota Hybrid, each annual approved service extends the warranty for another year, giving up to 15 years cover I think.

https://www.toyota.ie/owners/maintenance-and-servicing/hybrid-service

https://www.toyota.ie/relax

homerun_homer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121958343#Comment_121958343

Looking at a Kia petrol Hybrid, not a PHEV. Mileage 57k.

prawnsambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121958611#Comment_121958611

Why a hybrid and why this particular one?

homerun_homer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121958654#Comment_121958654

This ticks a number of boxes in what we are looking for in buying a car, size, specs, budget. I’m not sure if you’re question is aimed at why we’d bother go hybrid at all, or not go all the way to EV or PHEV. We’re not prepared to invest in an EV if that’s the reason you ask, and we like the idea of a hybrid for our next car.

kanuseeme

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121960942#Comment_121960942

Whats your budget?

I had 2 hybrids and 4 phevs, hybrids for me are just as economical as a diesel car, without the associated ad blue or dpf problems, the phevs suit me down to the ground, 75% of my driving is on electric, typically I fill the car up before going on a long trip, what is left over usually lasts me till the next long trip, repeat, usually around 2 months.

A phev is much the same as a hybrid, the only thing you have to do is plug it in.

I have heard nothing bad about kia hybrids, kia seem to be a reliable brand.

Is it a kia niro? the phevs are much the same price, if its the case, then I would go for the phev,

homerun_homer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121961050#Comment_121961050

I’ve found the Kia Phevs to be that little bit higher cost vs standard Hybrids four our budget we’re looking at. The other factor is that you lose some boot space too, which we’ll be needing as we’ve a baby due. We wouldn’t have the set up at home for home charging a PHEV, I know it can be done a lot slower with standard plug but that’s not ideal.

...Ghost...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121961158#Comment_121961158

What you are looking at is considered a mild hybrid. Basically it's a more efficient petrol car and it'll be just fine. No plugging in, but also no benefit of electric driving you would get with a PHEV, or full BEV. I don't know what your needs are, so won't go into BEV mode. PHEV could be worth considering though. While they are a bit pricier, the benefit is huge, as you get an average of 30km on EV mode with a full charge. That is most of your driving per day I would guess at a fraction of the cost of petrol. An outdoor socket would suffice to charge the small battery over a few hours as long as you have off street parking.

You would be amazed at how much space you think you need with a baby on the way. Congratulations by the way 😀. We have been driving Nissan Leafs for 6 years and in that time, 3 babies have come along. No issue fitting what we needed in the car, but then we didn't buy military humvee sized buggies for our kids.

prawnsambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121960942#Comment_121960942

Well my question was to elicit the use case that made a hybrid the best fit. As others have said, a PHEV is often a better mix, since you can fully charge the small battery on a standard 13amp socket overnight and get a decent electric range without troubling the petrol engine too much. Depending on your amount of use obviously.

homerun_homer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121961476#Comment_121961476

A PHEV could be a contender if I come across one that ticks the same boxes and in budget and once I get a look at the boot space to know that it wouldn’t affect us too much. Were going from VW Golf so this Niro range all are surely bigger space even on PHEV.

prawnsambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121961500#Comment_121961500

Well the Niro PHEV has a reported 65km range on the 11kWh battery, which is decent enough. But have a look around, there are quite a few options out there.

homerun_homer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121961525#Comment_121961525

Cheers, I’ll look at the ones they have there if I get out to look at the one I had eyed up. The baby is due this week so not sure when I’ll be able to check them out, as we called in Saturday and the dealership was closed without saying anywhere online.

prawnsambo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121961550#Comment_121961550

Well you can do a lot of your research on the interwebs and draw up a shortlist for testing. You might end up with just a couple when you take in price, space, range on battery etc.

Alun

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121961525#Comment_121961525

That's for the 2023 model year version, the previous one had 54 km of range and 8.9 kWh.

kanuseeme

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121961500#Comment_121961500

boot space is around the same, hybrid compared to a 2016 golf, the phev is 50 litres smaller, this car has nearly twice the boot capacity but its a saloon, the thing I like about hatch backs is that you can Tetris stuff into them, making full use of the space.

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/2018-volkswagen-passat-gte-1-4-tsi-auto/35744844

homerun_homer

So I went to test drive it today, loved it. Put down our deposit and went for a celebratory cuppa, when we went back to get our paperwork we were told the car had got a deposit put on it last night.

This is our first time buying a car through a dealership so we’re not off to a good start.

...Ghost...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121966575#Comment_121966575

That's really unfortunate and poor comms from the garage. Surely they have a system to know when a car is taken off the shelf so this doesn't happen. You'll find something soon.

vimalandrew

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121958611#Comment_121958611

You should know that South Korean cars will rip off after 80000 km. Engine will start knocking. So I advice you to buy a Toyota RAV4 or corolla. Prius is the best option. Plenty of Japanese imported Priuss are available. You are guaranteed that it wont have a single issue.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121970208#Comment_121970208

Since the Kia have a 7 years/150k warranty any buyer/owner should be vigilant that you claim for the 2nd replacement engine under the warranty after the 1st one was replaced at 80k before the warranty expires.

Clo-Clo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121966575#Comment_121966575

Ok so first off I fully rate hybrids, some on here don't. Maybe explain the requirements and Im sure we can give advice.

A dealer selling a car while in the middle of a transaction with a buyer, unless they made you aware, I would stay a million miles away from. Just my opinion.

Mad_Lad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121960942#Comment_121960942

Not sure about the Kia hybrids but in my opinion and if budget permits then I'd get a Toyota hybrid because they are bullet proof and many go for 400,000 miles + in the USA as taxis.

I had the MKII a 2007 traded it around 8 years ago for a 2015 Leaf and it was still excellent at just over 200,000 kms, I wouldn't be at all concerned about getting an older one once it has a full service history.

Kia have good warranties I think 7 years 140K Kms ? whichever comes first.

You are right to spend within your means because full EV isn't cheap and I'm on my 3rd but I won't be buying any new car again in a hurry, 40 ish K for a good EV with decent range isn't cheap and depreciation will be a factor.

There's a lot to be said for keeping money in the bank than spending so much on cars that depreciate so heavily. Wise decision, a lot of people are going on PCP spending so much more than they would in the past but that balloon comes back to bite sooner or later because at some point you realise that buying new cars is a waste of money.

Range and recharge times are still an issue along with infrastructure and if we hadn't the Diesel outlander at home and only 1 car I certainly wouldn't have an EV.

Send us a few links as to what you're interested in because I'm not to familiar with kia hybrids.

Most hybrids have CVT gearbox and they take a bit of getting used to, fine and dandy in traffic and all that but on the open road when you put the food down you'll notice it's very strange lol.

Alun

Most hybrids have CVT gearbox and they take a bit of getting used to, fine and dandy in traffic and all that but on the open road when you put the food down you'll notice it's very strange lol.

FYI the Kia hybrids (HEV and PHEV) have 6-speed DCT transmissions,

Mad_Lad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121973342#Comment_121973342

That's excellent, that would make a massive difference, not a fan of the CVT, I wonder why Toyota never went with dual clutch ?

eagerv

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121974769#Comment_121974769

I'd say simplicity. Always amazed how popular the Prius (Usually earlier models) are in developing countries. Was talking with a Taxi owner in Phnom Penh a month ago whose Prius had astronomical kms. He said was stopped at 300k many years ago. Original engine and cvt, but had replaced battery a few times. Any back street mechanics can replace the simple battery at a cost far far less than a clutch for a European car..

Mad_Lad

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121974804#Comment_121974804

I think the CVT in the Prius is unique, not your normal CVT, part of one of the motors forms part of the gearbox which is why it's so reliable and why an oil change is recommended and probably why they stuck with CVT.

Normal CVT are not very reliable and I would avoid like the plague but interesting to see that the Kia Hybrids use Dual Clutch, that's a huge positive, far better to drive too, not saying Dual CLutch doesn't give problems but they are normally a lot more reliable than CVT.

Indeed everything in Europe is gone ridiculously expensive, replacing the battery in a prius, while rare is a relatively simple job, the cost, like everything else is a turn off.