[Mailliwivad]

I have an opportunity to purchase a 09 HiHy limited, loaded with about 75000 miles on it (about $15000). I've heard it's very reliable and that alot of people have good luck with the traction battery, but a lot of resources out there say 8-10 years or so and it will require replacement, which of course the vehicle is just now heading into it's 8th year. However, I've also read that Toyota considers traction battery a"life of the vehicle" component. What's the consensus on this? Am I being overly concerned here, or should I expect a battery replacement soon?

I know this issue in general had been discussed before and I've read some of those posts and done searches, but I'd love to have some feedback from experienced HiHy owners.
Thank you.

 

[fj62]

Absolutely no problems with my 09 Highlander hybrid other than recalls and rear hatch replacement. Make sure all of the recalls were completed and rear hatch hinges are ok. I have less than 50,000 miles on mine, the brakes look almost new. You will be having to replace the plugs at 1000,000 miles. Everything is still tight - no rattles.
My son's father-in-law need to replace his highbred battery in his Prius. Other people on this list have described changing out just the bad cells. The second generation Highlanders seem to have less problems than the first generation.

 

[Mailliwivad]

Thanks for the info. Yeah, I know the guy selling it. The recalls were done so that is good. In terms of the rear hatch, just make sure the hinges are not bent? If it closes and the motor works ok, then there should be no issues right?

My main concern was that the hybrid components would go bad since they are so expensive to replace. If course it is always a risk, but from my research it seems more common to have these vehicles last a very long time than to have those components fail. Like someone else said "this is either one of my best decisions or my worst decisions".

Also really surprised how much these vehicles are valued in my area. For this 09 limited edition with 75000 miles, avg selling price is still about $19000. My coworker wants $15000, so it seems reasonable. These vehicles seem to hold their value pretty good.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

 

[roboron]

Old thread, but watch for excessive oil consumption.... though at that low miles, it probably hasn't raised its ugly head.... yet.

Get service records, make sure it's had VERY regular oil changes. I'd recommend reading up on occasional oil treatments like Marvel Mystery Oil... something to keep the internal oil passages from getting plugged up... and starving piston/cylinder low-side oiling. Sludge build-up is a concern on Hybrids... since the gas engine often runs slow for extended times.

Mine is a 2008 with around 204k miles on it now... and it uses over 1qt every 1500 miles. When we got it, it only had 120k miles, and oil consumption was negligible, and we always had the oil changed at Toyota every 3k miles.

In warm months, we get 28MPG on long highway trips, around 27 average mixed MPG (keeping maximum speed to around 62-65MPH, allowing the electric drive to assist). In our midwest winter it drops to around 25 MPG.

I have a feeling that my traction battery has several weak cells... but Toyota chooses to not notify owners this is happening via the computer... it saves them warranty money (though at >200k miles, I'm not saying it should be covered). I see it go from purple (full discharge) to green (full charge) in a matter of less than a minute sometimes... seems unrealistic.