FOR SALE

2009 TOYOTA PRIUS HYBRID S 10th Anniversary (JDM) -sold

2nd Generation (XW20)

VIN: NHW20-3534483

COLOUR: Blizzard Crystal Pearl (070), TRIM: Beige Cloth (FF41)

Mileage: 51,674 (Sept 24, 2024)

Price: $13,750

Engine: 1NZ-FXE is a hybrid 1.5 L (1,497 cc), 76hp, 82 lb/ft Torque

Electric Motor: 67hp, 295 lb/ft torque

Combined output: 110hp

Accelleration: 0-100km/hr 10.6 sec.

Fuel Economy: 4.0 L/100km

Best Car In The World?

If your definition of 'Best Car' is the one with the lowest carbon footprint, best gas mileage, highest reliability, greatest longevity and lowest cost of ownership then the XW20 Prius could very well be considered the 'Best Car In The World'. It has won numerous technical awards, 'Car of the Year', 'Engine of the Year', as well as Most Dependable Car and Highest Customer Satisfaction from JD Power.

The 2nd Generation Prius is known for its extremely high build quality and efficiency. It is also spacious, refined and surprisingly fun to drive. Its successors, while becoming larger and more powerful and with marginally better fuel economy, did so at a cost to reliability (in relative terms). The Generation 2 Prius (XW20) stands out as one of the best automobiles ever built.

Lowest Cost of Ownership of Any Car?

The largest cost of owning a car comes from depreciation. A typical vehicle will lose half of its value every 4 or 5 years. Some lose half their value in as little as two years. Generally speaking, expensive vehicles lose a higher percentage than cheaper vehicles.

When a car is within warranty, the first few years of depreciation are affected by what is going on in the new car showrooms: Shortages drive the used car prices up, and incentives drive them down. Post warranty, anticipated running costs affect the vehicle's value: Depreciation starts to level off, but around the same time the maintenance costs start to increase.

An older car that is still reliable will suffer the least depreciation. Couple that with low running costs and you have the lowest overall cost of ownership.

A person who buys it now for $14k could probably drive this Prius for 20,000km per year for five years and still sell it for $7k when it has 150,000km on it. $7k depreciation over 5 years or $1,400k per year. The Prius will return less than 5L/100km in average fuel economy in the real world (it is rated for 4.0L/100km which is achievable in good conditions). This will cost perhaps $1,500 per year in fuel. These cars are extremely reliable and the servicing costs are very low - budget $500 per year in maintenance. Add that up and this Prius should cost the owner under $300 per month for basic transportation. That is about as good as it gets for decent reliable transportation.

About this Prius

This car featured is a Japanese Domestic Market Toyota Prius S 10th Anniversary edition. The '10th Anniversary is a 'run out' trim and option package that was a produced during the last 6 months of Gen 2 production.

Options in the '10th Anniversary' edition included:

- HID headlights with auto leveling

- Leather wrapped steering wheel

- HDD (hard drive based) Navigation system

- Intelligent Parking Assist

- SKS with the original key box

- S-VSC Stability Control

- cruise control

- mic & mic amp (for handsfree)

This car was imported from Japan in September 2024, and shipped to Calgary from Vancouver. It has 51,600km (Sept 25, 2024), looks new and is impossible to reasonably fault. It does not have a single rock chip on the front clip or windshield. Henninger Toyota completed a an oil and transmission service in Sept 2024, and installed a set of Michelin Defender tires at a total cost of approximately $2,000.

This is a Japanese Domestic Market (JDM) car. Japan is an unbelievable source of pristine, low mileage vehicles. You just don't find older vehicles in this condition in Canada. There are a couple of drawbacks: The steering is RHD which takes some getting used to. Some insurance companies will only insure the car for liability. The Infotainment and Navigation as well as the button controls are all in Japanese. However, if you can work around these compromises, this is an excellent opportunity to get what is still a very presentable machine for a fraction of the new car cost, and with extremely low running costs.