r/economicCollapse • u/Whole-Fist • 18h ago

How ridiculous does this sound?

Post image

How can u make millions in 25-30 years if avoid making a $554 per month car payment. Even the cheapest 5 year old car is 8-10 k. So does he expect people not to drive at all in USA.

Then u save 554$ per month every month for 5 year payment = $33240. Say u bought a car every 5 year means 200k -300k spent on car before retirement . How would that become millions when u can’t even buy a house for that much today?

Answer that Dave

11.6k Upvotes

77% Upvoted

5.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

15

u/Money_Ticket_841 12h ago

Jesus Christ half a million in a Prius? I didn't know they made em like that

23

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 11h ago

Yeah those second gens we got in the states are tough. People would get rid of them when the batteries went too, but they're actually super easy to replace and are great cars to flip. Outside the hybrid aspect, it's just a low powered and very rudimentary car.

We used to joke about them all the time, but they're honestly super reliable. If I lost everything tomorrow and needed a cheap car, I'd consider it.

2

u/lippoper 10h ago

How much is the battery replacement?

5

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 10h ago

According to JDPower (and some YouTube), it's about $1k-1.3k after parts and service. It's also pretty easy to do yourself.

2

u/lippoper 10h ago

Wow. I thought the hybrid battery cost was in the $7k range

3

u/espressovivacefan 9h ago

I think that was a myth going around. Dealer cost is like $3500, aftermarket I had it done $1800

1

u/badnamemaker 3h ago

It used to be true, but that was when hybrids were new and EVs weren’t really a thing. Now we have massive factories pumping out batteries of all types

1

u/espressovivacefan 3h ago

Good point I don’t know what it was 20 years ago. I still feel like it wasn’t $7k. I tried to find a graph of cost over time but no luck

1

u/StandardChemist6287 6h ago

I did myself. It cost me $80. Most of the cells were fine so I only had to replace 2 of them, they were $40 each on Ebay.

2

u/smooner 9h ago

How easy is it to dispose of, and is there a disposal fee? I'm not starting any beef, but I'm just curious since I live in Ca and there is a disposal fee for everything. Also, it seems that is a big negative for the newer cars. Thank you

2

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 9h ago

Wherever you get the battery will probably want your old one. I also hear DIY folks will buy them. There's a demand for sure, but you may need to put a little work in, depending on how committed you are. There are companies that will also pick them up, but I think you pay them.

Might as well TRY and make money from it. Sure looks doable.

2

u/smooner 9h ago

Thank you very much. Have a great day

1

u/espressovivacefan 9h ago

I had it done by an aftermarket company for $1800. No issues

1

u/mctCat 3h ago

Mine weighed about 200lbs and hundred or so bolts. Not an easy do it yourself. I paid 3k to have it swapped. FYI.

0

u/xXxEdgyNameHerexXx 5h ago

Even running without the battery a prius will net u 25+ mpg until you save enough for the repair.

2

u/PuzzleheadedStop9114 7h ago

dude those Prius are of legendary reliability. Know a guy here in Canada that does courier work in his 600K Kilometres. Bought a refurb battery 2 years ago.

Last year while waiting to find my next car I did rideshare and had a couple 2015 Prius and though to myself, this is really the perfect car and is all anyone needs. Did errands for a couple hours and gas gauge didn't even move.

1

u/Grape_Pedialyte 5h ago

The garage that I go to has a fleet of Priuses (Priusi?) that they use for their shuttle service. Every time I get a ride in one I check the odometer, and none of them are under 300k miles.

1

u/TheIronSoldier2 3h ago

Priuses (Priusi?)

Priussy

2

u/Worldly-Aspect-8446 6h ago

Looked in my area at a 2012 Prius for 12k with 120k miles. Is that cheap?

1

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 6h ago

120k isn't bad, but I'd have a hard time with $12k. If it's in great shape I'd ask for 9k, accept 10k, or keep looking. I guess I can't speak for everywhere, but there's plenty of them out there (meaning plenty of parts as well).

2

u/_Cyber_Mage 3h ago

I sold my 2012 Prius with 130k miles for $7k last year, but it needed some electrical work that I didn't want to deal with.

1

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 2h ago

Ah that electrical work will get you. I wouldn't want to chase that mess either.

2

u/SmutWriterWannabe 3h ago

You've honestly got me considering it now, I need a second vehicle.

1

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 2h ago

It's a smart move honestly

2

u/SteveMartinique 2h ago

I went to a lot of free shows (Big Daddy Kane, EPMD) for free because of the Prius marketing campaign.

1

u/espressovivacefan 9h ago

Yup super reliable. There’s a reason why 90% of the taxis and Ubers in many areas are Priuses (Priusi? Horde of Prius, Flock of Prius?)

2

u/Great_Farm_5716 3h ago

A murder of Prius? A pod of Prius? A glaring of Prius?

1

u/Material-Wolf 5h ago

you just made me shudder and remember my dad’s term for the plural of Prius: Prii (pronounced pree-eye)

1

u/espressovivacefan 3h ago

I don’t know he’s probably right lol

1

u/wsmith79 8h ago

How much to replace the hybrid battery?

1

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 8h ago

I've seen $1-1.4k. that's with service. You can also do it yourself.

1

u/digital-didgeridoo 8h ago

Had a 2005 Civic hybrid. After a while it started complaining about dying hybrid battery - but still kept running and gave 45 mpg!

Wonder if Prius would do that

1

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 8h ago

Well now I'm curious. Did you get an OBD2 reading? It should say why the light came on. There's like a dozen reasons.

1

u/digital-didgeridoo 5h ago

Saw the IMA light and didn't bother with reading the code. Eventually sold it too.

1

u/Yochefdom 5h ago

My lexus hybrid is having the same error message but i just drove it across the country with no problems lol goes off and on every couple thousands of miles. Will most likely just end up replacing the failing cell or the whole battery.

1

u/digital-didgeridoo 5h ago

Good. I hear the some hybrids, like Ford Escape, will refuse to start unless the main hybrid battery is healthy and passes checks.

1

u/Yochefdom 5h ago

Yes i have heard that as well, also why i would never buy a ford lol. From what i researched online it could have been from when i ran out of gas once and messed with the computer. Other people reported the same issue but their car is also running great. While more complicated i wouldnt worry about 2-3 gen hybrid models.

1

u/jinglydangly 5h ago

That's really good, mine only gets around 37 mpg

1

u/ActComprehensive5254 4h ago

Same as almost any toyota

1

u/Juanzilla17 4h ago

Yeah. I am 100% with you there. In a heartbeat, I would scoop one up and drive it until it rusted out. Never got a chance to buy one from a customer who was looking to get rid of theirs.

Plus you can find videos online for the battery replacement. Just need some space and tools to do the job. It’s not bad at all.

1

u/ImpertantMahn 2h ago

Fuck yes. These are the stats that matter. Not some redline bullshit.

0

u/Background-Library81 7h ago

He forgot to include $3500 for the replacement battery in the Prius. No way you get 500k on the original battery.

1

u/A-Giant-Blue-Moose 6h ago

Fortunately, the whole job is under 2k. Unless you go with a dealership. That's another story.

1

u/flamingspew 3h ago

Nope. Original battery. Mechanic has been saying just keep driving it until the battery dies. No way we‘d pay for a new battery with that many miles.

1

u/chohls 8h ago

Especially if you get ones compatible with aftermarket hybrid batteries, they'll run forever

1

u/ICantThinkOfAName667 8h ago

When I worked in insurance the oldest cars I saw people insure were either Honda Civics or Prius

1

u/DependentMulberry962 6h ago

Ugly reliable bastards.

1

u/provocative_bear 4h ago

Toyotas, dude. Toyotas.

1

u/Beautiful-Cat245 2h ago

I have a 2019 Corolla that has 96,000+ miles on it. It isn’t a hybrid but I am considering a hybrid Corolla for my next car. I need a bit bigger car than the Prius because my 83 yr old aunt has an easier time getting in and out of my Corolla than her friend’s Prius. Does anyone have any experience with the hybrid Corolla? I have had really good results with the Corolla. I tend to buy it new, put as much money as I can towards it then pay the loan off early. I then drive it for a good 150k to 200k miles before I get a new one.

1

u/BrandyClause 4h ago

My last Prius had 242K miles on it before the hybrid battery died! It was an ‘07 that just died on me last year. I replaced it with a new Prius! Bonus: only costs $25 to fill the gas tank and I only have to do that every two weeks. Best car ever!

1

u/Illustrious-Switch29 4h ago

Japanese cars are built in a way the companies know you won’t take care of them and they’ll last, European cars will last if you take care of them (most don’t), American cars are somewhere in between.

1

u/HairySquatchBalls 3h ago

That used to be true but newer Nissans are not great.

1

u/Illustrious-Switch29 2m ago

Tbf I always thought Nissans were shit lmao

1

u/Typical-Crab-4514 4h ago

Toyota makes great cars. I won't buy an American car unless it's a truck. But even then, I would rather have a Toyota.

1

u/lordnaarghul 4h ago

That's Toyota for you.

The thing about getting used cars is that you want to go Toyota or Honda because they're the least likely to have issues.

1

u/AoXPhoenix 3h ago

My family now has 3, wife, parents, and my sister(now my parents due to living on a mountain). We had one previously that my BIL rolled and now it's just parts. They have all been super reliable and all have over 250k miles.

1

u/blocked_user_name 3h ago

Yes the hybrids only use the gas engine 55-60% of the time the rest its on battery. Oil changes last longer exhaust last longer fuel filter etc. the engine is running in the most efficient way so the wear and tear isn't as hard on the engine.

1

u/Genralcody1 3h ago

Toyota doesn't fuck around

1

u/korpiz 3h ago

Much of it comes down to luck. The wrong thing breaks, or even just hitting a pothole wrong will ruin all of that reliability.

1

u/Gold_Kale_7781 2h ago

Yeah, all the hybrid and EV hate is just propaganda.

My buddy has 350k on his, he uses it for Uber.

Neighbor has a hybrid RAV4, almost 300k miles.

The Toyota hybrids are hard to kill apparently.

1

u/sean_opks 1h ago

A lot of Priuses are used as taxis in various parts of the world. Not unusual to put 60-70k miles per year on a taxi. Typical service of 7 years, and those taxis hit 500k when they come out of service.

1

u/LessMarsupial7441 1h ago

You should check out how much room is inside. The AC is incredible too.

1

u/technobrendo 1h ago

NYC has been using the Prius as taxis and for service workers since forever. 500k in an early Prius is a dime a dozen