Does anyone know how expensive the batteries are for the Prius, how long they last, and how many batteries have to be replaced?

I was sharing with a friend that I knew it was expensive, but that is tricky information to find on the net, for some reason. She's considering buying a Prius, feeling that they're greener cars, so I just urged her to research regular maintenance costs before buying.

 

If you're talking about the drive battery they're about $2500 from what i've seen. There are plenty of Prii with 200k miles on the original battery, so I think it's a non-issue.

 

Drive battery... are there other batteries?

 

There's also a standard 12V battery like a normal car.

 

A buddy of mine has a 2005 Prius w/250k+ and still running on original batteries.

 

The Hybrid components including the battery are covered by Toyota for 8 years or 100K miles so if you buy a new model you wouldn't be replacing it soon.

Routine maintenance is probably less than other vehicles in it's class because the brakes, for example, last a lot longer.

At 50+ mpg the Prius is a green eco-friendly car. It's not inexpensive but is definitely green.

 

Here is an interesting note on the Prius battery management system. They never fully charge or fully discharge the drive system battery. The charge indicator shows empty at 40% and full at 80% of charge. The normal operating range is 45% to 75% They did it this way to extend battery life. I believe the battery warranty is 8 years or 100,000 miles but many have reported getting to 200,000 without battery problems.