Should I buy a used hybrid car?

WHILE the market share for both plug-in and petrol/electric hybrids has grown in recent years, it’s proven tech. These cars have been on the market for years. The Mk1 Toyota Prius hit UK showrooms in 2000 and although other brands were slower to catch on, there’s still a range of options available on the used market.

While hybrid tech has proven itself worthwhile and dependable, many drivers are still put off due to the perceived extra cost and complexity of the drivetrain. They assume poor reliability is likely, but according to Toyota, the opposite is true. There’s no clutch, conventional starter motor, alternator or drivebelt, plus it says the hybrid system leads to longer durability of brake discs, pads and tyres.

But, of course, it’s the battery pack that has most potential buyers worried. They assume it’s

a ticking time bomb, ready to fail and costly to replace. But according to Honda, reliability simply isn’t an issue. The Japanese brand notes that the batteries in the Civic IMA (from 2002) are lasting 10-14 years, while the company has yet to replace a single pack from newer models such as the post-2010 Insight and the Jazz Hybrid offered from 2011.

A Toyota spokesman tells us:

“Hybrid components rarely need replacing under the warranty, and we’ve always said they’re designed to last the life of the car.

We know that the technology is reliable and it works. We still have first-generation Priuses on the road, so battery durability isn’t an issue; you only need to look at the number of Priuses being used by the private-hire sector.”

If you’re not yet ready to make the switch into full-electric motoring, it appears that hybrid cars are a painless alternative.

“We’d never recommend a former private-hire car as a solid used purchase, but the reliability of models like the Prius has surpassed what almost the whole industry thought possible” ALEX INGRAM

Chief reviewer