The current popularity of hybrids is obvious. Many people want to have them and be able to save on gas, but due to their high price some customers prefer to look for a used car rather than to buy a new one. There are several points that have to be thought of before a person makes up his or her mind on a used hybrid purchase.

It is not enough to check standard features such as leaks of the fluids, quality of tires and the sound of the engine. Having proven themselves as trouble-free new vehicles, hybrids have their peculiarities unknown to average used-car buyers. When a used hybrid has been owned for a short period of time, the second owner might have a chance to get a vehicle with manufacturer's warranty which takes off the responsibility of checking the auto, since the automaker will fix it in case of any problems. There is also an option to get a “certified pre-owned” hybrid by the manufacturer and this works perfect for the second owner as well.

Before completing a hybrid purchase a shopper should look carefully through maintenance paperwork, check Carfax Vehicle History Report which shows if the car has ever been stolen or recalled, and check the information about the battery pack. It is a very expensive part of a hybrid (it is usually priced around $3,000), so a new owner should be concerned about the quality of the one in the vehicle. Most of modern hybrids come with 8 year / 80,000 miles warranty, but it has been noticed that Ford and Toyota cars used their battery packs for over 10 year without a trouble.

The technicians are more concerned about outer parts of the battery packs than of their cells, because they are very vulnerable to collisions, so check the outer look of the battery and make sure the battery works right, if you want to have a well-functioning gas-electric vehicle.