Just bought an Avensis!

[Cyker]

I do like the Panda 4x4s   They're so cute!  

Also, that they can take on the giant land barges I despise so much and beat them at their own game helps too  

Can't believe that Fiat dealer repaired accident damage under warranty - That is amazing customer service! Here it's more likely you'd have to argue that an actual fault is covered under warranty and you'd still probably get hit by some sort of handling or admin charge  

I hope he bought them a basket of croissants or pain au chocolat or something  

[Auris James]

3 hours ago, Cyker said:

I do like the Panda 4x4s   They're so cute!  

Also, that they can take on the giant land barges I despise so much and beat them at their own game helps too  

Can't believe that Fiat dealer repaired accident damage under warranty - That is amazing customer service! Here it's more likely you'd have to argue that an actual fault is covered under warranty and you'd still probably get hit by some sort of handling or admin charge  

I hope he bought them a basket of croissants or pain au chocolat or something  

A couple of bottles of Calvados, went down well, but hopefully after they got home!

Panda wins as so light, so skims over the mud. We had several Subaru 1600 and 1800 plus a Brat pickup in early 1990 as lived in Herefordshire up a mile long off road track. It was excellent off road but both really needed more ground clearance as exhaust ripped off on 1600cc mk1. Waited a year for electricity, 8k and 5k for a borehole 273 feet. Sold in 1995 and still in touch with buyers, who have 3 land rovers. 

James.👍

[SB1500]

So I got the Avensis today (I keep calling it an Auris in my head).

I didn’t get too much time with work and replacing the silencer on the 208. 

so far it’s great. Smooth. Quiet. And not dead by any means. It’s got the power to overtake anything that rationally should be overtaken. As for the multi vehicle overtakes or just plain trying to be at the front of the line on a longer journey.. I think if one drove the Avensis 1.6 with that mentality they’d find it possibly not able to keep up.  However, those are bad practice. And dangerous. And rarely worth it I’ve found. The DS3 made it easy.  I think this car will encourage safer driving because it’s limits are smaller and I see it as a good thing. I was a little worried it’d be as dead as a door nail, but thankfully not. I’ve drove the 1.2 Panda and 1.0 208 this week and they are very much dead and really you need to stay in the left lane until the faster cars pass on most roads without taking risks. 
 

I still haven’t worked out the cruise control! It seems so simple and I bet it is. But whatever I’m doing is triggering the limiter.  On the DS3 if you brake or accelerated it’d knock off cruise control. The Merc let you overtake.  On the Merc, when you turned DOWN the cruise, it’d slow the car down and apply the brake lights. Does the Avensis do this? 
 

I went on to MyToyota and registered the touch screen. But when I tried to update the map or use Parking prices etc, it said ‘you require a subscription’. When I went to get one, one of them said the service had been discontinued. That’s a shame. 

the touch screen is slow. I expected it to be slow to input which I think is fine with a car. The Merc had a responsive touch screen and you’d only end up mis-tapping or tapping 4 times when in motion, it wasn’t really that good of an idea. What is disappointing with the Avensis, is that not only is the responsiveness of the screen slow, but the system itself is slow.  So bluetooth takes a while to connect. And a lot of things I see it says ‘Loading the map’ or ‘waiting for Bluetooth’ etc. never seen this before on a car. I think once I get used to it, it’ll be fine to live with.  Some review complained about the climate control taking over the screen, I had this issue today too.  Does anyone know if system updates improve this? I’m not thinking so but worth asking 

I now know the car was owned by a lease company. Who didn’t service it with Toyota. Just themselves in 2019 and This year with its first MOT (assumably as it was done at a service centre in Dorset). It was a ‘self drive’ company.  

I spotted one more dent on the saloon boot lid. It’s not so much a dent, as when you look at a specific angle you notice a slight imperfection in the reflection.  This is in addition to the two they agreed to fix next week (though if they’re going to repaint it at all, I’ll tell them not to and just live with it). 

I’ve noticed that the drivers door seems to lock me in. I need to press a physical button beside the handle to open it? Yet the passenger doesn’t. How do I stop this? Or what is the purpose?

other than that, I filled her up. £66 - it was just pushing £60 in September here when I last filled my DS3. I only filled the DS3 from warning light to fill for the full year and a half. At the same petrol station (Maxol) which assures the quality of its fuels. I suspect some fuel stations here dilute the fuel somehow from past experiences. Now that I’m owning diesels I don’t want to risk poor quality fuel suiting them up anymore or messing with the fiddly sensors if I can help it with a few £. 

Overall, I’m happy 😊 I think this car will be easy to keep for a very long time. I’ll give it the first proper trip tomorrow of 55 miles. That should clear out any cobwebs it had from being laid up. 

[2009joe]

20 hours ago, SB1500 said:

So I got the Avensis today (I keep calling it an Auris in my head).

I didn’t get too much time with work and replacing the silencer on the 208. 

so far it’s great. Smooth. Quiet. And not dead by any means. It’s got the power to overtake anything that rationally should be overtaken. As for the multi vehicle overtakes or just plain trying to be at the front of the line on a longer journey.. I think if one drove the Avensis 1.6 with that mentality they’d find it possibly not able to keep up.  However, those are bad practice. And dangerous. And rarely worth it I’ve found. The DS3 made it easy.  I think this car will encourage safer driving because it’s limits are smaller and I see it as a good thing. I was a little worried it’d be as dead as a door nail, but thankfully not. I’ve drove the 1.2 Panda and 1.0 208 this week and they are very much dead and really you need to stay in the left lane until the faster cars pass on most roads without taking risks. 
 

I still haven’t worked out the cruise control! It seems so simple and I bet it is. But whatever I’m doing is triggering the limiter.  On the DS3 if you brake or accelerated it’d knock off cruise control. The Merc let you overtake.  On the Merc, when you turned DOWN the cruise, it’d slow the car down and apply the brake lights. Does the Avensis do this? 
 

I went on to MyToyota and registered the touch screen. But when I tried to update the map or use Parking prices etc, it said ‘you require a subscription’. When I went to get one, one of them said the service had been discontinued. That’s a shame. 

the touch screen is slow. I expected it to be slow to input which I think is fine with a car. The Merc had a responsive touch screen and you’d only end up mis-tapping or tapping 4 times when in motion, it wasn’t really that good of an idea. What is disappointing with the Avensis, is that not only is the responsiveness of the screen slow, but the system itself is slow.  So Bluetooth takes a while to connect. And a lot of things I see it says ‘Loading the map’ or ‘waiting for Bluetooth’ etc. never seen this before on a car. I think once I get used to it, it’ll be fine to live with.  Some review complained about the climate control taking over the screen, I had this issue today too.  Does anyone know if system updates improve this? I’m not thinking so but worth asking 

I now know the car was owned by a lease company. Who didn’t service it with Toyota. Just themselves in 2019 and This year with its first MOT (assumably as it was done at a service centre in Dorset). It was a ‘self drive’ company.  

I spotted one more dent on the saloon boot lid. It’s not so much a dent, as when you look at a specific angle you notice a slight imperfection in the reflection.  This is in addition to the two they agreed to fix next week (though if they’re going to repaint it at all, I’ll tell them not to and just live with it). 

I’ve noticed that the drivers door seems to lock me in. I need to press a physical button beside the handle to open it? Yet the passenger doesn’t. How do I stop this? Or what is the purpose?

other than that, I filled her up. £66 - it was just pushing £60 in September here when I last filled my DS3. I only filled the DS3 from warning light to fill for the full year and a half. At the same petrol station (Maxol) which assures the quality of its fuels. I suspect some fuel stations here dilute the fuel somehow from past experiences. Now that I’m owning diesels I don’t want to risk poor quality fuel suiting them up anymore or messing with the fiddly sensors if I can help it with a few £. 

Overall, I’m happy 😊 I think this car will be easy to keep for a very long time. I’ll give it the first proper trip tomorrow of 55 miles. That should clear out any cobwebs it had from being laid up. 

glad you like the car boss my touch 2 touchscreen headunit sucks to when u touch the touchscreen u have to aim below the aire where you want to touch as it always selects something else as i found this out with playing music through my usb stick i got a new one the other day a 128gb flash drive for mine that works great as u used to have a 64gb in it and that works great to just thought id upgrade the music collection lol. when comes to petrol stations god knows who got good diesel and whos not i fill mostly up at asda and i notice with mine from full it dose about 480miles to the tank sometimes less i go by when the light comes on the dash. plus bud if u need techstream to run threw your car turn off and on things and doors locking u can borow mine but i never did much techstreaming with it tbh so need to know what buttons to push lol. u used my techstream to turn off anoying beeps etc.plus if need new breaks or things id say just tbh buy the original ones better off 

[SB1500]

Okay, so first long journey done (50 miles anyway). I figured out the cruise control and I’m glad to find (I think) that this car holds the car at the speed it’s set to. And brakes when you reduce it (though I need to confirm that).  
 

the boot actuator that makes it pop up needs replaced as it doesn’t work. I’m thinking of going to the Toyota dealership for thjs. One issue though…

verified the vehicle on MyToyota. It appears that it only shows it as being delivered on there. With no Toyota dealer service history.  There are no stamps in the book (I got £200 off for this). There is one invoice from the lease company that owned the car giving it a service. And then an MOT pass printout which looks like it was done at a service and MOT centre in Dorset. Will Toyota still accept the warranty?  The Fiat I got from Motorpoint had no stamps but was within the warranty timeframe and a dealer here fixed an oil leak on it without asking. Perhaps I will be as lucky with Toyota? 
 

also, the drivers door is locked when I try to get out. I have to press the physical spin button by the handle to open is. Is this normal or can it be changed on the car settings? Or is something amiss inside the door for that to have happened?

 

other than that, the car is getting 51mpg. Not great in my opinion, but 50 or above is possible to live with. The car shift indicator wants me to stay in 5th when I’d suspect 6th. And sometimes I find myself in 6th and the car driving fine but it telling me to downshift. Should I listen to the car or my intuition that 6th would be fine? 

[Auris James]

On the warranty front I would pop into Toyota and ask the dealer about a service and see if that would qualify you for a 12 month warranty.

No idea on the other issues. Take back to where you bought it, if a trader and get them to sort it. Does the drivers door unlock with the central locking button is pressed. Opens other doors as well as drivers, or unlocks others but not drivers door?

James.👍

[SB1500]

43 minutes ago, Auris James said:

On the warranty front I would pop into Toyota and ask the dealer about a service and see if that would qualify you for a 12 month warranty.

No idea on the other issues. Take back to where you bought it, if a trader and get them to sort it. Does the drivers door unlock with the central locking button is pressed. Opens other doors as well as drivers, or unlocks others but not drivers door?

James.👍

yeah it unlocks with central locking / locks when button is pushed.  It’s just that you need to push the swivel button beside the handle to open when you want to get out.  None of the other doors do this though.  Or , the switch for the locking also opens it 

[Stopeter44]

1 hour ago, SB1500 said:

The boot actuator that makes it pop up needs replaced as it doesn’t work. I’m thinking of going to the Toyota dealership for thjs. One issue though…

verified the vehicle on MyToyota. It appears that it only shows it as being delivered on there. With no Toyota dealer service history.  There are no stamps in the book (I got £200 off for this). There is one invoice from the lease company that owned the car giving it a service. And then an MOT pass printout which looks like it was done at a service and MOT centre in Dorset. Will Toyota still accept the warranty?  The Fiat I got from Motorpoint had no stamps but was within the warranty timeframe and a dealer here fixed an oil leak on it without asking. Perhaps I will be as lucky with Toyota? 

It was first sold in the UK in 2018 ? At that time Toyota UK warranties were 5 years. As James has suggested, it's worth a trip to the Toyota dealer, because there should be 2 years to run on the warranty. OTOH, with no service history, I don't know how Toyota UK will want to handle this.

[Cyker]

If you just bought it from a dealer, it's their problem for the first 6 months as you can reject the car unless they told you about those faults - Try and get them to sort it out first.

With no service history, the chances of the warranty being honoured seems very low (When I was asking about my Mk4, I was told they are very strict on the 1 year/10,000 mile intervals and couldn't even be a mile over. This is a pain as it means I have to service the car 1.5 times a year with my mileage!)

 

[john p williams]

7 minutes ago, Cyker said:

If you just bought it from a dealer, it's their problem for the first 6 months as you can reject the car unless they told you about those faults - Try and get them to sort it out first.

With no service history, the chances of the warranty being honoured seems very low (When I was asking about my Mk4, I was told they are very strict on the 1 year/10,000 mile intervals and couldn't even be a mile over. This is a pain as it means I have to service the car 1.5 times a year with my mileage!)

 

In the UK, it matters not whether they told you or not. Fixing a problem remains their problems.

One simply cannot absolve oneself from a Statutory Obligation.

[Cyker]

If an issue with the car was disclosed, and you accepted it, e.g. for a discount, rather than them repairing it prior to handing it over to you, then I'm pretty sure you can't later reject the car for a full refund on that basis (Maybe just a partial one).

For undisclosed issues it's different, as the law assumes that it was a problem with the car when they sold it to you, and thus if undeclared the onus is on them to fix it as they would have with a known fault, or you can reject the car.

[2009joe]

7 hours ago, SB1500 said:

Okay, so first long journey done (50 miles anyway). I figured out the cruise control and I’m glad to find (I think) that this car holds the car at the speed it’s set to. And brakes when you reduce it (though I need to confirm that).  
 

the boot actuator that makes it pop up needs replaced as it doesn’t work. I’m thinking of going to the Toyota dealership for thjs. One issue though…

verified the vehicle on MyToyota. It appears that it only shows it as being delivered on there. With no Toyota dealer service history.  There are no stamps in the book (I got £200 off for this). There is one invoice from the lease company that owned the car giving it a service. And then an MOT pass printout which looks like it was done at a service and MOT centre in Dorset. Will Toyota still accept the warranty?  The Fiat I got from Motorpoint had no stamps but was within the warranty timeframe and a dealer here fixed an oil leak on it without asking. Perhaps I will be as lucky with Toyota? 
 

also, the drivers door is locked when I try to get out. I have to press the physical spin button by the handle to open is. Is this normal or can it be changed on the car settings? Or is something amiss inside the door for that to have happened?

 

other than that, the car is getting 51mpg. Not great in my opinion, but 50 or above is possible to live with. The car shift indicator wants me to stay in 5th when I’d suspect 6th. And sometimes I find myself in 6th and the car driving fine but it telling me to downshift. Should I listen to the car or my intuition that 6th would be fine? 

if few problems dude i would try the guy you bought the car off or if you want to try toyota first and just see if fails there go threw the guy you bought the car off to fix the problems and you are on about the door locks by chance do you have to open the door handle twice as well my last car was like that it locked all the doors when i went over 10mph and when stopped i had to open the door handle twice that the way worked on all my doors i normally gave it one light open and the next one she opened .if u need techstream dude for settings do away with anoying dings etc r locks sure u can borrow mine bud 

[SB1500]

7 hours ago, SB1500 said:

yeah it unlocks with central locking / locks when button is pushed.  It’s just that you need to push the swivel button beside the handle to open when you want to get out.  None of the other doors do this though.  Or , the switch for the locking also opens it 

Ah so it’s normal behaviour? Can confirm the other doors act normally / how I expected. 
 

as for the boot, I expected it would pop open as the CLA did. Someone online claims all the button is supposed to do is unlock / disarm the alarm, but not for the boot to pop open. 
 

so with that being the case, my two issues might not be issues at all 🙂 

 

I’ll video the lock thing just so it’s easier to get what I mean

[SB1500]

Well, did my first wash today. Got a proper feel for the condition of the car. There are a couple of light dents on the passenger side and one on the saloon boot lift (as known when I bought it). There is a part of the front and rear bumper way at the bottom corner on one side (must have bumped into something) which has lightly (and finely) cracked the paint a tad but again, nothing that stands out in photos or passing by. The dealer I bought from said they'd fix it, but if they say they're planning to repaint anything, I'd rather just live with it having had such a poor experience with other body shops. 

Same goes for brakes, they aren't bad, but they're fairly crusty and weathered and at best, 'fair' condition but rather than let them throw whatever cheap parts they can get locally I'd rather leave it. I'd rather do these myself when the time comes in the next 6 months or so.

The tyres fitted are 'Churchill' brand, never heard of them but suspect they're a cheaper choice. They're in okay shape. Decided I'll be putting all seasons on it when the time comes, hopefully Michellin CrossClimate+ or 2's if they make the 2's for this size. Black Circles and Kwik-Fit don't seem to show them. Bridgestone all seasons are the next in line, but expensive and I'm not sure if they'll last as long all year around like the Michellins, they seem to have the good rep for lasting and not being too much of a compromise.

Also keen to change the oil come the summer time with some quality Castrol or similar stuff... Again I'm confident the sales place would have used the cheapest nastiest filters and oil they could find (maybe even cut corners on the grade - how would I know?) to get the car out the door. With the BMW engine, it's not worth leaving to chance! lol

I'll be looking for the antifreeze to be replaced and the brake fluid too. I can only find the Auris Toyota maintenance schedule online for the D4D 1.6 BMW engine and I presume it's the same for the Avensis, which says at Year 4 to do this. Might pay Toyota themselves to do this unless anyone here can tell me how to do it on this engine and whether it's a straightforward job or not?  I know some cooling systems have a drain and others you need to remove platic L joints hidden deep in there.

I'd also like some 4D plates done up (if I can confirm they're legal) and I'm deciding whether to surrender the GB plates for NI ones but I like the 68 showing on the plate 😛  and the windows tinted, but the servicing will come first.

The car did well over the weekend. It was very, very comfortable and not so bad on MPG (it claims 61 on a 50 mile trip last night just before the screen shut off which I found a bit hard to believe), though it said 51 on the way down which wasn't too impressive. It's noticeably smoother than the DS3 on rough ROI roads across the border. My back is much more comfortable on that one  hour drive. I am very happy with the car so far.

If it's allowed on here, I'll keep this thread active with updates and questions I have if anybody wants to hear it. If not, I'll just create threads as and when appropriate.

[SB1500]

Can anybody suggest a suitable fuse to piggyback off of for my dash cam? I've done it on the Fiat Panda and DS3, though the DS3 gave it power even when the car was off. Ideally, I'd like it to only be powered when the car ignition is on. Thought I'd ask first this time.

I can't find the fuse diagram on the PDF copy of the manual I got off of MyToyota online. Just generic advice on how to spot and replace a blown one.

[Crustyoldavensis]

1 hour ago, SB1500 said:

Can anybody suggest a suitable fuse to piggyback off of for my dash cam? I've done it on the Fiat Panda and DS3, though the DS3 gave it power even when the car was off. Ideally, I'd like it to only be powered when the car ignition is on. Thought I'd ask first this time.

I can't find the fuse diagram on the PDF copy of the manual I got off of MyToyota online. Just generic advice on how to spot and replace a blown one.

If you have a multimeter open up the fuse box and check any unused fuse locations for 12v power. You can often see where there are spare connectors. 

If you find one you can run a live with an inline fuse from that.

[Cyker]

If you mean literally using a piggyback fuse, the default go-to for most people is the cigarette lighter fuse.

Even Toyota dealers use it (Which is why we've had some people with ex-demo cars that had non-working lighter sockets - When the dealer removed the Dashcam, wiring and fuse piggyback, they forgot to replace the fuse  )

[SB1500]

Thanks guys - yep, literally piggy back fuse as per the official Nextbase wire in kit.   Hopefully the trim along the drivers door / rear door and quarter panel pops off nicely, no broken clips or anything that won't go back right so I can do a near job of the rear camera module. 

I'd highly recommend any of the Nextbase + rear camera kits if like me, it'd help you sleep better at night or when leaving your car somewhere new in case someone damages it or does a hit and run. 

[2009joe]

1 hour ago, SB1500 said:

Thanks guys - yep, literally piggy back fuse as per the official Nextbase wire in kit.   Hopefully the trim along the drivers door / rear door and quarter panel pops off nicely, no broken clips or anything that won't go back right so I can do a near job of the rear camera module. 

I'd highly recommend any of the Nextbase + rear camera kits if like me, it'd help you sleep better at night or when leaving your car somewhere new in case someone damages it or does a hit and run. 

thinking putting one in myself do it start recording when people around or dose it record all the time send me a link to a good quality spec kit for front and rear that you are talking about. i bought one of those boot spoilers for mine which looks great. there was a scratch on my boot right where my spoiler was going at so i was not so much bothered. i got on and it painted by a body work guy and he glued it on instead of drilling a hole to put it on 

[SB1500]

46 minutes ago, 2009joe said:

thinking putting one in myself do it start recording when people around or dose it record all the time send me a link to a good quality spec kit for front and rear that you are talking about. i bought one of those boot spoilers for mine which looks great. there was a scratch on my boot right where my spoiler was going at so i was not so much bothered. i got on and it painted by a body work guy and he glued it on instead of drilling a hole to put it on 

Nextbase (any model with the ability to connect the rear module, think all but the basic one has it) and the rear ping-pong ball sized camera, I think Halfords and Curry's does a set / combo deal. I paid £160 for a 522GW and £50 for the rear camera in 2020.  It records always when the car is on and then has a sensor so if your car is knocked it'll come on and record for a while anytime / overnight. Even the wind sometimes can cause it to record (Which is fine in my book).

Got a link to the spoiler / any pics of it? Sounds good

[2009joe]

1 hour ago, SB1500 said:

Nextbase (any model with the ability to connect the rear module, think all but the basic one has it) and the rear ping-pong ball sized camera, I think Halfords and Curry's does a set / combo deal. I paid £160 for a 522GW and £50 for the rear camera in 2020.  It records always when the car is on and then has a sensor so if your car is knocked it'll come on and record for a while anytime / overnight. Even the wind sometimes can cause it to record (Which is fine in my book).

Got a link to the spoiler / any pics of it? Sounds good

i bought mine was £54.99 r something like that not sure if fits yours but looks a great job plus without the spoiler my boot sprund up real fast so gives a wee bit of weight to it. 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/323494018913

eBay item number:

323494018913

Toyota Avensis Genuine lip Spoiler model 09 -  mine is a 2014 but the guy told me this one fits .when i got mine was a small bit off so i sanded it down a bit so it fitted perfect on the boot curved right around it with no stupid looking joints. comes with screws to drill and screw to the boot but the painter guy i got told me to glue it to the car thats what he did and well great job 

[SB1500]

11 hours ago, 2009joe said:

i bought mine was £54.99 r something like that not sure if fits yours but looks a great job plus without the spoiler my boot sprund up real fast so gives a wee bit of weight to it. 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/323494018913

eBay item number:

323494018913

Toyota Avensis Genuine lip Spoiler model 09 -  mine is a 2014 but the guy told me this one fits .when i got mine was a small bit off so i sanded it down a bit so it fitted perfect on the boot curved right around it with no stupid looking joints. comes with screws to drill and screw to the boot but the painter guy i got told me to glue it to the car thats what he did and well great job 

Looks grand. I was thinking it would be one of those much higher spoilers!  Googled a few, found a pic or two of an Avensis with one. Not bad, but doesn't suit the not-too-sporty rest of the design.

[2009joe]

10 hours ago, SB1500 said:

Looks grand. I was thinking it would be one of those much higher spoilers!  Googled a few, found a pic or two of an Avensis with one. Not bad, but doesn't suit the not-too-sporty rest of the design.

there are others but there cheaper ones and not as good quality tbh that one i got is kina genuine Toyota look alike ones i seen my kind on most Toyota i think sets it off a bit better .mine looks like this on i had to cut a bit off it to match the curve of my boot so fits exactly right before left it into get painted 

[Catlover]

I like that addition, looks good. 
I don’t like modding cars but that’s ok.

[2009joe]

40 minutes ago, Catlover said:

I like that addition, looks good. 
I don’t like modding cars but that’s ok.

looks kinda plain without it suppose its a a avensis we not buying style i guess if i was id buy a audi a6 or something like that. we buy these kinda avensis for reliability and well its a toyota :)