Engine Problems

[David Scrimgeour]

:ffs: We own a 2004 Avensis 1.8 VVTi. The car has 20k on the clock. When i bought it i was told about how these 'new' engines didn't need much management, and that the first major service was due at 20k. There was a recall on these cars in January for a steering problem. Once I got the car back from the dealer, it started to make a small knocking noise, which within the space of a week grew to a terrible din. The fluids were checked and all were ok.

Took the car back to the dealer who says that the big end has has gone due to insufficient lubrication reaching cylinder 4. The whole motor needs replacing, and the camshaft and bearings. Talking about £1900.00 worth of repairs. Has anyone heard of an issue like this with the later 1.8 VVTi's?

[IMRAN786]

Toyota is terrible, Buy something else

[Chris Dance]

Did you get a warranty when you purchased the car?

I have not heard of anybody else having this problem. It does sound like the engine has been run with little or no oil in at some time.

In comparison to other makes of cars the new Toyota Avensis is a very reliable car. What is the history of your car?

[215 compressor]

Toyota is terrible, Buy something else

if toyota,s are so terrible why are you showing you have an avensis and you join a toyota site.fact toyotas are one of the most reliable cars .

[Black Knight]

:ffs: We own a 2004 Avensis 1.8 VVTi. The car has 20k on the clock. When i bought it i was told about how these 'new' engines didn't need much management, and that the first major service was due at 20k.

Did you have the oil change done at 10,000 miles?

First MAJOR service is done at 20,000miles but the service schedule says you should have the oil changed every 10,000miles. If you didn't get the oil changed at 10,000miles then the oil will have gone off completely by 20,000 miles. Oil only has a limited life-span. If it goes beyond that it doesn't matter how much is in the engine it just won't lubricat and then BANG

[IMRAN786]

They were, which is a past tense. If Toyotas are so reliable why has David's Toyota broken down, Why has my Toyota broken down and why have countless others broken down??? The fact of the matter is Toyotas are good cars but they are increasingly breaking down which is very frustrating when we spend our hard earned cash and Toyota don't want to hear about it. Vvti's are the weak point so TOYOTA sort the problem out. I had a 1993 corrolla that did over 150000 miles, but a modern Avensis can't touch that mileage. The best solution is people stop buying Toyota and buy Honda probably then Toyota will start building 100% reliable cars like the good old days.

[Chris Dance]

I do think some of the troubles you outline Imran are down to previous owners poor servicing. Use of non Toyota parts etc. We have 3 Toyota cars in the family all going well and serviced correctly. I do sympathise with

you with regard to your engines breaking down. When you get them repaired get a full report on why it happened and see if Mr T can help!!!

[David Scrimgeour]

Did you get a warranty when you purchased the car?

I have not heard of anybody else having this problem. It does sound like the engine has been run with little or no oil in at some time.

In comparison to other makes of cars the new Toyota Avensis is a very reliable car. What is the history of your car?

Car is from new.. So under warranty. Oil levels checked regularily, and topped with magnatec.. didn't do oil change fully at 10k - but oil quality is good. No burned oil or particles untile the engine dropped

:ffs:

[gazza1286]

So if your car is a 2004 and all you have done is top the oil up since you bought the car from new I'm not surprised the engine is wrecked after 20,000 miles!

You've broken the two cardinal rules of oil changing

(i) change oil (and filter) after a specified time and/or;

(ii) change oil (and filter) after a specified mileage.

You should count yourself lucky that Toyota are even considering a warranty repair.

[Black Knight]

So if your car is a 2004 and all you have done is top the oil up since you bought the car from new I'm not surprised the engine is wrecked after 20,000 miles!

You've broken the two cardinal rules of oil changing

(i) change oil (and filter) after a specified time and/or;

(ii) change oil (and filter) after a specified mileage.

You should count yourself lucky that Toyota are even considering a warranty repair.

Absolutely correct.

See the post above for my reasoning.

The reason for your engine failing is because you haven't followed the manufacturers recommended service of carrying out an oil change at 10,000miles. It doesn't matter about topping up with new oil you have to get rid of the old with all the contaminants that it contains.

I'm actually stunned they haven't refused the warranty claim because of the lack of servicing. I'd say this is actually a sign of toyota's SUPERIOR customer service if they'll honour a warranty claim on a car without the correct service history.

The best solution is people stop buying Toyota and buy Honda probably then Toyota will start building 100% reliable cars like the good old days.

And I've owned Hondas. Fantastic cars..............thoroughly let down by one of the most appauling dealer networks I've ever had the misfortune to encounter.

Avoid like the plague

[Chris Dance]

Hi David,

You are lucky you are under warranty but I must agree with the other guys if you failed to do the oil changes it is no wonder the engine has problems. My Avensis does very low mileage but I notice that on each service they do a "flush" of the oil system prior to topping up. Oil is the engine life blood but the quality of the oil in the sump deteriorates over time that is why the oil changes are so necessary to have done on time.

[IMRAN786]

black knight the honda dealers may be **** in my opinion they're good and toyotas may be good but what it comes down to is the product, thats what matters at the end of the day.

[Black Knight]

True but in this case the product appears to be fine, rather it's the owners maintenance of the vehicle that's the problem.

Any car that has oil that's done double the recommended mileage before change is going to be in trouble.

[druand]

Something similar appeared on RAV 4 site when a new RAV owner complained that his NEW RAV oil warning light came ON after only 5,000 miles and he had to add nearly 3 litres of oil.

As a retired mechanic you can guess my reply. I did explain the benefits of checking oil on a regular basis and also advised him to change immediately as the small ammount left in his engine had done some very hard work.

[Qbert]

Well my 2002 AVensis 1.8 VVTI with 39k on the click suffered the same fate as yours.

A week ago a small knocking noise appeared on load and got decididly worse.

I stopped using it and booked into my local Toyota dealer.

I drove it to them at 2k revs max (their recommendation), and they inspected the car.

THey confirmed that the Big ends have gone and a new short block required at around the same price.

Because I know the guys very well from previous business dealings and that I had searched the good old net and gave them 20 cases of this model engine failing for this reason they admitted that TOyota know that there is a problem with this version of engine. THey said that for some reason they are prone to using oil and regardless of servicing if you don't keep them topped up all the time they will get low and hot.

Now I have only had my car for a year and had the 30k service when i bought it and it had a full history, and i do check the oil etc... every 2 weeks (old habit from saabs) and have kept it topped up.

The garage are now in conversation with Toyota to try and get it done under warrenty. I hope to hear back in a couple of days.

But because my car is out of warrenty there is a chance it wont happen but they believe they can sort it as it is a known problem with Toyota.

They said it is only the 1.8 VVTI (1ZZ-FE) engine that is affected.

[IMRAN786]

Obert, you're lucky. I wish Toyota were more helpful to me.

[Qbert]

Obert, you're lucky. I wish Toyota were more helpful to me.

I wouldn't say I was lucky, cause I was ready to put thick oil and saw dust in the engine to quieten it down and then trade it in sharpish (plus a few old tricks learnt over the years). But someone told me to get it certified by Toyota with respect to the actual problem and go from there. THat way if it was a lesser problem you would know. Besides I love the car and it has been no trouble since I have had it so thats what I did.

But having some idea of before you go along with information that it is a known problem puts you in a strong position. I was lucky someone I knew from a few years back was still working there and then used that to my advantage.

I spoke to the garage 5 mins ago and they said that they haven't had the go ahead yet from Toyota but usually they get a no straight away. A yes takes more paperwork so they are confident it will get sorted, but I will wait until they say yes before I get carried away.

But as mentioned by several people a full Toyota service history means you stand more chance, even main dealer stamps are better than the bloke round the corner stamp. It may cost a little more but it does give you power when required apparently.

At the end of the day if they wont then make a fuss, print out these posts as proof of problems etc... and demand to speak to Toyota yourself (watchdog as well is good for a laugh), even if it still ends as a no you have tried and lost nothing, you never know it may get you something out of good will and to shut you up.

[budweiser]

With refrence to toyota cars being unreliable I can say that i own a 1998 2.0 ltr petrol avensis and it is still going strong after 300,000 miles on the clock with just a few bushes here and there needing replacement it still purrs ........Dave

[Chris Dance]

My wife has an L registered Carina 75000 on the clock. It is immaculate and has never had a major fault. It is only worth about £700 but it is too good a car to sell at that price. A mobile mechanic does a service and MOT once a year. It has been in our family from new our son was the first owner.

[Qbert]

Well I heard from my Toyota dealer last night and follwoing a week of negotiations starting with Toyota saying no to the dealer fighting the case on my behalf and now Toyota have said yes all the work will be carried out under warrenty at their expense. Should get the car back in a couple fo weeks.

So thats 2k I don't have to find.

So get your motors down to your dealer and make them fight for you, they take enough money from us normally so let them give something back.

[Chris Dance]

Glad it is sorted. Toyota came good and that is the main thing. Other dealers for other makes would have not been so helpful. A friend is having big problems with Renault and his car is under warranty.

[oneandonlydenman]

:ffs: We own a 2004 Avensis 1.8 VVTi. The car has 20k on the clock. When i bought it i was told about how these 'new' engines didn't need much management, and that the first major service was due at 20k. There was a recall on these cars in January for a steering problem. Once I got the car back from the dealer, it started to make a small knocking noise, which within the space of a week grew to a terrible din. The fluids were checked and all were ok.

Took the car back to the dealer who says that the big end has has gone due to insufficient lubrication reaching cylinder 4. The whole motor needs replacing, and the camshaft and bearings. Talking about £1900.00 worth of repairs. Has anyone heard of an issue like this with the later 1.8 VVTi's?

if your car has 80% main dealler service history it is under warrenty as these engines had so many faults. contact toyota and they should fix or replace the engine. they extended the warrenty to 7 years so give it a go..

[Graham5rc]

:ffs: We own a 2004 Avensis 1.8 VVTi. The car has 20k on the clock. When i bought it i was told about how these 'new' engines didn't need much management, and that the first major service was due at 20k. There was a recall on these cars in January for a steering problem. Once I got the car back from the dealer, it started to make a small knocking noise, which within the space of a week grew to a terrible din. The fluids were checked and all were ok.

Took the car back to the dealer who says that the big end has has gone due to insufficient lubrication reaching cylinder 4. The whole motor needs replacing, and the camshaft and bearings. Talking about £1900.00 worth of repairs. Has anyone heard of an issue like this with the later 1.8 VVTi's?

My 2001 Avensis 1.8 VVTi automatic I bought new has recently at 51k miles developed an annoying engine rattle only at low revs under load. Local Toyota garage SLM in Hastings say it's most likely the exhaust manifold. I await others views before spending estimated £650! Surprising if your engine management system failed to detect such dire lubrication starvation! Mine would have warned me. The oil level had sunk to just above the danger level when the garage checked it and said the warning light would have come on soon. Why yours failed to do so David is a bit of a mystery? Do you have a claim against Toyota if so?

Graham