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to me that car has not been looked after, alloys look kerbed, missed service is the main one, dent which has not been repaired, I doubt he would of got it like that from the toyota garage. the owner clearly has been skimping on the wear and tear on that car. you are in two minds hence asking on here, I suggest you either follow alans good advice or keep looking. I know which one i would be doing, ps he hasn't even cleaned the car before advertising it or am I just being to picky now.

supposedly those Avensis produced after February 2009 are meant to have "fixed" engines. We certainly aren't seeing the nos. of complaints re. headgaskets compared to the earlier ones (& they are now old enough [potentially up to & over 6 years] that we should if there is a problem). Chain.

Fair enough, I haven't searched recently. If you reckon the car is worth paying towards £3500 by the time you've fixed and serviced it then only you can weigh it up. I'd still wait on one without the hassle and with a perfect service history at that price, but as I say, I haven't searched for one lately. BTW are there any car auctions around you? They give a true price of what a car is worth without warranty. Pop in and see how much 8 year old petrol family size cars are making, but remember to add the buyers premium to the hammer price. You'll be surprised.

I know car prices vary a bit by location and by supply/demand, but around 3 years ago I bought a 55 plate T25 T3s auto with 29k on the clock from a private seller for £3000. There was a very small dent on a door and one service had been missed. That's roughly equivalent to a 58 plate would be today. I traded it in a year later with about 40k on it and IIRC I got £2250 for it (ie when it was the equivalent of a 57 plate today). IMHO the Parkers prices are about right ie the trade price for that car is down at around £2000 and the private sale price with a prang on it is about £2500. Pay a little more if you really really like that particular car, hence my advice of £2600 to £2750. Personally I wouldn't mess about with it. He can't be bothered doing anything with it like cleaning it, servicing it, fixing it's dent, getting the MOT etc, but it's probably an ok car if you get it at the right price. If I'm correct that he can't be bothered with it then offer him £2600 without the new MOT and you'll take it away with no hassle for him. It'll probably pass it's MOT no problem but it's a little gamble. It's also the same gamble for him so he might just go with it. It'll still cost you about £3k by the time you've serviced and MOT'd it and fixed the dent. IMHO that's too expensive for that car but if you like it and it saves you more time looking for the next one then what's a couple of hundred quid in the whole scheme of things. Be nice friendly and polite on the phone and tell him you've done some sums at your end and that's what it's worth to you, considering what it'll cost you to get it up to scratch. Say you don't like wasting people's time so you won't bother coming to see it unless he's happy with your offer. Leave the offer with him for a few days and say if it's no good then thank him for his time and wish him all the best with his sale.

Hello Gary - welcome to Toyota Owners Club

Mind you, even old style (rotating cable driving springs & magnets in the head unit) speedos could be surprisingly accurate. In the 1970s/80s there was a road near where I lived where the local traffic police had put 2 marker posts exactly a quarter of a mile apart. They used them to prove their calibrated speedos were accurate. I often took cars past with a stopwatch and found Fords were very inaccurate, Fiats ludicrously so (a 132 2 litre was 15% optimistic!). Surprisingly, an Austin Allegro was spot on at every speed I tested it, and a Morris Marina almost as good, being 1 mph over at 60 indicated. They may have a point. I can count on one finger the number of people I see in an average day making any serious attempt to drive legally.

Yes - when in "B" it only makes a difference when you lift off the accelerator. So on undulating roads you can safely leave it in "B" if that's convenient. Be aware that in "B" you recover less regenerated energy than in "D" with your foot on the service brake pedal, so it's only really ideal to use "B" for: conveniencecontrolling the car (or making it easier to control)after the HV (High Voltage) battery has maxed out (or to prevent it doing so)occasionally, it gives better control when trying to slow down on snow or iceIf you have cruise control the third generation Hybrid system (all current models) is much better at holding the set speed (to within 1 or 2 mph) on quite steep slopes, but it will need help on very steep descents.

Offset the lower mileage against the defects and offer him one offer of around £2600 or £2750 or something. Tell him you don't want to be cheeky but that's what it's worth to you and you'll leave the offer with him til Thursday so he can get the chance of a better offer. Make it sound like you're doing him a favour (which you actually are).

You'll get the dent done for £150 but it's worth a little more for your hassle. Unless my math is wrong it's missed two sevices: one between the Aug 2010 one and the one 3 years ago (therefore 2012), and the one in 2014 (plus it's due a major one for 2015). BTW the guy only has you as a potential buyer or he wouldn't have bothered looking out service history and receipts etc and messaging you. Stick to my earlier advice, make a blazee (couldn't figure out how to do the wee gravv thing above the e) reasonable offer and be prepared to walk away.

I just checked Parkers. Top Retail FROM A FRANCHISED DEALER is showing £3560 with 90k miles. That's in perfect condition with a full service history and NO DEFECTS whatsoever.Private Good price is £2605. Private Good price is what it's worth from a private seller, but in the same PERFECT condition. Granted your mileage is lower.

It's also surprising what you can get in the back of an IQ.....like 4 alloy wheels in their boxes.

is the lower grill missing in the front bumper

What about simply replacing the complete head unit ? ( folk say they will loose the mpg meter - but does anyone really use it - its not that accurate anyway) For about £80 you can get , say a Pioneer single din unit with everything built in to the front bezel, bt,mp3,i, usb etc http://www.caraudiodirect.co.uk/head-units?brand=20 You can get adaptor plates and fixing kits fron the same place, which seem a reasonable fit. You could also get a double din unit, but seems the fit of the adaptor is not so good from what forum member have said in the past Search this forum and also the audio forum and you will find pics of folk who have fitted them. A new pair of front speakers will also improve the sound notiicably.i used some pioneers with separate tweeter - great sound even with the stock head unit.

Just some info for all. Just come off the phone. Toyota have just told me this... On all model Toyotas the Timing Belt Recommended change is: 10 YEARS OR 100,000 Miles! My Car, which was my Dads...I see had it's belt changed in 2002, 5 years old, at 52,000 miles...by...surprise surprise...TOYOTA. Toyota DO NOT change the tensioner, or pulleys as a matter of course. They normally just fit the belt. They inspect the pulleys and tensioner. Just parts price, not fitted... A tensioner is £127.81 inc vat. A water pump is £105 inc vat. Confirmed by Toyota...1997/8 Corolla 4AFE Engine is NON Interference. The Water Pump is NOT driven by timing Belt, so it is not prudent to change it at belt change, unless it's knackered. It can be done as an individual job not requiring T Belt removal. : )

Hi, Welcome to the club... Enjoy

for the written instruction check out my other post "how to replace your axle 94 surf15 steps". I hope this helps