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A couple of pictures of my Brompton for your perusal 😃

Exactly. Have you seen the size of the screen in a Tesla - It's huge !!

Thanks everyone. I'm learning stuff here. 😁 So tempted to try a 2.0 Corolla, but the annoyingly sensible part of my brain tells me it wouldn't make financial sense just now (especially not with a new mortgage coming up), and I did get an Auris with longevity in mind, so I'll just have to be patient a while longer (and make sure I drive it properly up hills). Thanks for the tips!

Tony I'm not bothered about going forward, I've got a nice loud pair of hella's to wake them up, it's just handy to have a audible sound for the rear when reversing out of a parking spot .

To be fair that's the only interface for the whole car - They have to put all the dash info, all the infotainment, all the normal car controls that we still thankfully have buttons for etc. on that thing, so it needs to be pretty big! Bit of a bugger when it fails tho'...

Save the excess oil from each service and when the car runs out of warranty you will have one free oil change from left overs 😂👌 , just kidding.

Been in both mk4 and cross and the cross feels definitely as bigger car and it is indeed. Also the cross feels slightly bigger than Corolla hatchback and has larger boot. When seating behind the wheel it has this 4x4 feeling and you can see some part of the bonnet. In mk4 it’s not bad at all, just feels more like a smaller car, and for comparison with mk3 been in too it’s tiny bit smaller with less headroom and leg room on rear seats . Highly recommend to visit a showroom and spend some time without any sales person around,make your time seat in both models , front and rear, check boots , best way to get these cars familiar. Then for a test drive at least 15-20 min each. Cross feels like jimny, Viatra, duster, not like hatchback at all.

Nice.

TBH it's not much different in any low-power petrol car - The first time I went up a fast hill in my Mk2, I was in 6th and it was pretty obvious the 1.33L VVTi would not be able to maintain speed, but I was still used to my Mk1 D4D and its wide large torque band, and made that classic mistake of dropping to 5th, only to find the car had lost so much speed it was going too slow for 5th, so had to drop to 4th, but in doing so lost too much speed for 4th! By then I'd figured what would happen next so skipped 3rd entirely and did a block change to 2nd instead. Engine was really revving at that point but I pushed it until it was well into 3rd gear territory before shifting to 3rd, and slowly building the speed back up. The moral of the story is don't be afraid to rev the engine (albeit only once it's at operating temperature, and not before!!) - If your engine redlines at 7000rpm, it's fine to rev it up to 7000rpm. It'll not feel good if you're not used to it, but it's built for it so don't worry, otherwise they would have set the redline lower. With automatics, esp. CVT-type boxes, just floor it until you get to the speed you want and then back off enough to hold that speed and let the computer sort it out. It's something I had to get back used to when I had the Mk2, as with the Mk1 D4D I never had to go above 3000rpm ever because the engine had so much mid-range torque, so going 4k+ felt like I was murdering the engine, but you can't drive a petrol engine at low RPM in high load situations as they're not designed for it, and I'd have to push that 1.33 up to 6000rpm sometimes, albeit briefly, to get it to move!

Bought myself a new Brompton today 😀 I've lusted after one for a few years but couldn't really justify it as I do have a few bikes. But I was in Evans cycles today while the wife was lady shopping and saw this little beauty. Wife not 100% happy, but she will come round 😀 Anyone else got one ? Brompton that is, not wife 😀

My RAV4 is in for it's 2nd year service, thought it would take about two hours or so, but they said it is due a software download which takes about an hour 😕 Anyone had this at the 2nd year service, seems strange as everything has been fine ?

Not only that, but they could use AI to decide what sort of driver you are, and adjust your insurance premium, your mileage allowance, or even when and where you can drive, and with what type of car, or adjust it's maximum power output. Oh, and don't forget the usual selling of your data, to assess you for targeting with ads. Paranoid, possibly, but then again, they are actually out to get me!

Easily, but probably not legally. If I get an electric or hybrid, I want my AVAS to make the Jetson's car noise. One of the first things I saw when looking up AVAS suggests to me that you can easily get an aftermarket unit. https://brigade-electronics.com/products/reversing-and-warning-alarms/quiet-vehicle-sounder/

From a different Toyota models point of view we are talking about dried and dirty front suspension arms rear bushes. You can try wash the car nicely at this area with regular car shampoo or soft tfr mixture. Try afterwards if the noises disappear. If no wash available, few shots of silicone spray can sort the things and stop and creaking. How you describe the event it’s very likely to be that. Good luck

That is great Bob. Thank you. 👍

I can check that after some days as I didn’t put back the interior cards and I have access to the battery. I unlock and locked the car almost every day as I always find something to take from or bring into it, perhaps I missed my driving a lot. Just installed a new sun shades on the front side windows, checked battery shows 12.4v , two days since was fully charged. Two weeks since I had stopped driving. Next weekend or before that will check again, perhaps start the car and see what is the charge of the hybrid battery, it was well topped before. 👍

Citroen had a very good recall system, often the recall was done at a service without the customer being aware. They were being criticised for recalls, while Fords and others were not even accepting they had a problem. I’d rather have the problem sorted on a recall than have a car with a known fault that the manufacturer won’t admit to. E.g. Fords 3 cylinder engine problems.

I have the 2019 and haven't noticed the biting point being any worse than my previous car which was a Corsa 1.2 petrol. I do agree it needs a bit more revs to stop the revs dropping but i wouldn't call it hairline trigger, i assumed that it was down to it having 6 gears as the Corsa had 5.

I could not answer since I have a basic head unit without navigation, W53828. It does have Bluetooth for phone calls, and depending on the phone, navigation direction commands, but no support for multi media streaming. I added a Bluetooth/USB adapter via the CD changer port at the rear of the unit, that covers all bases. My car is one of the early models, and as Toyota did upgrades and facelifts to later models, the extra functions were added. Toyota have been a little behind the times, but there have ways to catch up and add more functionality. The best way to find out what function are available is to check the manual or try. Perhaps a list all the stereo unit fitted to the Avensis T27 and what they have, should be made available. The basic CD radio first fitted to the T2 has no Bluetooth nor USB, but may have a CD changer port, so an adapter can be plugged in, giving full Bluetooth and USB. All controlled via the steering wheel. There is an AUX socket for external sources. The TR fitted with the handsfree CD radio unit the W53828 also has CD changer port. As I mentioned above there is no Bluetooth streaming support. There is a basic AUX socket in the middle storage console. Later basic basic radio CD gained USB socket, and the Bluetooth should now stream, but needs clarification. The TN510 navigation unit has Bluetooth streaming and USB, as confirmed from a 2009 brochure I have stored in my archive. The B9012 navigation unit has Bluetooth streaming, as confirmed by the OP. It is safe to say that all multimedia units including the non-nav in later 2011 on cars (first facelift) with Bluetooth, have streaming.

This avas sounds odd and adds very little to the safety if anything at all. It’s more of annoying thing to the drivers than any benefit. The car itself it’s quiet as they are all hybrids without it but it’s not just an engine sound, tyre noise, wind noise all adds up enough and if anyone around pay attention will be able to see, hear, even those with difficulties. One problem with Avas sound is that although it’s a mono sound I believe it is also very artificial and can fool you which side it comes from. For those who does not pay attention., like some pedestrians and those with headphones, best to use your horn from a distance and slow down, be ready to stop. I drive through the busiest streets of the capital where people jump front of you on daily basis, the only ever needed a sound from the engine is when I am the first car at the traffic lights and the light changes to green people are still crossing front of me and because there is no engine rev up sound to show them my intentions they keep going. The trick is slow crawling forward and a few beeps with the horn does the job for me better than any avas.

Your dealership can programme it to do auto lock for you also they can programme the windows to open and close via the remote.

Prefer the anthracite.

@Roy124 You are quite right in what you say. The 6-15 miles does take around 20 to 45 minutes, so time, rather than mileage is the critical factor here.

And then once the motorway returns to 70mph all those trucks are still trapped in lanes 2 and 3 and causing chaos

This is one of the things that makes 'Smart' motorways so dangerous - I've written to Highways to tell them to NOT set speed limits below 60 unless there is an actual jam or accident ahead, but they still insist on using 50 and 40mph limits for 'traffic calming', which just creates a massive accident potential as almost all the truck drivers ignore the limits and keep travelling at their maximum limited speed (i.e. 56-60mph) because they can see ahead that the road is free and they know where the working speed cameras are (Or don't care?). That triggers a situation where they are undertaking everyone in lane 1 with a 20mph differential, until someone who is obeying the 40 limit manages to get into lane 1, then the trucks all try to pull into lanes 2 or 3. And that's not counting the panic brakers who slam on the brakes if the gantry suddenly changes to 40mph. (Very fun when a truck is pulling out into the back of them to get past people doing 50!) At the very least Highways should use soft limits first (i.e. limits without the red circle) as an advisory to prepare drivers for harder limits later if there is an actual jam (Half the time there isn't), but they really don't seem to give a smeg and just feed me boiler plate replies. It's pretty clear the people that decide policy for these things do not use the roads that they affect...

Corn as the main source of ethanol in northern continent is more useful as food source for growing chicken and cows. Just like bio diesel using Rapeseed,sunflower, soy, and corn oil is silly too. Palm oil produces 5x more yield per hectar than Rapeseed but also the main contribution in tropical forest deforestation. Chicken is probably the best protein per kW energy and food. Better than Vegans food that are often wasted because no one eat them. In my opinion, ethanol in gasoline is just stupid. It is not better than pure gasoline for car, and not greener either if we include how much CO2 we produced in farming. The global fertiliser need petroleum stock. Back to the topic. E5 is still the best price/performance that often contain 3% or less ethanol but much lower price than no ethanol gasoline. It is all because of tax cut, not production cost.

Sorry andrueC but it seems from the responses on here that others either agree with my or share my frustration. no offence but that’s my style of driving and it’s legal so I don’t need to explain it to you. The topic is about the speed increments not my driving style.

Saw this and thought it was interesting - not my words, but copied and pasted ========================== We’ve all got our bins and bags, which we dutifully fill with paper, glass, metal, and whatever else the council are prepared to pick up. But this week I came across a material that I’d never even really considered before, let alone realised could be recycled: Airbags. Turns out that during the airbag production process, there are quite a few nylon offcuts, and thankfully, rather than letting them go to waste, use is now being made of them. Sportswear brand Asics has announced that they’re teaming up with Toyota Gosei to create a brand new trainer made from leftover airbag fabric, as well as some offcuts from leather steering wheels too. Toyota Gosei have already been using the offcuts to make bags and pencil cases, but the partnership with Asics will likely make it much easier for them to save much more nylon from the scrapheap, which is good news all round. The full story can be found here https://www.topgear.com/car-news/weird/these-asics-trainers-are-made-out-old-car-airbags?inf_contact_key=133bc89cb08805f85756250313843407680f8914173f9191b1c0223e68310bb1

Works perfectly - thanks all!

Agree, for the most part, although if it's land that can't be used to grow anything else for some reason then fair enough. It's like grassland for cows - Combine harvesters can't go up hills but cows can, so they can make use of hilly grasslands for grazing that would otherwise be useless for farming, or require very disruptive landscaping to make it suitable.

I try to set my speed to 72 mph on motorways as most manufacturers have the speedo a few mph lower than the real speed. If I need to over take a car that is fluctuating in speed I will add a couple of mph to do so and then return to 72. with increments of 5 you can’t do this. I can’t think of a time that anyone would need to go up in 5’s so it’s a daft design.

It's really nice The original Atkinson/Miller cycle-only engines always felt like smaller engines because of the delayed valve closing pushing a chunk of fuel out - I equated the 1.8 to a 1.3-1.5 in terms of feel, but because the new engines can switch to Otto-cycle mode, they feel like you've suddenly gained 0.3-0.5L of displacement when they switch and it's a very noticeable power boost!

The 2.0 Corolla is a big step up over a 1.8 Auris (I made the swap after a brief stint in a 2010 Auris Hybrid. The 2.0 Corolla has turbo-like torque, particularly when the traction battery is well charged.

Is it really over heating ? Engines do not boil water 5–10 seconds, why all this work without doing proper diagnostics ?? Have you checked the cooling system with an infrared thermometer ? Radiator temp sensor as in the side of the rad ? 1.3 or 1.5, auto or manual ? There is no EL50, But there is a NL50 diesel There are 2 temp sensors on the engine, one for the ecu and 1 for the gauge are there any codes present

All that is needed because cvt and eCVT has no gears. In classic auto transmission and manual do dsg they will shift down to rise engine rpm so necessary torque is delivered and the car can overcome the gradient. In hybrids it’s even slightly more complicated as when you push the accelerator not only rpm rises but also mg1 changes it’s speed and in some cases can start turning in opposite direction to provide extra torque and together with mg2 to push the car accelerate quickly. Toyota hybrids are by no mean are fast cars but they aren’t slow at all. It’s just how they deliver the torque from the hybrid system to the wheels, it’s linear smooth while most other type cars are jerky with shift shocks and a lot more noise and bangs. John ‘s example above is 100% correct and the best way to get the ultimate balance between performance and efficiency., trying to accelerate with moderate power keeping at the border between normal and power field on the power meter and when cruising to stay as long as possible at the middle. 👍

Sorry but I know this is not about cars but does anyone know if the mafia has taken over fish and chip shops. To be honest this is the first time in over 3 years we have brought fish and chips as we normally do our own. However we went in to our local chip shop and a medium peice of cod and large chips was £11.80p. I am sure I saw two guys in dark glasses and machine guns looking at us as we paid. 😭 jesus am I getting old or what.

Thanks for the suggestions. Problem solved ~ and I am so embarrassed. I didn't realise that there is a lock slider on the back of the seat. 🙄 (For security, the seats can be locked so that the boot can't be accessed if someone broke into the car.) I have been shifting loads of stuff recently and something must have caught on the switch and locked the seat. If nothing else, hopefully this experience will help someone else! Mike

My battery charge is now completed. From 9:30 this morning on slow 0.8A charge until 13:00. Charger display shows 13V and all solid battery icon and all bars full. Then after 10 min around the car playing with acc on and off to open and close windows to set cables away and before I lock everything I measured again and shows 12.6V , I think battery is now in healthy condition and can stay on standby for another two weeks. 👍

A couple of interesting answers worth reading more then once from Mooley and Konrad C. This is of value not just for Toyota owners but owners of cars of other makes.

Times hasn't changed in this case (it will never change in our lifetime at least). Would never go for the Renault myself no matter how good it look or drive. Will end up heavy depreciation and cost of niggling repairs after warranty. The 2.0 TS will be a quieter engine.

Well the OP experience uphill it’s just about right for these cars. Can be bad or worse and it will depend a bit of battery charge but if we exclude that all can be managed with accelerator control. When going uphill, joining motorways, overthinking other vehicles in Toyota hybrids all comes from the accelerator pedal. Because the transmission has no gears and the engine power is maintained by the mg1 speed you have to push it, if you sharply push the pedal to the floor the car will launch itself using all power available from petrol engine and hybrid battery and all that power will be delivered in quickly and effortlessly. If you push halfway through the engine will be screaming high revs while electric motor will try to compensate lack of petrol power and the car will feel sluggish and noisy. Quick full throttle push for a few seconds to gain speed and momentum then slight release accelerator to maintain that speed at lower rpm is the key for more pleasant experience. Efficiency will not be affected. Same pulse and glide technique but at higher speeds. 👍

One thing that I would love to be able to do is to mimic my Hybrid Assistant display full size on that 12" display but that's probably a wish too far!

Good video HERE showing some if not all of the options The Meter type can be set to single analogue style, dual analogue style and digital style, the data displayed can be set to differing data in 4 distinct areas and you can set 3 personalised display sets to quickly shift between preferred info. Page 100 on You can choose either Tachometer or Power meter. . PZ49X-12Q65-EN.pdf

Thought the same with the digital/analogue Speedo, it's customisable so perhaps we can set what we want to see. From what you guys are saying regarding the mk4's power, it's already adequate, think it will be more of a use for the cross with 130.

I think you're wrong there... If the hole is there properly trimmed, what would be the point if there was no HUD? Conversely, all none HUD equipped cars have no sign of the hole at all, not even a shape or indent where it might be added...

I notice Drive the Deal are not brokering Toyota at this moment. Hopefully negotiating for September 😁

Very good, really nice upgrades similar to Corolla. Gen 5 hybrid system, latest safety tech and the better instruments plus screen, honestly if me putting an order now or soon, I will definitely wait and order this over existing model., it’s well worth it. Anyone else who already own mk4 and x no point upgrading as this is basically same car with few little touches. 👍

Mmmhhh for a few moment I was thinking should I cancel my design order and wait for this one. Though I think the digital screens and larger infotainment will be offer in future for the cross, which is what I will most likely to get in maybe 2-3 years. The higher power 130 will be better for the cross.

Found this also

I had my 2yr service a couple of weeks ago. Everything was fine with the service itself other than that the technician entered the mileage as 112k instead of 12k on the hybrid check. That is still to be corrected because... I too had a "recall" software update that should have taken about an hour or so... but no. The technician tried 3 times to get the software update completed but each time the update got to the end and then threw an error. I am now told the the DCM needs to be replaced (I think they bricked it) and one has been ordered. It on its way and will be here on 30 May. Only then can they complete the "recall" and perform another hybrid health check in order to get the recorded mileage corrected. Meanwhile I have no SOS system, no SatNav - the car thinks it is currently in Germany - and the compass has a wildly varying opinion as to which way is north. It is also not connected to MyT so no journeys are recorded, no Hybrid coaching and no vehicle location logged. To say that I am not happy with that technician would be an understatement. It is only offset by the customer service and how they are trying to put the situation right. Hopefully, once the new DCM arrives it will be a quick fit as software should already be up to date, do another health check to correct the mileage and everything else should spring back into life. It's not that mistakes happen or problems occur. It matters only how they are dealt with and this circumstance will determine whether I continue to use this dealer - did I mention they do have superb customer service - or whether some very harsh letters and phone calls to Toyota are required. I hope your 2yr service is as painless as mine started out.