GreenAvensis

All, Just a quick note signing off this forum. Have gone over to the 'other side' and traded in the Avensis for a Mondeo. Am sure many Avensis examples are great but I had just too many problems with mine. Was made on Friday afternoon - presumably after a good pub lunch. Have had the Mondeo for 2 weeks now and nothing is juddering, rattling, falling off - it just works. Fingers crossed she stays that way! Anyway, this is a very good forum. Thanks for the help/advice given. Bye, GreenAvensis.

Hi, I had a minor oil leak fixed under the standard 3 year warranty. Not sure where it was from because the garage spotted it at a service before I did and just fixed it. Good service. Bye.

Hi, If this _always_ happens after the car's been sitting for a few days, next time try pumping the brake pedal hard a few times before driving off. If it is the front brakes binding a bit then that may unbind them -> no noise. Bye.

Hi, As noted elsewhere on this group, the 1.8VVTi engine has a timing chain not a timing belt. If your 1.8 Avensis is 18 months old then it must be a VVTi, so no timing belt to change. Thanks.

Hi, I checked inside the oil filler cap and all looks clean. Water usage is pretty much zero. Will take it to main dealer in a few weeks when I get the chance. Did report it before but the guy that came on the road test seemed to be suffering from hayfever and so was in no position to smell anything...! Seem to remember that many cars have some connection between the breather pipe from the camshaft case and the air vents. PCV?? No Haynes manual for Avensis, though. Thanks.

All, I've begun to notice that, under hard acceleration (e.g. up to 60mph in 2nd full accelerator), I occasionally get a slight smell of oil through the air vents. It's a 1.8VVTi Avensis, manual 2001 hatchback and has done approx 36K miles. The oil usage when I last checked was between minimal and nothing. Isn't generally thrashed and runs well. Is this normal - e.g. an oil breather type thing - or something I should look into further? Thanks.

Hi, I have a 2001 Avensis and have had the front disks skimmed at approx 15K and replaced at 30K. Have heard they're a bit heavy on front disks... and I don't drive like a mad man! So, if the problem occurs only while breaking (once the disks have heated up / whatever) then it probably is just warped disks. Thanks.

Hi, If you test drive one, listen for any squeaking from the steering column when you turn the wheel when stationary or at low speed, moving forward or in reverse. Any squeak may mean a new steering rack - FOC from Toyota, probably. Again as per advice here and on other sites, feel carefully for any gearbox noises or problems engaging gears, particularly with the 1.8 version. The Avensis seems to be quite heavy on front disk wear so feel for any judder while breaking. Build quality seems quite variable. Amongst other things look for good, uniform, door fit etc. Some people have reported that the paint chips quite easily (mine does) so look out for scratches and un-touched-up stone chips on the bonnet. I've had problems with one of the driveshafts on mine (road-speed-related judder on hard acceleration). Think this is unusual but a bit of posting on the web got replies from a couple of people reporting a similar issue. All that aside, the car is good fun to drive and the engine is nippy and responsive. They seem to rate good to average in reliability surveys. Purchasing a warranty for at least the first year may be a wise precaution. Thanks.

Hi, In my post above I meant _drive_ belt and tensioner, not timing belt. Do know the difference but was in a hurry...! Thanks.

Hi, I've also had my timing belt and tensioner replaced under warranty. Acknowledged as yet another a fairly common problem. I think that designing a timing belt tensioner that lasts just 30K is quite an achievement. How on earth did they manage it? :) Thanks.

Hi, The oil consumptions quoted above are within the (very wide) spec quoted in toyota's avensis manual. Before buying by 1.8VVTi model I also test drove an Avensis with the old 1.8 engine. Smoother, quieter and more reliable (I guess) but way, way behind the competition when it comes to power. In other words, I think they had to replace it in order to keep up with the competition. I'm sure it's the case that the new engine is less bomb-proof than the old one but then that always is the way for the first few years of a design, however well intentioned and tested. I could also point to a few engine management inadequacies (I suspect) which they'll doubtless sort out over time. Think I've read elsewhere that VVTi engines are 'allowed' to sound a bit more rattly because of the variable valve timing. Anyway, the VVTi ones seem to be right up there with ford and vauxhall when it comes to power output, and that's what sells cars. So, while I'm generally very critical of the Avensis, I think the new engine was needed and is actually pretty good. Having said that, of course I take the points about smoothness etc. Thanks.

Hi, Startled cat: You will get a sudden small reduction in power when the aircon compressor engages and a sudden small increase when it disengages again. This can feel like a very slight jolt, but that's about all. Would be good to know speed, gear and how hard you were accelerating at the time. Tickover from cold: This is allowed to be high and on cold days, with my 1.8 VVTi at least, it can fluctuate a bit for the first 10 secs or so. 1500RPM or so would seem about right but I've not actually checked. But, as long as it's idling smoothly and can pull away well then I see no problem with that. Thanks.

Hi, The warranty is 3 years from new and is transferrable between owners. You can pay to get it extended beyond that. Not sure what it covers but suspect it's pretty much anything apart from consumables (e.g. brake pads etc). Know it covers at least trim, dashboard, driveshafts and steering because items related to these have been paid for, no quibble, under warranty on my 51 plate Avensis. GreenAvensis.

James, What sort of things have happened to yours? Think that most of the problems with mine have been down to build and test quiality being a bit poor. Thanks.

Hi, I've now owned my 51 plate 1.8VVTi GS manual hatch Avensis for about 20 months. Bought it because I wanted a well designed car that was reliable and had low running costs. Since I've owned it, a _lot_ of warranty work (about £3,500 I estimate) has been done by the Toyota main dealer. The major bits are: - new plastic bush at base of steering column, then new steering rack, column, pipes, pump and front crossmember (squeaking/grinding) - new offside driveshaft (shudder on acceleration, took 18 months for Toyota to diagnose) - front disks skimmed (20K) then replaced (32K) (judder) - driver's side air vent replaced (loud rattle) - offside rear door striker plate adjusted and door seal replaced (used to shut too tightly) - drive belt and tensioner replaced (whistling) - minor engine oil leak fixed (I never spotted it, well done to the garage) The warranty is due to expire soon and I had a few questions: - Have I just been unlucky, or is all this normal for an Avensis? - Do people recommend me taking out an extended warranty? Am woried about cost of ownership. - Are these cars reliable and cheap to run, and should it get past 100K miles easily? - Should I just give up and trade it in for a Mondeo? Sad thought, but I haven't got the money to pay for fixing problem after problem... Thanks, GreenAvensis.