New Corolla (ZRE) Owners - Opinions

[Emmanuel]

I find that the only problem with my ZR levin auto hatch is that the dash has huge blind spots, nearly crashed once coz couldnt see car coming. and the back middle seat is small, but seeing as not many people get in my car it doesnt really worry me.

Also, the passenger seat has this weight detector thing which goes off its nut if your passenger doesnt have a seatbelt on, but generally its not a passenger its just a load of stuff sitting on my passenger seat so i have to chuck it off.

It runs pretty fast too, which suprised me coming from a 3.8L commodore, it doesnt have the same kick obviously, but it doesnt go like a little car.

Oh, and I find all the orange lights etc, really annoying sometimes. And it took me ages to learn how to turn down the brightness of the speedo.

And the boot is ok once you put ur seats down. I could fit my mountain bike in the boot but now I have sub box and amp in there so no more unless I can be bothered to unhook it :)

Dash is too intrusive - I agree. You cannot even see your bonnet at all! It takes a while to get used to the front end length.

Passenger seatbelt - this is true and quite annoying.

Capability - it is a capable car. The dual vvti spreads an even torque through the rev range of the engine.

Optitron lights - this is one of the highlights of the ZRs. LOOKS BLOODY AWESOME!

Boot size - smaller compared to my Ford Focus 07 which is has a huge boot thanks to its control blade suspension (requires less space than conventional ones)

Manny

[SmellyTofu]

I find that the only problem with my ZR levin auto hatch is that the dash has huge blind spots, nearly crashed once coz couldnt see car coming. and the back middle seat is small, but seeing as not many people get in my car it doesnt really worry me.

Also, the passenger seat has this weight detector thing which goes off its nut if your passenger doesnt have a seatbelt on, but generally its not a passenger its just a load of stuff sitting on my passenger seat so i have to chuck it off.

It runs pretty fast too, which suprised me coming from a 3.8L commodore, it doesnt have the same kick obviously, but it doesnt go like a little car.

Oh, and I find all the orange lights etc, really annoying sometimes. And it took me ages to learn how to turn down the brightness of the speedo.

And the boot is ok once you put ur seats down. I could fit my mountain bike in the boot but now I have sub box and amp in there so no more unless I can be bothered to unhook it :)

Could you elaborate on the blind spot?

Seat thing.. just put it on the floor. It's safer down there should you *touchwood* have a prang. It's one of the criteria that is needed to get 5 star NCAP rating (with the safety pack).... Without it, it's a 4 star on that item alone.

The bike thing... ever thought of roof racks and bike holder?

[One-pager]

I find that sometimes I have to double clutch to get into reverse.

6th gear ratio is too high, It would be nice to cruise at 100km/h at around 2000RPM instead it's around 2800.

Other than that, I love the car and I'll be looking at forced induction when something suitable comes out :)

[Emmanuel]

I find that sometimes I have to double clutch to get into reverse.

6th gear ratio is too high, It would be nice to cruise at 100km/h at around 2000RPM instead it's around 2800.

Other than that, I love the car and I'll be looking at forced induction when something suitable comes out :)

We need to first engage into any forward gear sometimes before engaging reverse because sometimes it does not want to go in. (no syncros in reverse) As for people experiencing grinding, make sure you are fully stationary before engaging reverse. Apart from the that, the gearbox is bloody awesome to use!

The ratios are pretty similar with gear 4, 5 and 6.. I guess these gears have been tuned to maximise fuel economy. From what I have observed, best instant fuel consumption is between 90 to 100 km/h on a fully flat road (no incline or decline).

Manny

Edited April 10, 2008 by Emmanuel

[wanz]

I find that the only problem with my ZR levin auto hatch is that the dash has huge blind spots, nearly crashed once coz couldnt see car coming. and the back middle seat is small, but seeing as not many people get in my car it doesnt really worry me.

Also, the passenger seat has this weight detector thing which goes off its nut if your passenger doesnt have a seatbelt on, but generally its not a passenger its just a load of stuff sitting on my passenger seat so i have to chuck it off.

It runs pretty fast too, which suprised me coming from a 3.8L commodore, it doesnt have the same kick obviously, but it doesnt go like a little car.

Oh, and I find all the orange lights etc, really annoying sometimes. And it took me ages to learn how to turn down the brightness of the speedo.

And the boot is ok once you put ur seats down. I could fit my mountain bike in the boot but now I have sub box and amp in there so no more unless I can be bothered to unhook it :)

Could you elaborate on the blind spot?

Seat thing.. just put it on the floor. It's safer down there should you *touchwood* have a prang. It's one of the criteria that is needed to get 5 star NCAP rating (with the safety pack).... Without it, it's a 4 star on that item alone.

The bike thing... ever thought of roof racks and bike holder?

Ok. with the blind spot there is a panel in the left hand corner, like 20 cms wide which if you come to a intersection, and look to you left, you cant really see much. And the dash is pretty long, like from the steering wheel to the actual front window panel, its like 50cms long, longer i dont know exactly how long. thats how come the bonnet isnt reallythat big coz the engine and stuff is also put under the dash space. It's kinda hard to explain but if you see one you will know what I am talking about.

And putting my bike in the car was a one off when i had to get it serviced. I was just saying that it is possible to fit a bike in, even though the space is so small. Compared to my old commodore, there isnt much difference once you put the seats down

[SILVABULLIT]

Gearbox in the zre's is a lot nicer than than a ZZE 123 Sportivo. Heaps smoother and not as notchy.

[dopey]

Ok, so I'm heavily considering trading in our 05 Ascent on a new Levin ZR when the rego is about to run out (dec/jan)

I spoke briefly with the Toyota dealer and they say $32k drive away is about the standard rate on a 6sp ZR. I'm thinking towards end of year or start of next year they'll be super keen to shift some 08 build cars so I could get a better price.

So anyway, this thread is quite a few months old now -- so since time has progressed, I ask have any ZRE owners have any complaints since their last posts?? :)

Additionally - what sort of RPM does the car sit at when you're doing 100-110km/h on the freeway in 6th?

Edited October 2, 2008 by dopey

[Jaaassseeee]

Ok, so I'm heavily considering trading in our 05 Ascent on a new Levin ZR when the rego is about to run out (dec/jan)

I spoke briefly with the Toyota dealer and they say $32k drive away is about the standard rate on a 6sp ZR. I'm thinking towards end of year or start of next year they'll be super keen to shift some 08 build cars so I could get a better price.

So anyway, this thread is quite a few months old now -- so since time has progressed, I ask have any ZRE owners have any complaints since their last posts?? :)

Additionally - what sort of RPM does the car sit at when you're doing 100-110km/h on the freeway in 6th?

I'd say about 2800rpm. 110 would be awfully close to 3000 if not exactly spot on :)

Personally I don't have any complaints about the car. Drives nice, smooth gear changes (manual for me), nice interior, reasonable power and handling considering the car is quite a few kg heavier.

Nothing complain for me

[jps137]

Ok, so I'm heavily considering trading in our 05 Ascent on a new Levin ZR when the rego is about to run out (dec/jan)

I spoke briefly with the Toyota dealer and they say $32k drive away is about the standard rate on a 6sp ZR. I'm thinking towards end of year or start of next year they'll be super keen to shift some 08 build cars so I could get a better price.

So anyway, this thread is quite a few months old now -- so since time has progressed, I ask have any ZRE owners have any complaints since their last posts?? :)

Additionally - what sort of RPM does the car sit at when you're doing 100-110km/h on the freeway in 6th?

I've had mine for just over 5months now and done 32,000 on it and I love it. It runs like a dream could do with some more power (though can't every car), I have put in a TRD air filter and am looking at doing something with the exhaust, but aside from the Bluetooth issues I am very happy with the car as an overall package

Edited October 2, 2008 by jps137

[dopey]

Thankyou for the feedback. Power is lacking this is true, but 100kW is enough for around town really. Keeps me from being silly anyway.

Did anybody happen to ask how much the sat-nav option is worth? *Edit* Noticed the RRP on Toyota's site when you configure the car -- $3740 OUCH!

Edited October 2, 2008 by dopey

[razor_raef]

Thankyou for the feedback. Power is lacking this is true, but 100kW is enough for around town really. Keeps me from being silly anyway.

Did anybody happen to ask how much the sat-nav option is worth? *Edit* Noticed the RRP on Toyota's site when you configure the car -- $3740 OUCH!

CHeck out the AVIC HD-3 system instead, i'm getting it installed next week. Unit costs $3000. A LOT more features that the toyota sat nav.