Sportivo Suspension

[Kiwi]

I recently bought a 2007 Aurion Sportivo only done 22,000km.  I'm not so sure I like the firm ride it has and wondered if I can replace the struts from any other model Aurion of the same year that would have a softer ride.  I don't want to change the car, just get a softer ride.  Any thoughts ?

Edited May 27, 2020 by Kiwi

[campbeam]

I would consider checking the tyre pressures. Using the recommended lower tyre pressures will give you a softer ride.

Also check the age of the tyres.

If they are original then they are 13 years old and should be replaced even if they have only done 22000 km.

[Kiwi]

Yes lowered the tyre pressure to whats recommended, no noticeable difference after.  New tyres going on later this week, so fingers crossed with that.  If you try and give the suspension a bit of a bounce by pushing on the front wings usually you would get some sort of bounce going but this car is very "firm"  😥

[Tony Prodigy]

Hi Kiwi Mike. How did you come across such a low mileage car ? Deceased estate ? Man that is something special to find, especially these days.

I have to agree with Ashley. If that car has seen little of the road since new, then I'm assuming the tyres would still be original issue in any case would be bad, bad, bad. They'd be rock hard and will not give a good ride, not to mention unsafe in the wet.

 I wouldn't be thinking struts at this point. Also, depending on how it had been stored, the bushings may have hardened a little too. Get yourself some Aerospace 303, go around and give all your suspension bushing a soak with this stuff. It's a miracle product for the preservation of all things rubber and porous plastics.

Once you get the new tyres, give it a good run to exercise the suspension and it should come good. I haven't heard anyone complain about the suspension being to firm on a Sportivo. They are hardly a performance car to begin with really. You also have the same wheel/tyre combo as my Prodigy and it rides just nicely.

Post up some pics of your new car if you can. Be nice to see it.

Where are you located ?

 

[Kiwi]

Thanks for your reply Tony.  I'm in Christchurch NZ.  The car belonged to a local farmer who bought it new from the local Toyota dealer and traded it back again recently on a new Highlander.  I believe the Aurion was their 2nd car so its spend most of its life just resting up in the garage.  Lovely condition, runs perfectly but I'm finding the firm ride hard to get used to.

Today it had new tyres fitted - Kumho ECSTA 4X KU22  Steers a little nicer but really the ride is still probably just the same. I don't really want to muck with it so I'll give it some time and see what happens.  Hopefully it eases up a bit.  I think I'll find another Sportivo in a car yard somewhere and see if the suspension feels the same when I give it a push on the front guards as I can't really get any movement by doing that - it's that firm.  As I understand things your Prodigy and the Sportivo's had a different suspension setup even though the wheels/tyres are the same ?  My mechanic tells me its all in my head and nothing amiss ... aagghh  Worth asking the question here thought just to get some feedback from other owners.

I only have one photo of it for now which was a photo from the dealer.  Great colour I think, looks like new not really a mark on it.

Cheers

Mike

[Tony Prodigy]

53 minutes ago, Kiwi said:

I think I'll find another Sportivo in a car yard somewhere and see if the suspension feels the same when I give it a push on the front guards as I can't really get any movement by doing that - it's that firm. 

The car looks beautiful mate. I remember that colour combo when it came out and it always stood out nicely. I'd love to own one like it to be honest.

Another question. Are you aware of the recall they had on the VVTI oil line ? Is there anything in the books that show that this upgrade has been done ? The previous owner may not have been made aware of this and or either he was not internet savvy...You should find out because it's an important issue on these earlier Aurions. There was also the sticky dash issue too. Apart from these two things, they were solid.

Overall, the ride may just well be a little firmer than a standard ATX say, but the ATX also has 60 series tyres which soak up the bumps better than the 55 series tyres. Couple this with tuned suspension and the overall experience will be different. Drive it around for a few months and see if you get used to it. It may just grow on you. Give it some time.

Look after it. She's a beauty !! 

Here's a passage I found from The Sydney Morning Herald from 2009, so you are definitely not imagining it. I think if you start playing around with suspension you may ruin it's characteristics. If you have to bounce test, make sure you bounce it via the shock tower or radiator support and not the guard, because you will dent the metal.

ON THE ROAD

The Sportivo gets a different suspension tune to standard Aurions, with unique springs, dampers and rear stabiliser bar settings. Toyota says the changes make the car more responsive, sitting flatter through corners.

That's good because in basic form, the Aurion's handling is below par compared with the other locals. The suspension is too soft and the car tends to wallow over bigger bumps and lean through corners, with vague steering not helping.

 

Under hard acceleration, the steering wheel tugs slightly at your hand as the front wheels scrabble for grip.

The Sportivo's stiffer body, retuned suspension and some aerodynamic aids under the car make it more stable and agile, while not detracting too much from the car's ability to soak up potholes and corrugations.

[Kiwi]

Yes I'm aware of two oil line issues.  One was an oil cooler pipe which was replaced last month by the dealer, and the VVTi oil line I'm currently waiting on Toyota to get back to me with a costing as yes it still has the original.  I don't believe they will cover the cost of replacing this one as apparently it was only ever an 'advisory' type thing, but I'm ok with that, it shouldn't be that much.  I will definately get it done though.

As far as the sticky dash problem goes as far as I can tell that wasn't so much of a problem over here. perhaps because of a cooler climate & less sun ?  Fingers crossed !

Thanks for that info about the suspension too .... I plan as you suggest to give it a while and see how we go.

Cheers, Mike

[campbeam]

9 hours ago, Tony Prodigy said:

Overall, the ride may just well be a little firmer than a standard ATX say, but the ATX also has 60 series tyres which soak up the bumps better than the 55 series tyres. Couple this with tuned suspension and the overall experience will be different. Drive it around for a few months and see if you get used to it. It may just grow on you. Give it some time.

Look after it. She's a beauty !!

Nothing like a good long highway drive to fully appreciate what a great highway cruiser you have.

I have a Oct. 2006 Aurion ATX now with 214K on the odometer. I know that the suspension is well worn but is still firm. I am used to its characteristics of the lean through corners and adapt. New struts and a stiffer rear sway bar will be about $1000 to have better handling. Eventually, instead of spending those $$$, I will start driving my standby Dec. 2008 Aurion Prodigy with 109K on the odometer which also has firm suspension. Both vehicles are fitted with 215/60/R16 tyres. 

 

https://www.redbook.com.au/cars/details/2007-toyota-aurion-sportivo-sx6-auto/SPOT-ITM-280092/

 

[Kiwi]

Yep, I haven't actually driven it any distance yet on the open highway so maybe that will be the turning point for me.  

[campbeam]

1 hour ago, Kiwi said:

Yep, I haven't actually driven it any distance yet on the open highway so maybe that will be the turning point for me.  

Oh my goodness. You should have one nice treat coming your way. Day trip to Timaru should be a great bit of fun assuming that main highway is in good condition. Should be a good time now with not too many tourists on the roads. 

I absolutely love doing an annual road trip from Brisbane QLD to Wagga Wagga NSW; 4500km overall via the Newell Highway which is mainly flat outback country. Only drawback is the ongoing roadworks plus a possible escorted wide load mainly encountered on Sundays. 

[Kiwi]

👍

[Tony Prodigy]

4 hours ago, campbeam said:

Oh my goodness. You should have one nice treat coming your way.

I second that. You have one very nice car mate. New tyres, a general service and leave it as she is and enjoy it. Otherwise you'd have to sell it to me lol.

[campbeam]

1 hour ago, Tony Prodigy said:

I second that. You have one very nice car mate. New tyres, a general service and leave it as she is and enjoy it. Otherwise you'd have to sell it to me lol.

What a rare find. Now a similar vehicle like that would seriously tempt me enough to buy then rearrange my harem of "mechanical girlfriends". 

[AurionX2]

Oh man, that Aurion looks fantastic. I really enjoyed the South Island holiday there few years back. Kiwi, you have some really great drives down there in South, I'd take that beauty on a day drive to Akaroa and back, that firm suspension should feel at home on those bends 😁

Edited May 31, 2020 by AurionX2

[Kiwi]

On 5/29/2020 at 11:31 PM, Tony Prodigy said:

The car looks beautiful mate. I remember that colour combo when it came out and it always stood out nicely. I'd love to own one like it to be honest.

Another question. Are you aware of the recall they had on the VVTI oil line ? Is there anything in the books that show that this upgrade has been done ?

Hey Tony, do you know the part number for the all metal VVTi oil line ?  or maybe there's a kit with all the gaskets etc

 

Thanks

Mike

Edited June 11, 2020 by Kiwi
Addition

[campbeam]

1 hour ago, Kiwi said:

do you know the part number for the all metal VVTi oil line ?

Have a look at this URL.  I sourced my parts from Amayama.com . I had a very frustrating time getting that engine cover off. Ended up going to SuperCheap to get some offset spanners.  It probably took me about 5 hours to do because it was so frustrating that I had to walk away to calm down.  Many months later, I bought a 3/8'' 12V 32Nm Electric Cordless Right Ratchet Angle Wrench Tool. I made a mental note to myself that if ever I bought another Aurion, I would immediately deduct $500 off the price and I would even pay a mechanic to do it. Now gotten over that fissy fit so would take on that task again especially if that right angle cordless tool can access those 2 retaining bolts.

2GR FE VVTi Oil Line Replacement Tutorial.doc

https://www.toyotanation.com/threads/diy-replacing-rear-bank-vvt-i-oil-line.432008/

[Kiwi]

One final question though please.  Would the struts/springs be interchangeable between the different Aurion models ?  I'm assuming they would be, but just give a different ride ?

[campbeam]

2 hours ago, Kiwi said:

One final question though please.  Would the struts/springs be interchangeable between the different Aurion models ?  I'm assuming they would be, but just give a different ride ?

Struts and springs are different for the Sportivo. Lowered springs and struts are probably 1-2 cms or inches shorter.

If you have a search on eBay, you will see different listings for the Sportivo compared to other Aurions.

[Kiwi]

Thank you appreciate that info.

[campbeam]

There was a post on this Forum some years ago that the rear sway bar on the Sportivo was solid and on other models it was hollow. Internet searches was unable to confirm that statement. A local wrecker had the 40 series Sportivo, so $50 and a delightful 2 hours later in the damp after some morning showers. I had that Sportivo rear sway bar.  My 2006 Aurion ATX rear sway bar weighed 1.62kg and the Sportivo one weighed 2.74kg. I think that confirms that the Sportivo rear sway bar is solid. 

[jeffy]

15 hours ago, campbeam said:

There was a post on this Forum some years ago that the rear sway bar on the Sportivo was solid and on other models it was hollow. Internet searches was unable to confirm that statement. A local wrecker had the 40 series Sportivo, so $50 and a delightful 2 hours later in the damp after some morning showers. I had that Sportivo rear sway bar.  My 2006 Aurion ATX rear sway bar weighed 1.62kg and the Sportivo one weighed 2.74kg. I think that confirms that the Sportivo rear sway bar is solid. 

Thanks for this ! Ill attach this information in the aurion FAQ thread, so hopefully in future when someone searches for it, it will be there.

 

EDIT:
ive actually found this post from 2010 😁

  

On 4/3/2010 at 1:12 PM, Adamsy said:

Yeah the AT-X Prodigy, Presara and SE models all have hollow rear bars. Only the Sportivo's and TRD cars have solid rear bars. 🙂

 

[Kiwi]

45 minutes ago, jeffy said:

Thanks for this ! Ill attach this information in the aurion FAQ thread, so hopefully in future when someone searches for it, it will be there.

 

EDIT:
ive actually found this post from 2010 😁

  

 

Wow, great info thanks.  I really love this car all except the stiff ride.  So its sounding like I could swap out all the struts, springs & front & rear sway bars and that might give me a smoother ride ?  Is there anything else you think might need to be changed ?  Border line now to just selling it and buying something else, but its such a nice car other than that.  I was attracted to it for its low k's and its in perfect condition all round, Oh what to do.

[campbeam]

If you really want a smoother ride, I would start by swapping out the struts and springs. Cheap solution may be to source the complete strut units from wreckers. I would also keep the original struts just in case you want to swap them back and sell the vehicle at a later date.

Interesting because I am doing the exact opposite of going for a firmer ride to improve handling and reduce body roll particularly through roundabouts. I recently went for a drive that involved a number of hairpin bends with advisory signs of 20kph and 30kph. Since that day, body roll has reduced so cannot explain that one.

[Kiwi]

Thanks, yes I've got my eye on a set from a wrecker up north, sounds like it might be the way to go to start with anyway.  Someone said the Sportivo sits a couple of cm's lower and wasn't sure if AT-X struts would upset the geometry or its nothing to worry about (probably a wheel alignment after though ?)

Cheers

Mike

[L4WL3SS]

Has anyone confirmed that zr6 springs can go into an atx or touring for example? If they are interchangeable between models, then what exactly is the difference because they are all the same price aftermarket so one won't likely be better spec than the other. Kyb rep couldn't tell me what the difference is

Edited June 18, 2021 by Metal_Head