Kesawi

I have 4L of Mobil SuperSyn 0W040 oil left over and intend to switch to a different synthetic 0W40 next service. Would there be any issues with using 1L of the left over Mobil oil with 5L of the other oil to make the 6L required for the Kluger?

Interesting to see some of the driver aids they're offering such as "lane departure system, active cruise control and collision avoidance". Styling is a departure, the fake vents above the fron wheel arches look very much like a Land Rover. Twin head rest DVD's so third row misses out. Still see no improvement on the dismal in-dash GPS systems that most highend cars come with. It will be interesting to see how Toyota responds, the 2010 Landcruiser will be more than likely be facelift model based on previous model rotations, but it may have some nifty features.

Luckily I've never had an issue with it, even when flogging it.

Any damage to the tow bar assembly or mounts?

By accident, I discovered a way to keep the hill start assist (HSA) activated for more than 2 seconds before it switches off. Activate HSA as usual by pushing the brake pedal to the floor, waiting for the beep and then getting the VSC light coming on. Reach down and press the VSC Off button before the HSA deactivates. The brakes will hold the car for longer than 2 seconds (I'm not sure how long as I had to drive off after about 5 seconds). I don't know whether this has any negative effect on the car at all. I'm interested to know if anyone else can duplicate this.

A very unfortunate event indeed. Provided the brakes aren't brake-by-wire, pushing down the brake pedal with both feet as hard as you can should be sufficient to stop the car, even if it can't be put into neutral.

$670 was the cheapest I found anywhere so $430 is pretty good.

A lot of the issues were rectified in later builds so if you're getting a new one most of the problems have been resolved. Despite some of the issues I'm happy with my choice.

See http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/inde...showtopic=15886

Have a read of http://www.caradvice.com.au/19181/not-wort...ng-think-again/: "Cars insured for less than $6000 are the most commonly stolen and the insurance data also reveals the number of thefts increases with vehicle age." and "cars above $26,000 were more likely to have items stolen from them." Maybe the Mazda 3 is more likely to be stolen than the Kluger? The Kluger rates pretty poorly on the NRMA car theft ratings though (http://www.nrma.com.au/keeping-safe-secure...gs/tables.shtml). My partners new 2009 Mazda3 was insured for $200 less than my Kluger, but around the same rate as for her 1997 Camry. Who knows how insurers work

I wonder how February will go given all the issues in the media at the moment with the safety recalls in the US.

Maybe for whatever reasons older cars have a higher risk of being involved in an accident?

You are correct. Queensland Transport has issued a Vehicle Standard Instruction specifically covering spot and fog lights (See http://www.transport.qld.gov.au/resources/...or_Vehicles.pdf): "Additional driving lamps must only operate in conjunction with the high beam circuit and must be fitted with an independent on/off switch." This is different from the Queensland Transport Vehicle Modification Brochure (http://www.transport.qld.gov.au/resources/...r_vehicles2.pdf) which doesn't mention the requirement for a switch. I'm not sure where this requirement comes from as neither the Transport Operations (Road Use Management - Vehicle Standards and Safety) Regulation 1999 (http://203.19.232.150/LEGISLTN/CURRENT/T/TrantOpRUVSSR99.pdf) nor Vehicle Standard (Australian Design Rule 13/00 – Installation of Lighting and Light Signalling Devices on other than L-Group Vehicles) 2005 (http://www.comlaw.gov.au/ComLaw/Legislatio...Compilation.pdf) require the installation of an on/off switch, only that "The driving lamps must be able to be lighted only when the main-beam headlamps switch is in the “lamps on” position" (ADR13/00 Clause 7.3.7). Regardless of the above i think it makes sense to have a separate switch as there are situations where the spot lights may not be necessary in addition to high beam.

Renewed mine just recently and had variations from $700 to $1200 depending on insurer. Found RACQ and AAMI were closest on price at the bottom end. The more expensive insurances did cover a little more, such as all glass with the windscreen option and riot damage.

Couldn't have said it better myself :) It doesn't stop them, but they don't appear as easily.

That is what I thought as well, since most of what I saw indicated synthetics give better fuel economy. However, the toyota stock oil is a 30 viscosity and the Mobil is a 40 which is higher viscosity. My understanding is higher viscosity = higher resistance = higher fuel consumption. I personnally won't be putting the same oil back in as it was very expensive. Will probably try Valvoline as it is cheaper and is reported to be better with mileage (see http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/inde...st&p=362937)

This is true and it should in theory settle down to normal with the next tank. I have experienced long term changes in fuel consumption after servicing. The first happened when I changed the engine oil to Mobil 1 SuperSyn 0W-40, the average consumption jumped by 1-2L/100km, and I put it down to the oil. The second happened when I had the oil line replaced under the customer service initiative, the average fuel consumption dropped by 1L/100km.

According to another article used car prices are expected to reduce as well: http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0...2-23272,00.html Some of these are worth a good read: http://www.negotiationtraining.com.au/arti...tiate-car-deal/ http://www.carbuyingguide.org.uk/car-buying-guide.php http://www.carbroker.com.au/car-dealer-tri...ctics-scams.php http://autos.yahoo.com/articles/autos_cont...-buying-tactics Another tip is don't menton that you want to trade-in. When asked tell the dealer you intend to keep the car or give it to your children/parents/etc. Get them down to the lowest price on the new car, then 'change your mind' and negotiate a trade-in price for your vehicle. You'll have them locked in the new car price, and can then purely negotiate the trade-in value. Agree completely. However there is no point in the customer making a bad financial decision either. Always excercise the right to walk away before a contract is signed. If there is only 2% profit in a car deal, then you should sack the salesperson :P Granted, the penalty will probably be more than a saving that could be made elsewhere.

You can always tell a dealer you will be willing to sign if the price is right and then walk away once you've got them down to their best price. In queensland there is a statutory cooling off period, so you could take the contract to another dealer and see if they will better the deal, and then cancell the original within the time period. Edit: The above is actually incorrect, the cooling off period only applies to used cars in Qld, not new (http://www.legalaid.qld.gov.au/Legal+Infor...uying+a+car.htm). It's not really a nice thing to do, but then sales strategies and pressures aren't nice either. The other advice given above is spot on. Know what your trade in is worth and get them to list the amount separately.

Whether it's a dealer or a broker you get ripped off one way or another :P

I got all my extras through the dealer when I bought the car, however it was probably quite a bit pricier that way. I recently bought a Mazda 3 and decided to get the accessories aftermarket. It was only later that I discovered some of the accessories weren't available aftermarket and I had to go back through the dealer and pay the premium price they wanted. If they were part of the deal then I would have probably been able to negotiate a slightly better price (at the end of the day we're only talking a $100-$200 more on the small number of accessories I wanted). Next vehicle purchase I'll find out what is available aftermarket and get some prices for the items I want and then use it to get the dealer's price down on those items. Once the accessories price is down, start negotiating on the whole of car price. Also, suggest you investigate some of the car broker services once you have your lowest price. If you or your spouse are a member of a union there is a free service available from www.unionshopper.com.au but I haven't used any of them before so can't make any recommendations.

Great write up. That microphone looks huge! Did you hook up the reverse camera?

My black interior trim tends to get white marks everywhere, especially from finger marks. I've been using Meguiars Gold Class Dash & Trim Foam Protectant, which seems to clear it up and prevent them some what. I did notice something when I was washing the car yesterday and need to have a closer look.

AWD or FWD?