Dave L

In reality, the reversing camera is only a driving aid and shouldn't be the only perception you use to reverse. It isn't perfect but it makes life much easier than if it weren't there (particularly reversing into carparks at shopping centres to judge how far back you can go before hitting the car (or wall) behind you. We also invested in the parking sensors (front & rear), thinking it would add to the safety when reversing/parking but in all honesty they are quite sensitive and go off even when you're not that close to a nearby object, which at the beginning makes you stop and survey around - only to realise it is picking up something diagonally from the car and nowhere within striking distance. You then find yourself becoming accustomed to it going off and pretty soon start to ignore it - which is completely the opposite to what you should be doing (and I know one day it is going to come back to bite me). IMO, I think the sensors should be improved and the camera is pretty good.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure the side steps will help in all occassions. Particularly with back-doors on sedans that have the wheel-arch shape in the back door (which is likely to miss the side steps and let the door hit your car)

What happens above or below the moulding when some in-considerate person opens their door at the shops without thinking and they have a small car that will hit your door and not the moulding ? Personally, I see this as I do car bras - great for the area they cover/protect, but what about the rest of the car ? I don't think it's worth the money...but that's just MY opinion. Doesn't make me (or you) right or wrong... Dave

The Kluger is a heavy car, and in particular a top-heavy car. AWD is more sure-footed and safer, particularly in the wet. Will you be doing any towing? How do you know you won't ever be trying to drive uphill on a slippery road? There was a link posted here recently to a YouTube video showing a FWD Kluger unable to make it up a not-too-steep dirt road, when other FWD vehicles were able to make it easily because they had lower centre of gravity. So don't just think of buying AWD for its resale value, buy it also because you really WILL appreciate it. Ken. Not to disagree with you Ken, but you need to be fair about the information you provide. As per the Youtube video that was posted, and as many of us and others have posted about this, the fact the Kluger couldn't get up that hill is more likely to be because the driver wasn't driving correctly for the situation and not the fact that the Kluger/Highlander couldn't do it. I'm sure there are a number of people here with the 2WD model who have tackled a similar hill and had little problem. Also, and this is just MY opinion, unless you are buying the Kluger with the intent on taking it off-road consistantly, I don't believe that 4WD in the Kluger gives you a "considerable difference" in safety (on normal roads and in general driving conditions, which is probably 98% of the driving experience), over the 2WD variant. I'd personally say that the tyres you choose and your driving skills has more to do (particularly on wet/slippery roads), than 4WD would give you....unless you are talking about driving the Kluger like a sportier car (which of course it wasn't built for)...being a heavier car, as you have mentioned. Driving the Kluger hard (in the wet, and sometimes the dry), with the 2WD variant will likely produce steering torque and can be dangerous....however I don't consider this to be how most people would (or should) drive the Kluger. Again, this is just my view and others may not agree, but I don't think it's fair to say outright that 4WD is safer than 2WD and that the 2WD Kluger struggles to make it up hills. I am very happy for you to correct me if I am misinformed. Cheers, Dave

Perhaps cars pre-1990's but the only extra safety feature the Kluger has over my Mazda is VSC and maybe a couple of airbags. The Kluger will take further to pull-up during breaking, is less direct in it's steering response and is more likely to be taken "off-road"....all of which I would have thought may contribute to making the Kluger a more expensive car to insure. Anyway, sorry to go OT ! [/rant]

The best way I have found to use the ArmorAll (which I swear by), is to spray the cloth (don't spray directly onto the dash - unless you can do so without spraying it all over the window etc.). Give it several coats using the cloth....wait a few minutes to let it penetrate....then wipe off the excess with a clean dry cloth.

I'd love to know how they calculate estimates on car insurance. Our brand new Kluger is about 20% cheaper to insure than our 2003 Mazda 323 SP20 (which has a market value less than 50% of the Kluger).... Go figure....

Just thowing this out as a hypothetical question here.... When Toyota hook the car up for the service, is the transmission's/engine's ECU reset (or re-calibrated) by default ? I'm wondering if the car then needs to re-learn how you drive again and until it does so, the mileage will read differently to what you are used to. Blind Kid Seeks - are you able to ask one of the Toyota mechanics in the workshop why this might be happening (or is this not allowed) ? Personally, I can't see the oil making such a difference.....but I have been wrong before :o

I don't believe they do as there is no service done at 1000km anymore...it's just in inspection. The first actual service is at 10,000km, so I don't think they'd run thinner oil for the first 10K km.... Dave

Drove 280km home from Warrnambool yesterday and averaged 8.8L/100 on the journey home...which I was really happy with. Whilst up in Warrnambool the ave. was somewhere between 9.3 - 10.5L/100, depending on what we were doing and where we were driving at the time. Best mileage was a short stint from Warrnambool to Port Fairy (about 26km) which got down to 8.3L/100 (just after filling the tank). Considering the size and weight of the Kluger, I'm blown away by the mileage you can get (if driven correctly). Dave

Hi Bree, You should be able to get an 09 KX-R 2WD 7seater (with no extras) for around the $43K mark (drive away). Minus any trade-in price from the $43K and that's your driveaway price. Were you loking at the KX-R or KX-S model ? $50K sounds like the KX-S model to me, which isn't a bad price for an -S model. If it was the KX-R, go to another dealer and don't give the first salesman a second thought. Also, if you are interested in getting any options/accessories, you are best to negotiate this at time of purchase as you will have much better bargaining power. Things like tow bar, side steps, nudge bar, window tint, roof racks, etc. There are a few threads here which has approx prices you'd be looking at for many of these options... What year model civic ? One thing to remember is that trade-ins often get way less than what the car is really worth. Private sale is best, but is often not convenient and can be time consuming. The dealer will give you less than what it's worth as they need to onsell it, which adds cost to the final sale price they can sell it for (as well as the profit margin they need on top). Have a look on carsales.com.au and value your civic, which will give you a rough estimate on what you can expect to get for your car as a trade-in. You could also go to a few 2nd hand dealers and look for similar civics (or look on carsales) and see how much the civic is selling 2nd hand). This will also arm you with the right information to bargain. If you know what your car is worth, it's less likely you'll get taken for a ride. Hope this helps....and good luck. It is hard work buying a car, but once you're driving your Kluger it will all be worth it....trust me ! Dave :)

We have the OEM sidesteps and use them all the time. We're not giants and we find it makes it easier to step up into the car. It is also a HUGE help for the kids (4 y.o.twins) as they also use the steps to get both in & out of the car. I can't comment on the aftermarket steps, but I think there are a couple of people around here who have them. Enjoy your car when it arrives, it's a fantastic vehicle that I know you will LOVE driving... Dave

Interesting...I've used the cruise quite a bit and think it performs quite well. I've noticed it drop from 5th to 4th when going up an incline and obviously you feel it pick up speed as it pushes to defy gravity, but that's to be expected. I am yet to have it drop 2 gears and rev really hard and go above the set speed. Usually I experience the cruise at 100kmh (just under 2K revs) drop down a gear and revs go to around 2400rpm...but - haven't seen the speedo jump much past 100 (if at all). Not sure if it's the memory of the ECU and it's mimicking the way I drive, or I haven't been up a steep enough hill (which I feel is unlikely)... Don't know how to explain it. Have others experienced the same as me, or does everyone get the 2-gear downshift ? Dave

We've had our Kluger for just over a month now and one thing that irritates me (which is a minor niggle in reality), is the fuel mileage readout. I filled the car up with fuel the other day and then drove home to collect something before heading out again (about 3km journey from petrol station to home). When I arrived home the fuel mileage was reading about 14.8L/100 (which is OK as there were a number of stop/starts and at the beginning of the tank the numbers are always high. What irritates me is that when the car is left idling, the ileage indicator assumes the worst (30L/100)...when this is obviously not the case. Surely Toyota can figure out a much closer estimated fuel mileage when the car is at idle, so the overall figure isn't distorted. For the 4-5 mins I'd left the car running whilst I ran inside the house, it went up just over 1L/100. Other than that, very happy with the Kluger.

Congrats Cobbo and enjoy the car. It's a great car to drive and at least you don't need to worry about running the car in.... Dave