QUICKSILVER

Got my mod done. The engine seems more responsive in the mid range. TSA has asked us to give the ECU about b200km to "adapt". Will let you guys know.

Got my mod done. Its too soon to tell now - apparently you need to give the ECU about 200km to adapt Anyway, she feels more responsive between 3000 and 6000 rpm. Will update you later. Also, a mate who has had the conversion done, took on a Cooper S the day after. He gave it 3 car lengths : :P

Hi there. I'm from South Africa.

Hi all further to my post regarding the ECU and air box upgrade, a few privileged owners have had the mod. The general concensus, is that the cart is a lot stronger in the midrange. Refer to the following thread: http://www.tolken.co.za/twincamforum/viewtopic.php?t=3885

Hi there, again I got one of the senior technical guys from the factory to test my car again to check the gearbox. They have researched the current box and the notchiness is not a malfunction. I now find that changes a superslick when shifting at about 4000 rpm, after the box has warmed up. The box feels a lot better now that I've stopped concentrating on the damn thing

100% Mee?. : One can never accuratelyu measure, or should I say calculate, flywheel power on a rolling wheel dyno. Theres too many variables - tyre pressure, drivetrain losses, etc. TSA removed a few engines and tested them in both Japan and here in SA under controlled conditions.

Thats a difficult question, purely because the Australian owners seem to assume that they will rewceive the same modification as their South African counterparts. To the best of my knowledge, the cars built for Australia by the South African plant were in fact fitted with a different ECU to that for the SA destined cars. Although it seems that Australia also has a power shortage, I'm not sure whether the fieldfix will entail the fitment of a new Electronic Control Unit. I'm not saying that it won't, but saying that I'm not sure. In respect of SA cars fitted with modified air induction kits, discussions with the technical department revealed that whilst TSA cannot force someone to revert to the OE equipment, they cannot guarentee results when the new ECU is matched to an aftermarket system. The new ECU is not programmable remotely, unfortunately. The mapping is done during the course of manufacture and it does not function as a piggy back system.

Actually, for the first time a dealer seems to have got it right. The dealer who said that the supply of the car has to be held back because of noise pollution is partly correct. In terms of Australian standards, cars considered to produce less than 140kW need to have noise emission tests, as part of the homologation process, tested in 2 gears. Since initial claims were more than 140kW, the car never went through this process. As a result of the information relating to the power output coming to light, the car needs to undergo these tests again. :)

Discussions with senior technical personnel at Toyota South Africa has revealed that new cables have been designed to resolve the gear cable vibration problem. I'm not sure when it will be rolled out, though I am of the firm opinion, that one should not put the car through the torment of stripping the existing cables out of the vehicle. Some months ago, I posted a thread noting that the vibration on existing cables can be resolved by putting in some liquid Polyurethane, which will adopt the characteristics of rubber when dried. Shao, the air cleaner cap is the top paret of the air box :P .

Refer: http://www.tolken.co.za/twincamforum/viewtopic.php?t=3692 and http://www.tolken.co.za/twincamforum/viewtopic.php?t=3885 As you can see this is genuine stuff, no speculation, no opinions,.... pure fact. I have personally been involved in this process and I attended the meeting with senior management at Toyota South Africa, as spokesperson to the affected group. The modification for SA spec cars consists of the fitment of an all new ECU, which has been remapped as well as the removal and replacement of the Air Cleaner cap. Hope this helps. With respect to approaching Toyota Australia, the trick is to be professional and diplomatic. I have already provided the memorandum that I drafted which initiated the South African process. Hope you use it.

Good stuff. :D Thanks mate!

As far as I know, the Aussie spec ECU is different to the SA spec. However, I've got a feeling that you guys will have similar problems

Windup is .... actually its difficult for me to explain. I'll try and get a formal explanation On the 2-3 shift you described (brushing past something metallic), I have exactly the same sensation Still, I need to know, the scratch feeling you refer to in "yeah the shift feels very scratchy like u said at lower rpms."; is that also when coming out of 1st gear?

Is this also at low rpm? Although not reluctant to come out of 1 at low rpm, mine feels scratchy coming out of one until the box warms up. BTW, based on the posts that I've seen on this thread, you may appreciuate the following info: The transmission takes a longet time to warm up compared to the engine the harder you drive the car, the more precise the box becomes, though you do require more shoulder and wrist effort to shift. It is a lot less notchy though The car is geared to drop to around 5400 rpm in your 1st to second shift. If you get it above that, its a achievement. I normally get it to 5800 - 5900 rpm, but I know a few guys who get it to 6200+ rpm - that can't be good for the drivetrain It seems that temperature does make a huge difference to the notchiness experienced on the box PLEASE respond the the question "Is this also at low rpm? Although not reluctant to come out of 1 at low rpm, mine feels scratchy coming out of one until the box warms up." Do you guys have the same sensation Also, based on discussions with one of the technical guys at TSA, the reluctance in coming out of one that you experience at high rpm is attributable to "windup". This is not an indication of malfunction.

The "kit" is morte than just an induction kit. Not at liberty to dicuss the details yet.

Its a pleasure. You'll be pleased to know trhat level 5 cables have been developed and will resolve the gear cable vibration. Just a thought, check out www.tolken.co.za/twincamforum, our local club forum. You'll get a wealth of info, some useful and other useless :D . also, on your tranny problems, I just want to confirm this - I know that the box is scratchy / nothcy when going INTO a gear. Do any of you experience a scratchy feeling and in some cases, reluctance for the gear lever to COME OUT of first (not talking about going into 2nd, but specifically, coming out of one). On mine, its more noticeable on cold starts on cold days. Please let me know

Guys, be careful. I know that you're peed off, but be careful about the way you go about this. Don't get the press involv ed yet. Give Toyota Australia and opportunity to explain the issue. Heres the letter sent to Toyota SA, that I drafted. This is the letter that got the ball rolling. Feel free to use / edit it appropriately. Another thing: the Sportivo is supplied exclusively from SA, whilst both Sa and Japan supply the other derivitives. Japan has already started producing the facelifted versions and SA hasn't. Thats one of the reasons why the Sportivo is not available. Another is that the Sportivo is uindergoing tests again by your local standards bureau. Remember, you are all Toyota fans, so although you may not be entirely happy at the moment, don't shoot yourself as well as the product in the foot. Also remember, it is acceptable for power to vary by up to 5% on production engines - these are mass produced and not hand built. Heres the letter: TO: Toyota South Africa Customer Care CC: FROM: List your names here RE: Clarity required regarding the maximum power output of the SA specification 2ZZ-GE engine. This memorandum serves to: A ) Raise formal awareness of certain owners’ concerns regarding the validity of the claimed 141 kW (192 bhp) on the flywheel of the 2ZZGE engine fitted to the RunX destined for the South African market. B ) Initiate a process to resolve our concerns regarding the aforementioned issue. Certain Toyota RunX owners are concerned that the 141 kW of maximum power claimed for the engine fitted in the RunX RSi is invalid. Furthermore, certain owners have queried this, but to date, have not received acceptable responses to their queries. In order to resolve this issue, we propose the following: a ) We afford you the opportunity to confirm whether the claimed maximum power output of the engine at the flywheel, at sea level, is still valid. b ) If the company maintains that the claim is still valid, we request that you demonstrate this fact by the following process: 1. Arrangements should be made, on a provincial basis, to test the affected owners vehicles. (e.g. Owners residing in Durban could have their vehicles tested at the Prospection plant, whilst Johannesburg owners could utilise the Toyota Motor Sport wheel dynometer facilities). It is important that these tests are performed on the same day to prevent any disparities that may result from differing atmospheric conditions that may arise. 2. It would be appreciated if TSA could procure the services of reputable workshops with dynometer facilites in smaller geographic locations (e.g. Port Elizabeth) in order to have owners residing in these areas to test their vehicles. 3. In order to add credibility to the process, we propose that an independent body, such as the Automobile Association, be involved in this process. 4. Furthermore, in order to enhance credibility, it would be appreciated if arrangements could be made for other vehicles (e.g. other derivatives from the Toyota range) to be tested on the same dynometers and the test results thereof compared to the claimed maximum power output of the said vehicle. c ) If the power claim is no longer valid, please substantiate the revision in the claim. d ) We request that the company be transparent regarding this issue. Please respond to this memorandum by return e-mail to all concerned. Your urgent attention to this matter will be appreciated.

:o

Hold up...hold up.... The SA spec cars have different ECU's to the Australian ones. That does not mean, that Australia doesn't have the same problem though.

Toyota South Africa has formally acknowledged that the South African spec cars do not deliver on the 141kW promise. However, new "kits" have been ordered from Japan and will be fitted to all RSi's locally in the near future, at no additional cost to owners. With respect to the unavailability of the cars in Oz, the reason is quite simple. Australia gets its Corollas from Japan and SA. However SA are still producing the current spec whilst Japan has moved to the facelift. All Stivos come from SA. Since SA will only produce facelifts in the latter part of the year, you will get the Stivo then. Also, on the 141kW issue, the standards bureau in Australia would require the car to go through homologation process again as the power ouput is currenly lower than 140kW

Hi guys Exactly what do you guys mean by a stiff tranny? Is it reluctant to come out of gear or go into gear? I find that my car is sometimes reluctant to comer out of one. And its very notch going into gear. But the harder I ride it, the more precise it becomes (though it does require additional wrist effort ( a firmer hand) at high rpm. Do any of you also experience this scratchy / notchy feeling when coming out of 1st gear (in extreme cases it feels as if the clutch has not been depressed when trying to come out of 1st)?

Have you guys still not tried the fielfix thatg I was referring to?

Very cool guys. The South African club has designed some T-Shirts. We're getting it signed off by Toyota.. Heres the latest draft version of the shirts, if you're interested: http://mysite.mweb.co.za/residents/nrgdesi...runx_tshirt.jpg

The South African owners have the same problem. Apparently Japan did not design the cables properly. A new level cable was developed and is fitted to all new Sportivos and RSi's. These cables are also supplied as a fieldfix. The thought is that the inner gear cable rattles against the outer. NOT TRUE. The outer actually seems to rattle agaisnt the housing on the gear box. Quite a few of my mates have had theirs changed, only to have these damn rattles reappear after a while. The fieldfix that I developed, together with the Service manager from my local dealer and the Field Technical manager for the Central Region of Toyota SA is to put some PolyUreathaine (sp) in liquid form on the housing, after removing the cables from the Gearbox end. After a few hours, once the application dries, the cables can be refitted. This fix was performed successfully on my car and my dealer tells me that they have since used the same method with successful results. The process is simple, involves a lot less surgery than replacing the cables and, best of all, WORKS. BTW, my car engine is also very noisy when idling. I think its the tappets and don't believe that its a sign of malfunction B) PS Can you supply more info regarding this steering wheel problem that you guys are experiencing.

You guys are so lucky, in Aus. Here in SA, we don't get the sports grill, no lowering kit, nothing. whats worse, we make the cars here for you. (though there are small cosmetic changes, like ours is badged RunX RSi and our headlights are blackened on the top (undere the lense though). Also, the quality (NVH package, carpets, etc, are of much better quaity here (with the exception of the Sportivo, which is speced like our RSi).