GKLUGER

Hi all, Found this great website and lots of great info! I've had 6 Toyotas - all been great and reliable plus 2 Minis (1969 + 1976) plus 3 Mazdas (1975 929 Coupe, 1993 626 Wagon, 1995 121). 1985 Corolla Seca Hatch 1991 Camry Wagon 2.2CSi 1995 Camry Wagon 2.2CSi 2001 Camry Wagon 3.0TouringV6 2005 Kluger CV 2008 Kluger KX-R AWD The 2008 Kluger is my best car so far. As you can see, I never had a Ford or Holden nor will I ever buy one! Looking forward to reading more posts. Cheers, G

Hi all, I was researching E85 as Caltex has started rolling this out to some of their servos (there's one 5km down the road) and Holden has released their Flex-fuel car. While I was researching E85, there is a company in Oz that sells kits to allow all modern cars with FI to use the kit in order to use Flex Fuel (E10, E85, ULP, PULP95, PULP98). As I understand it, no engine modification is required as the kit is connected to the Fuel Injectors to change the air/fuel mixture depending on type of fuel used. I know that some people dismiss or debunk ethanol (lower energy content = less mileage)(food for fuel = this myth is debunked since the ethanol source in Australia is sourced from byproducts and soon, waste products unlike in the US where ethanol comes from corn supplies which is a ethical issue of using food to power cars). I realise that E85 will result in a claimed 30% reduction in mileage but Caltex is promising to stick to a 20c/l discount of prevailing ULP prices to offset the mileage loss. The point being not a financial issue but an environmental issue and the dwindling oil reserves. The question is not of is it worthwhile financially (the kit is $395), but will it work? I am curious how it will work on the Kluger (or any Toyota or any car)(Not that I watch it but the V8 supercars have all switched to E85). The no-brainer of course is get off the black stuff (the crude oil) and become less reliant (on global crude oil)(which Brazil realised from the oil embargo in the 1970s and have used Flex-fuel cars ever since). The second no-brainer is that since the energy source is renewable and less CO2 used, from an environmental impact this is a big +. I know people are going to argue but of what energy costs for producing ethanol (well, the answer is simple - solar energy + the fuel produced can be used onsite for production needs = sustainable). Producing petroleum has a greater net loss to deliver the fuel to the car compared to ethanol. Not to mention the numerous oil spills which the cost is never recoverable from the implicit loss of the environment, since no amount of money can ever restore the natural balance. Secondly, what will the impact be on warranty with using aftermarket products? I'm guessing we'd have to prove the kit did not cause any problems. Apparently, the kit can be installed so that there is no permanent modification made to the car (like LPG). That is, if you wanted to sell the car and remove it, the kit is easily removed and it will appear as nothing went in at all. The website is www.e-85.com.au - all the information is there. Regards, G

Hi all, Just discovered this great site. Thought I add my figures. 2008 Kluger KX-R AWD - 59000km - so far averaged 11.29l/100km. Records are manually kept for every litre purchased (on a fleet card). I'm impressed giving the size of engine and car. It did better than my 2005 3.3 Kluger and even better than 2001 3LV6 Camry Touring Wagon. Driving habits - 50% local suburban driving (30km round trip work/home)and weekend driving. 50% highway driving, mostly between Sydney and Stanthorpe (via Putty Road/N.E Highway). The lowest reading I ever got was 8.6l/100km on a long stretch. Worst has been 12.2l/100km (city driving). Now to achieve the magical 11.0l/100km as indicated in the owners manual...... Used a mixture of fuel - E10, ULP, PULP95 and PULP98. Couldn't really see that much difference in economy. But 98 provides extra responsiveness on the throttle compared to E10. Other than that I mostly drive on 91 and use a tank of 95/98 every 5000km (to use the supposed cleaning properties of the higher premium for the engine - if it's not true then nothing lost except for extra $ for a tankful of PULP).

Hi, I didn't bother with it because the dealer I bought it from said that if I bring the car back for its regular services (every 6months/10k whichever's first) while I own the car, they would add the extra warranty of 6 years/175000km. That applied to two different dealers and two different Klugers. But I don't plan to keep the car for that long anyway, but it's good to know that they did this. However I did have extendend warranty purchased for a 1995 Camry and it paid for itself. Had a major engine job after the original warranty expired which took 2 days to repair and didn't cost me a cent. So I got my money's worth plus more if I didn't have it. Rgds, G

Hi, I thought it was me but apparently not.... I never bothered to raise it with the service department because the only time it happens is when I press the accelerator really hard for aggressive overtaking or when cruise control is on at 100km/hr up a hill, then the stink bomb hits. But this might only happen once a month. Otherwise, most of the time, it's a non-issue when driving conservatively. My suspicion is that the smell finds it way through the spare wheel well since this is not fully sealed and exposed near the exhaust. I am going to seal it up a bit more if I can to see if that makes any difference. My concern is that if you're smelling the RE, then all the other nasty stuff is also coming through such as CO2 & CO. Which is a concern because CO (carbon monoxide) is colourless and odourless and extremely toxic. I've heard stories of CO poisoning of passengers in back seats due to faulty seals and the front seat occupants are completely unaware of the tragedy until it was too late.

Absolutely, many times I driven past speed cameras and highway patrol when the speedo was reading over the speed limit and didn't get caught. Gives that extra peace of mind and margin. I have a TomTom and the difference is 5% across the board - meaning that if the speedo was doing 105, TomTom was reading 100 and it is linear. Anyway, losing a few extras k's per hour is not going to kill anyone - better late than dead! (this is my first post - great site)..... Cheers...