paul_j

Hi About to do my very first coolant change on an ACR30 2.4ltr Estima next week-end. I have the correct Red Toyota coolant for this vehicle, purchased from Toyota dealership. I have changed coolant on other vehicles over the years but this is my 'pride and joy' and want to make sure it stays that way. I know about including the heater in the process. Only reason I ask is that my son has a Holden Commodore and when his coolant was changed (not by me, not familiar with Commodores), apparently it needed some air bleeder valve at the top of the engine to be fiddled with. Hopefully the ACR30 does not have a similar arrangement - anyone that has done a change can maybe enlighten me. Thanks

When my ACR30's were imported, the lap belts fitted to seats were removed from the vehicle as part of the compliance process. I was advised that they are not to be re-fitted or the vehicle is no longer compliant. I guess if you refitted them, had passengers facing to the rear while on the road and had a bingle then good luck with insurance. It appears that passengers are not to be in rear ward facing seats when the vehicle is traveling on public roads. There was also a sticker fitted to one of the sliding doors indicating that passengers were not to occupy rear ward facing seats while the vehicle is in motion.

I have 2 ACR30 (2.4 ltr, same as Tarago) vehicles and have had no problems with parts. One had another driver on a red light turn across me on a green light, body panels / radiator / grill / headlight were all easy to get. Local Toyota dealership claimed that they would have to come from Japan, take 6+ weeks and cost unknown. I avoid Toyota dealerships.

Hi Samuel Welcome to the forum. Only now just saw your post (I don't get on here often) Any competant body panel shop should be able to do the work for you, there is nothing unique or mysterious about your vehicle that can't be worked on. I am not impressed with your insurer just paying you some money but still leaving you with a problem. I am in QLD but have the car insured with NRMA. The panel shop they referred me to quoted for the job but said that it being an import, they would have to order the parts from overseas with at least a 6 week delay. I found out that that was the advice the local Toyota dealer spare parts department gave them. Ours is the JDM ACR30 2.4ltr 2000 model. I got a list of the required parts from the body shop :- Front grill Bonnet Low front body kit (not fitted on Aus Tarago) Side front panel HID Headlight Fog light Washer bottle I decided to track down the parts and found them all to be available from ALLJAP AUTO PARTS (http://alljap.net/products.html). I had supplied them photos of the vehicle and the damaged areas and gave them the exact model and date of manufacture. They had all the parts in stock either new or in excellent condition so I advised the panel shop to procure the parts from AllJap after having discussed it with the insurer. The body shop had the parts within 2 days. AllJap are one my way home from work so I was able to call in, have a look and chat. This is not an advert for the company - I am sure there are similar outlets elsewhere as well. I had no problems with them. The panel shop had the job done within a week after getting the parts and did an excellent job - they handle all sorts of makes and models and said that working on my import was no different really to working on a Tarago. I wish you well in your repairs and I probably would change insurers. Cheers

Hi Tygersmoke I believe the part you are looking for is: 01 81108 81107-21150 01 01.2006 COMPUTER SUB-ASSY, HEADLAMP LIGHT CONTROL, LH ACR5#,GSR5#..AERAS,G I used http://toyota.epc-data.com/estima/gsr50w/57450/electric/8101/81108/ but did not know your VIN. Verify that this is indeed for your car. It should look like this https://www.google.com.au/search?q=81107-21150&biw=1760&bih=787&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwijx4OwxdTJAhXErKYKHQHPBsMQ_AUIBygC&dpr=1.09 I personally would find a wrecker with the same model car you have and go have a look and also see how easy or hard it would be to remove the headlight assy and if happy negotiate a price. Some time back I had a lady run into me and the panel beaters did the repairs including a new headlight assy. They threw the old assembly in the bin. I got them to get it out and give it to me. When I got it home I removed the perfectly good ECU and its now in my spares.

Hi ciasom The lights and wiring are in the back door. From there the wires go through the rubber boot at the top of the door and some of the wiress then travel down the left side of the cargo area. I accessed the cables (some time ago now) behind the left hand cargo area trim panels so as to wire up my towbar. They are all there - just take care and patience as the trim can be a bit fiddly to remove. Use a multimeter to check which wire is reverse (I don't remember the cable colour). Make sure all the other lights are off when testing. All the best.

Hi Davo446611, You mentioned that "I have just installed a locally supplied radio which has no CD player, therefore, no mechanical parts. It has built in Sat Nav,Touch screen, USB2 and Ipad plugs ". Could you please what the unit is and where you got it - need to replace the unit in my wifes Estima. Thank. Hi Theppy2760 I don't have a roof mounted dvd player so don't know anything about them - curious though, is it Toyata fitted or aftermarket? Cheers

Hi You might try http://www.alljap.net/ I have used them on a number of occassions (not for transmission though) and they were really helpful. Good luck (I lived in Tassie for 8 years)

Hi I am a recent new owner as well. I think it would be good to have some sort of Register of service centres that forum members have used and would recommend. I am just North of Brisbane and am yet to find someone that I feel comfortable with. I have used two different repairers and have been far from impressed with the work (relating to Eng Check Light). They wanted $ 60-90 to just turn the light off - not necessarily fix the cause. One claimed to have fixed it but the light was back on by the time I got home. Supercheap Auto performed a diagnostic check with a Bosch scanner that told me everything I needed to check out my system - it cost about $14 from memory and I was able to determine that the mass air flow sensor was no longer working properly. I cleaned it thoroughly with some MAF sensor spray and it's now been 6 months and no more check light the whole time. I am still wondering where to take my ACR30 next time I need servicing. Hopefully some members can advise on who they are definately happy with as I am sure not everyone services there own JDM import. There is quite a lot of these ion the road now and they must be getting serviced somewhere? Chers

Well I changed my mind about the camera / number plate light and went for a different style of camera. That way I am able to keep both number plate lights stock standard and the camera mounting was real easy. Hopefully the photo attaches to this reply okay. I mounted the 2.4 GHz transmitter near the tail light and picked up the 12 volts from the adjacent reversing light. Camera works well and has distance lines as well. (EBay #171053648723 Advert is for Front camera - when I ordered this all I had to do was leave a message that it was for rear view and to include lines and they did.) This coming week-end I hope to install the front camera. (Same camera - front view - no lines) Cheers I am still to get a good head unit so have been testing the cameras on the old head unit from my previous Tarago.

Hi Eagle Thanks for the info. I had not been in a rush on this but I ended up designing brackets in CAD and sending the profiles off to the steel place that cuts the shapes with high-pressure waterjet cutters. They should be ready by the end of the week. After that I will have a local engineering workshop do the welding of the brackets in the next few weeks. This way I know the brackets and support arms will clear the bodykit on our Estima. Regards

The switch part number, should anyone need it. It is 84480-28010 Switch - Main. Found it at http://www.toyodiy.com/parts/p_J_2004_TOYOTA_ESTIMA_MCR30W-MFSZK_8401.9.html under a 2004 model Estima listing. Cheers

The transmitter / receiver unit arrived today. I would have liked to have fitted it this week-end but will be away so it won't be till the week-end after. In the mean time, BenK could you please provide some insight as to what was involved in connecting up to the gear shift R indicator. I believe that to get access, you need to remove the lower panel first (under the steering wheel - that has the bonnet release on it). Cheers

While we are on this topic - would anyone know the part number for the front camera switch ? I could not find it at http://www.toyodiy.com/parts/q_J_200603_TOYOTA_ESTIMA_all.html as my model does not have it. Cheers

Hi BenK Well I just got my camera - still waiting on the wireless transmitter/receiver unit to arrive. BK, just wondering where you ended up fitting your receiver unit, also which bulb did you settle on for the remaining number plate light so that it was pretty close to light levels from the camera unit. Thanks for all the info to date. Cheers

Hello BenK I am interested in your progress on the reverse camera - thanks on info to date. Photo's if available would be great when convenient. I was interested in how the camera fitted and it seems to have gone okay. I had wondered about the difference in lighting levels between the LED on the camera and the other number plate light. Don't know what would be a suitable 'equivalent' light that you could use. I guess if the lighting LED in the camera ever stops working then the whole camera unit would need replacing as I don't think the LED by it-self is replaceable. Any photos of what the reception from the wireless installation looks like would be interesting. My worry was that there would be a lot of possible noise in the picture due to electricals and also partial sheilding of both the transmitter and receiver antennas by body panels, dash etc. I am guessing the receiver is up behind the dash. If that is the case then perhaps it might be better to run a cable down to the back and have the receiver mounted somewhere near the tool kit. The transmitter could be just behind the trim on the rear door and not that far from the receiver antenna. Just a thought. Will be interested in how thinks go. All the best

Hi BenK I had seen one of these wireless units a while ago on EBay but wondered how good they were. Interested to know if the signal suffers any 'static' noise or how well it transmits from the rear to the front of the vehicle. I have been considering one of these camera's (http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/260956281761;jsessionid=1A706646C9319D188685DD8F49FFE269?ru=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com.au%2Fsch%2Fi.html%3F_from%3DR40%26_sacat%3D0%26_nkw%3D260956281761%26_rdc%3D1) but am unsure it will fit in place of the number plate light. The advert states 2006 + Taragos but it looks like it would fit. Rather like the idea of the built in guide lines.

Hi BenK Have you had any success running your reverse camera wires to the back? I am yet to get my camera and am interested in how you tackled the installation. I guess that probably the hardest part would be feeding the cable through the existing rubber boot between the rear door and body. Cheers Paul_j

Would anyone possibly post some photos ? Thanks

Hi AK00FJ I have been to a couple of local suppliers and all they want to do is sell me a complete towbar assembly. I did notice that the only locating bolt holes on the LH side were where the existing tow hook is. A similiar set of mounting bolt holes are on the RH chassis member but are mounted approximately 170mm further forward. It would be appreciated if a member could post some photos. Cheers

Hi Would it be possible if anyone has this style of towbar fitted on there 2000+ model Tarago/Estima to take some photos of the left and right hand mounting brackets and upload them here. I have a towbar (minus brackets) and would like to see what the brackets look like to purchase or get made up by the local welding shop. I believe the brackets get fitted in place of the tow ring on the left hand side but am not sure what happens on the right hand side due to the exhaust muffler location. If you have one of these types of bars fitted - could you please share some pictures ? Thanks

Hi taragolobby Just sent a PM with email details. Sounds like you have a good unit there. Only just got ours (2000 ACR30) the other day and I must say I am absolutely thrilled with the quality - it is almost like new and has only 50k on the clock. Drives fantastic. Twin sunroof great. Really quite inside and smooth on the road too. Hopefully will be driving down to Armidale in the next few weeks and I am really looking forward to that. Yet to change the Japanese GPS / DVD player unit - seen a few but am unsure of some of the Chinese ones. Probably will have about $500 to spend on that when I get to do it. The reaction from people at work who have seen it is very interesting - everyone is amazed at how 'new' it seems throughout. Look forward to your ín the hot seat report'. Cheers for now

Hi taragolobby Would it be possible to PM me with the bolt fixing images. I have a towbar from a Tarago that I want to fit onto my Estima but have no mounting brackets. Hopefully the images you refer to might help in seeing just what I need and exactly how they are mounted. Cheers

Hi Members Has any one had any luck in getting hold of an English Handbook covering 2000-2001 model Estima? Hi Legend Did you get my PM by any chance? Cheers to all

Hi rollaurion I will be doing a full coolant change and will look at the coolants you have suggested. Hi mick.wheelz I suspected that the thermostat was the same - the few parts listings that I was able to look at on-line quoted the same part number. Only thing that I had been told of was to beware of Chinese copies of the thermostat as unfortunately they were not as reliable and tended to have varying operating temperatures. These ones are usually listed very cheaply on E-bay. My brother in law had been referring to the Estima when speaking to the mechanic. Mick, dont know if the hyper links in your reply are supposed to take you to further info or not - when clicked on the open up another instance of this forum topic. Its the first time ever that I had ever heard that this MIGHT be an issue. Would be good to know if any members had first hand experience of this. Thank you both for taking the time to reply - much appreciated. Cheers