Tony Prodigy

Is your car lowered ? I'm suspecting it is. It may well be the CVs. They cop a hammering when a car is lowered. How did the mechanic check them ? They usually dont present any physical defects upon quick inspection. Unless he opened the boots and saw metal shavings.. who knows. A clear audio file would serve this thread better.

Campbeam is on the money when having to deal with a post sludge car. Get a dozen of those filters and do regular... regular oil changes to eventually purge and dilute the crud. Looks like that car may have had a period of neglect. Possibly one of the many owners may have been responsible for the poor servicing. It is salvageable, but you just need to be vigilant for a while. My dad had a 2000 model Avalon. Not my cup of tea, but uses the same engine. It did over 300, 000 kays and the engine was still in great order. He Sold that and purchased an Aurion less than 2 years ago now. He totally loves the aurion.

I have to say that your choice of model is truly exemplary. I'd have the Presara over a Sportivo in a heart beat. I totally agree with you on the body styling. It looks rubbish. Toyota made a big mistake there. As for the paddle shift. I'm not quite sure, but it wouldn't be impossible. I imagine some wiring loom addition to the ECU and mounting the hardware. In my honest opinion. I wouldn't bother with it. The sequential shift in these cars is over rated, especially the down shift. This transmission/engine combo has appalling engine braking and so I don't ever bother up shifting or downshifting manually. Stick it in auto and enjoy the beautiful ride of the Presara

Good to hear. Without creating an oil war, I've been very happy with the Nulon product. Made in Australia and is a very high quality oil for a sensible price. Occasionally super**** auto have them on special so grab yourself a few when they do. 5w-30 is the one for the 2GR-FE. It meets and exceeds the factory requirement.

Update : The good people at Tru Fit Carpets sent me the correct mats this time. Just need to get it vacuumed up and fitted.

Sounds real deep throaty

Is the grille for the same 07 SX6 Sportivo that has the sludge problem ? If so, I wouldn't worry about modifications until the engine is sorted by the dealer.

Oh boy, yet another sludged up 2GR-FE from lack of regular oil changes. These engines are susceptible to sludging as most know, if regular servicing isn't attended to. Use a high quality fully synthetic oil once you've had the engine desludged to prevent this from occurring again. Go back to the dealer and explain the problem. Mention that you did some "research" on some reputable Toyota Forums... This should get them morivated to help rectify the issue. Keep is posted.

Sure as heck looks like it was hit maliciously. Stones don't leave witness marks like that, especially that notable ding on the edge of the arch. As stated above, shopping trolley or a parked car. While we're on the subject of stone chips. Does Toyota still provide those little touch up paint cans anymore ? I'd like a tin to touch up a few tiny spots on my 2012 premium silver Aurion.

Hi Krigeroz, it's been a while. I agree with your suggestion. I have a fancy excide battery in my BMW M3 and it still continues to serve me well. I can't recall the exact specs on it at the moment. I do remember that it wasn't cheap being quite a large battery too.

A little update. As you guys know, I recently placed an order for the same 3D mats Krigeros got. Had them arrive and I hadn't bothered to either inspect them or install them since receiving them mid April... They just sat in my spare room untill last weekend. I was determined to get them in after a thorough vacuum job. I go to install the drivers side 1st and it turns out they sent me the wrong set !!! You can guess the words that came out of my mouth lol !! So I pack them back up and refit the original mats. Made contact with the ebay seller and they were good enough to correct the mistake even after the 3 month buyer protection had lapsed. So I take some photos and attach them to my email to illustrate the issue. Turns out they sent me a set for a Ford Ranger of all things I'll be re packaging them and they will send a courier to pick up and hopefully have the correct set delivered in the near future. No extra cost on my part either. Hopefully then I'll be able to post some pics as promised. trufitcarpets are a decent mob.

Thanks for the kind words mate. Its done almost 80k. I try and keep it as best I can.

Thanks for all the comments guys. Got the battery. Got an excellent deal too. Cleaned and prepped the clamps. Sprayed some terminal protection too. Happy days ! Speaking of C tek chargers, I have 3 of them. One for a garage Queen M3, a motorcycle and one for general use. They are excellent units and I recommend one to everyone.

Funny you should mention 55D23L MF by Century. I have managed to track one down for an excellent price here in Sydney Metro and will be picking it up on the way home from work. Thanks for your message Ashley.. Help is always appreciated

As luck would have it, the battery died this morning. My wife uses our Aurion as I have a company vehicle. I get to work at 7am and then I get a phone call just now... "it wont start"... She has a day off luckily and was planning to take our boy to the GP for a check up. Now I have to try and find a suitable replacement whilst at work and hopefully pick one up on the way home. Can anyone offer advice on a battery for the 50 ? Thanks Tony

Ok cool. Thanks Trent.

Hi Gents, After washing my Aurion yesterday noticed some scoring on the right front disc. No big deal as I am planning to replace the pads and flush the brake fluid. I am wanting to replace the rotors too as I don't believe in having them machined. Are the genuine Toyota issue rotors expensive ? What recommendations would you make on rotors and pads ? Should I just stick with Genuine parts ? Are the 40 series the same as the 50 series ?

Sorry to hear about your surge issue. I'd follow what campbeam has offered. His advice makes sense. Get yourself some throttle body cleaner (I have one by CRC) and give it a thorough clean and then take it out on the freeway for a clear out of the cobwebs. By the way.. LOL.. don't blame your poor wife. She is a safe driver. Let us know how you go. Good luck

The worst place to get a leak. I feel for you. Most likely a dry O ring will cause a leak. Your guy used a leak sealer. We also have a similar product here for HVAC equipment. It is only useful on a system where there is a small, hard to get to leak. It's always advisable to use the AC regularly in your car as the compressor oil, which does circulate with the refrigerant, will serve to help keep the O rings "wet" and keep the system sealed. You got away with it very cheaply too. 44 Australian dollars for all that work is very cheap. I hope you have no further issues. All the best

The originals are ok but not really ideal when the car is used constantly. The mats don't cover all the way to the edges they way these 3D mats do and the debris just collects around the outsides. The 3D mats basically trap ALL the dirt inside the mat due to the design and so all you need to do is just lift it out, give it a shake and if you're keen, a quick rinse and put back in. This way you'll probably only pull the vacuum maybe twice yearly.

After finally getting around to cleaning my Aurion over the weekend post all the rain we've been getting, the carpets took me ages to vacuum nicely, even WITH the original car mats in place. How the grass and dirt gets under the mat is another mystery. So after spending nearly 3 hours on the full detail I went online and ordered those 3D car mats like one's Krigeros brought to our attention. Thanks again Krig. I hope these will save me at least 30 minutes of vacuuming time. A task I really hate but reluctantly do. I'll post some pics when they arrive. BTW. The original Toyota mats are rubbish. The thin foam liner underneath just falls apart in no time. So if anyone is considering getting another set to replace the originals, don't waste your money. Put it towards these 3D mats. I'm sure I will be happy I did. Cheers fellas

My thoughts exactly.

Ok Cool.

Did you install the strut brace first, then later, the sway bar ? Did you really notice any difference with the strut brace alone ? I would be more inclined to do the sway bar that the strut brace. But, if the combination actually works, then why not ?? How much did the rear sway bar cost ?

2k to do this job is a rip off. Pure and simple. If others are doing it for 1/4 of that then you have to wonder. I understand it's a fiddly process and would gladly pay someone to do it for me, but not 2k. Now Way ! Another point worth mentioning would be to have the serpentine belt and tensioners replaced too as this has to be removed anyway. Especially those higher mileage 40 series cars. Also, for the Toyota dealer who said the engine has to come out needs his head read. Seriously.