campbeam

53 minutes ago, bob007 said:

I just posted a reply to Motorserves response, which will take a day or two to be shown.

In it I posted this video...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Thszl7visBU  

I also asked them to send me a cheque too. 

Love to be proved wrong and you actually get a genuine refund.

Michael, you are on the right track with regular 6 monthly oil changes for long term ownership. If I was to buy a 3-5 year vehicle that has only had the minimal annual servicing done, then I would be doing a number of short interval oil changes using a high detergent oil to desludge the engine and avoid the oil consumption issues.

Recent post inspired me to go listen to some Electric Light Orchestra then move onto Skyhooks.

11 hours ago, bob007 said:

Before I put this thread to bed, I posted my complaint here...https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/motorserve

I wanted to alert people to this practice and by the reply Motorserve claims to have done no wrong, as we say...once bitten twice shy.  

My next oil change is in 6mths time and will be done by Toyota, at the end of the day why would I trust my high tech car to ammeters who can't get the Tyre pressure right.  Owner Manual says 240kpa or 34psi for 17" Rims and I've followed this from day one  but Motorserve dropped it to 206kpa or 30psi, I have a Footpump I keep in the boot and check them when cold.

 

 

After looking at the customer reviews, I can see an obvious pattern. The NRMA signage is the drawcard and goodwill is being destroyed except at a few branches. 141 bad reviews indicates to me that the Business is on the slippery slope of corporate greed and destruction. It might last long enough to be onsold.

Welcome to the Forum.

Addition of a fixed 1st gear to the CVT caught my attention as the way forward to enhance the longevity of the CVT. Look forward to seeing your future posts about your experience with actually owning a hybrid.

I reckon that you will be busy enjoying your new vehicle so hopefully the following video will be useful.

I read that article some time ago. Unfortunately, it makes sense when V6 is only 4% of Camry sales.

Current Camry hybrid has 160KW [combined power] so not too bad a compromise. There is future potential that with more powerful electric motors and further improved battery packs for the combined power to be further increased.

In the meantime, I am going to keep enjoying the V6 overtaking power at 100+kph on the highway.

This is a very different review being one on a racetrack. Maybe in hindsight I should have bought a Mk4 and kept it.

The following is a recently released YouTube video by The Car Nut where he zooms onto 3 common parts. I did think that this video is not up to his usual high standard.

I was more concerned about the spark plugs than the oil filter cartridge. Fake was such a cheap rip-off and doomed to fail well short of the lifespan of a genuine long life iridium spark plug.. Also not so easy to replace the spark plugs on the rear bank of a front wheel drive V6 so you really need genuine OEM quality. 

I had to make allowances on the filter section that in the USA they use a plastic oil filter cartridge housing which owners upgrade to a metal one. Also he was using a cartridge filter for the Corolla. However, I did get a laugh about what he did to test the build quality of the fake oil filter cartridge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVA4RYql9KU

Looked at the review. Hope that it sells well. I was more thinking that it is a final hurrah to ICE vehicles before EV vehicles get established mainstream.

I then went and looked at the GR Yaris review. From there I looked at the Toyota Hybrid reviews.

Always looking to the future. After looking at the following YouTube, I wonder what Toyota will have in development to counter this.

13 hours ago, Warwick McDowall said:

Next time I will make a little table the same height as the car floor, so I can lie in the car on my back and not put my back out........

Good idea about the table to help support your back.

I use the base section of an office chair so it becomes a handy stool. Back section can be used as a comfortable support when kneeling or lying down.

1 hour ago, Tony Prodigy said:

I love when they say things like that. They seem to think we're all wood ducks hahaha. Rear brakes take very little punishment compared to the fronts. Good call to leave them as they were because those pads, despite being 50% will probably last another 3 years. The rotors would probably never need replacing unless something major has occurred and I'd think not. 

Good job checking and bleeding. I'd concentrate more on the fronts to be honest. An annual check is all you need, and if your fussy, 6 monthly. Nothing will really go wrong in there if the sliders are lubed and the fluid is flushed regularly. 
If you Son is not heavy footed, the level of degradation is greatly reduced and good for him too . Depending on what brand you have, and being 45%, I'd estimate roughly 12 months or less to be on the safe side. You shouldn't wait until they have no meat left before changing them at the risk of scoring the disc. Change them when they have anywhere between 3mm or less thickness.

A DIY approach is always good to have and will save you plenty of money. Probably good to get your boy involved too. Great learning opportunity for both.

All the best mate 

Fully support what Tony has posted. I expect that it will be a few years or 30K kms before the pads really need to be changed. When the front brake pads and/or rotors need to be replaced, that will be a good time to consider also checking/replacing the rear rotors. 

Best thing for brake maintenance is to regularly change the brake fluid.

You should do a Google search. There are posts about Aurions bought by the Police on this Forum.

It would not have been modified except the electrical wiring to accommodate the usual gadgets for Police work. This would have all been removed before going to auction.

Fords and Holdens were supplied with a Police pack which most likely included upgraded brakes. 

29 minutes ago, Tony Prodigy said:

Give it some time to bed in too as you may find it may drop a few millimeters more.

This will happen after driving for a week or so. 

10 hours ago, donnot said:

I don't think I have the balls to drop the rear mufflers 😆 trying not to draw too much more attention.

I prefer the Sleeper Car approach. 

Let the Holden and Ford show offs have the Police attention and the involuntary contributions to the Govt. coffers. 

Best laugh for me 😁😁 is driving quietly past these "noise makers". They are making noise and my car is making distance. 😂  

Repco have a weekend sale which includes 30% off transmission fluid. 

Price is $36.40 for 4 litres of Penrite ATF LV 

https://www.repco.com.au/en/oils-fluids/engine-oils-fluids/transmission-fluid/penrite-atf-lv-4l-atflv004/p/A9614765 

Chinese New Year has begun. It is the Year of the Metal Ox starting from 12th February. Not such a great start for Melbourne with a lockdown. 

For those who want to be optomistic about this year, consider this quote from https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/lunar-new-year-2021-ox/index.html 

Welcome to the Forum.

Never read on this Forum about the factory GPS maps being updated for free by a dealership. Usually, they want to charge for that and it is not cheap.

Most members swap out the head unit.

More so from personal experience with previous Camry and current 2006 Aurion, I have replaced with Sachs/Boge struts and King springs.

Another member opted for the KYB Excel-G struts.

It is a safe bet with either of these well known brands.

On 2/7/2021 at 6:31 PM, DanielFi said:

I will endeavour to post this process with pictures in the appropriate section of the forum. Wish me luck. Dan.

Good idea to be taking before photos at each stage so you can check installation and recover if necessary. I do not always do this and plenty of times that I go over to my standby project vehicle to check. Hope all goes well with the installation.

9 hours ago, DanielFi said:

I told the wife today about the upgrade and she is not impressed for the wrong 'real' reasons.

Ooooh. Better get do it right so both of you will be impressed with the end result. If applicable, a fall back plan option can be to say "Yes Dear, you were right" 

4 hours ago, Big Bazza Boy said:

The front windscreen button on the aircon keeps flashing in my 2007 Aurion. After 20 seconds, it is ready to operate

Is there a problem?

Have a read of this URL. Good idea to check the condition of the serpentine belt.

https://ricksfreeautorepairadvice.com/toyota-ac-light-flashing-2/ 

This YouTube video might also be helpful.

13 minutes ago, Haysie said:

Hi, thanks for the replies. 

I will give the engine a pressure wash tomorrow and take it for a spin. Hopefully it will show what's going on.

The pipe felt okay. Is there a procedure with Toyota for getting it replaced? Is is replaced for free?

Cheers

Toyota will replace the oil cooler pipes for free if they are leaking or showing signs of seepage. Usually this will involve an inspection by a dealership.

Best to contact Toyoa Australia Customer Service (1800 869 682) between Monday - Friday 9am-5:30pm AEDT or email and confirm that this applies even though your vehicle may be more than 10 years since the build date.

Please note that If/when the oil cooler pipes leak, there is a high probability that you will lose all of the engine oil very quickly then need to have your vehicle towed to a Toyota dealership.

Have you considered using a power steering fluid containing a stop leak additive?

http://www.penriteoil.com.au/products/power-steering-fluid

Following YouTube video will give you an understanding of what will be involved in replacing the water pump. It is not a simple task and explains why with the amount of time and effort involved that timing belts and water pumps are replaced at the same time.

Very similar background growing up with a garage full of tools and being encouraged to use them. Certainly encouraged to have a useful set of hands and to appreciate having tools.

Helps with the problem solving to turn thoughts into action. Learn to look for the root cause and not just to deal with the symptoms.  

As this post demonstrates, if you are not fully knowledgable about a particular service then you could be easy prey for the unscrupulous. Lesson learnt is to know what is exactly in the log book service. Certainly pays to read your owners manual and service schedule.

I have had my Aurion for 5 years and it is only recently that I have been looking at these manuals. 

49 minutes ago, Tony Prodigy said:

I don't trust any dealership full stop. I do all my service work myself.

I also have trust issues. It pays to have a useful set of hands and the brains to use them properly.

Attached diagram was invaluable when refitting the serpentine belt during replacement of the water pump.

A useful tip was to mark the outside of the existing belt so it would go on the same way. I could not find my crayon markers that I had specifically bought at Bunnings so ended up using some toothpaste. Just have to be thinking at times and use what is readily available and not going to cause any issues.  😀😀

Serpentine Belt Diagram on 2GR-FE Engine.docx