ZZT86

Well Tony if you wait a while I will let you know cos as of this morning I slapped a full set of PS4's on my car - ouch ! The Primacy 4 was also on the radar but I have read too many people whinging with skittish/slippy in wet comments & vague steering which is odd for a Michelin as they usually make a brilliant tyre, reason why they cost so much. First impressions of the PS4 is smooth, quiet, responsive & effortless. I expect them to last at least 30-40K kms considering my mostly non aggressive / fwy driving. I also came across another dude (in the dark web) with the exact same car who also has the PS4's & reckons they're lasting a long time thus far although he mostly drives on hwy. The PS4 imo is like an entry level performance tyre which isn't too hard or too soft which I thought would suit my Sportivos stiff setup. They're a very grippy tyre & they rate highly amongst many for overall performance. The PS4S is a stiffer/higher performance version of the PS4 although limited in size availability. I will report back after 5-10K kms especially in wet.

Might be cos your struts are shot. Poly is definitely harder.

Howdy, I have the exact same car as you albeit a few months older along the production line. So you bought the car brand new ? If not then perhaps ATF needs attention/checking but find it hard to imagine since it's virtually brand new with negligible kms. The only thing I can say is that with a very light foot/throttle & low revs the tranny can be somewhat slack/slow, I think it's in the cars nature or as a servicing dealer technician would say "normal characteristic". So yeah it's in the ECU tune for the ATM. Generally I hardly notice the shifts & they're usually quick & smooth with the tranny inclined to upshift into top gear as soon as possible. The hunting issue I haven't noticed on my car though. I suspect it's still under warranty, if just out of it no doubt Toyota would assist you regardless.

^^ that dirt cheap

KYB actually state as part of their marketing "have been designed to compensate for wear in other suspension parts", ie: they're stiffer. I confirmed this a few years ago when I spoke to a bloke from KYB technical, so b/w 10-15% stiffer ;)

The K+N product is good, just not in filtration compared to stock. If you want outright HP for the track then it's OK but obviously at the cost of accelerated engine wear unless you're constantly cleaning the filter, then there's the oil that will eventually coat the intake & MAF. The AC Delco in that test could be taken as OEM. Maybe there are others here who track their cars or people with some experience re these filters who could chime in ?

Battery posts loose ?

Some years ago I thought about shoving a K+N filter in the engine of my notoriously dusty by design 86 engine bay to save $$ until I came across a technical paper which proved that the higher airflow & slight increase in HP was at the cost of less filtration, ie: more silicone (abrasive dust/dirt) which is exactly was I was trying to avoid. Thanks to Subaru the 86 engine bay gets real dusty quick compared to my previous celicas. The issue became apparent during then routine & regular UOA testing as it was flagged excessive & I knew for a fact that it had nothing to do with the oils additives pack (I have a VOA) which has a small amount of silicone in it. After 5K kms that climbed to 10 times that ! I put it down to average filter box design (Subaru again) & started changing out the oem air filter twice as often. Unfortunately airhead me didn't bookmark this rersearch, but it makes sense as K+N filters are designed for more power/airflow, not filtration. Add to that the oil will eventually coat the intake & MAF sensor also just to make your day. Here's something I just came across https://www.nicoclub.com/archives/kn-vs-oem-filter.html If you want that 2GR to last a long time then I personally wouldn't use an aftermarket engine hipo filter, stick to oem = best filtration.

The K+N product will no doubt allow you to hear more of that lovely 2GR induction noise as well as obtain a little more omph but at the cost of filtration imo.

Yep although un-necessary & for peace of mind I might change the filter when it's due, I'll grab a couple Ryco kits when they're on special. I'll also get the 20L drum early-mid next year due to flushing. My sis recently was given the opportunity to drive the latest RAV GLX which had the CVT, I test drove it & thought garbage tranny exactly as Tony explains. My experience with bolts on Toyota's is they come off easy, that includes ATM pans & filters. Sump torque on Aurion is about 7.5Nm=5.5ftlbs, strainer slightly more which is bugger all.

The Cressida is a rippa luxury car, beautiful.

What does he think of CVT's ? 🤣 This bloke is a little contradictory, hard to take him seriously. I'm of the opinion that anything heavy on the magnet won't get drained or flushed when you dump the fluid like he sais, it should stay on the magnet hence their use. Other soft/light contaminants will be suspended in the oil & that will get dumped. Obviously regular oil changes will keep the whole enchilada clean, anything major will be stuck them magnets or in the filter, one would hope. If you have a major ooppsy with your tranny because you been trashing it then that's a different story. And to be honest I'd be pretty happy with not dropping the pan & changing filter, easy, just dump the fluid a few times or flush/refill then check level. Now I've got about 6 months to decide whether or not I should get a ATM filter kit 😐 Most of me reckons I'd be wasting my time & $$ . . . . Ash ?

Why did you go for one of these ?

A suspension mob I know of here in Melbourne who are used to tuning racecars once told me they can make just about anything handle real sweetly, depends on how much $$ you wana through at it ;)

I sold it all because I saw a car on Carsales & thought I had to have it :| My Azura was in top condition with only 133K kms as it was my late godfathers car, really annoyed I sold it but hey my Aurion is 10 times the car the Azura was. Thing is it was sentimental value also, I really enjoyed driving an older car in good order, I just couldn't afford to keep 3 cars & had I no space in the garage for it. At least the young bloke I sold it to was so impressed, he loves it.

My mate mechanic always said these 3.5L cars are an absolute prick to do major work on, I'm banking on never having to do such. I'm guessing the worst maintenance item would be those rear spark plugs.

That Nordic sounding bloke above was good value, I like 🙂. I think most people here know that oils don't last forever & that lifetime well could mean anything, a few years perhaps, all really depends on how it's driven & looked after. @AurionX2 Wow you used that much ? Last time I did a flush was on my old MCV20R with a capacity of 6.75+diff=7.6L & I'm sure I also used more but my notes are not clear enough to confirm, I'm thinking it was just over 8L. I can tell you guys the Service books have changed, mine is similar to Tony's & the only mention for Aurion is an Inspection at every 45K kms for normal driving & every 22.5K kms for severe. I'm guessing Inspection will mean check sample for colour & smell using your little finger, if bad then dump otherwise they confirm level OK & call it a day.

Ask them to replace the blown globes free of charge as a goodwill gesture. Would take them no more than 30min to do. Or rip the facia/knobs etc covering off the car & replace the globes yourself. A Toyota dealer Parts dept should be able to source the exact globe you need.

@mgh87 the GSV50R Sportivo already has a brittle ride & you want to go even harder? I would seriously consider coilovers so you can adjust the dampers to your liking. Not sure there's much available for the Aurion/Camry though. Looks like Tein might have something as would BC. Would talk to a reputable suspension shop for advice, not cheap.

The old 2AZ-FE uses a chain whilst the new gen 2AR I'm not sure, most likely the same. My old celica 2ZZ-GE was also chain driven, and as Ash has said over time the tensioner and/or guides may wear causing noise but usually not the chain.

The overflow bottle gets a bit like that, I can remember on my old MCV20R Azura she had the same deal, noticed all the cars in the wreckers were same except 1 😉 What did you pay for those parts if you don't mind me asking ? The 1MZ is a rippa engine, really wanted to keep my old Azura, wish I could have kept it. Focal drivers = audio porn 😉 very very nice stuff. ps: Vic lockdown is like being in prison, hoping this goes away within a week or so.

Actually Ash you make a very good point about storage although Penrite makes mention it will be fine for 5 years in good storage. My car still has another 18K kms to go before I dump the fluid @ 60K kms & since I do about 20-22K kms/yr it would be about 2.5-3 years before the next ATF dump/flush so on second thoughts I may just wait a bit longer ;) Rippa price though, almost fell off me chair as it's from Repco. In my Aurion Service and/or Owners books there's no mention of ATF change anywhere, not even for Severe driving, only for Camry/Hybrid which is strange. I think 60K kms is a nice round figure especially considering I drive it like an ol' fart. Yes the GSV50R Aurion can be had with excellent economy especially given the size of the motor & weight of the car. Govt Average figure is said to be 9.3L/100kms, I easily average 8.7L in my usual travels & can easily get 7L on the fwy non-stop. I'm of the opinion if the ATM is serviced well & looked after it should last a very long time ;)

Hi guys & gals, Just wondering if any of you guys/gals (especially 50series owners) who have gone directly from Toyota WS to Penrite LV if you noticed any difference in shift quality ? I can see the spec b/w the 2 is almost identical so I'm expecting it to be fine. For the record my 2016 Sportivo with 42K kms has shifts that's barely noticeable, especially when hot, no fluid change yet. I've gone thru this whole thread & I've asked Tony for his input & there would appear to be at least 2 x 50series owners here who have gone the change & given it the thumbs up. I ask cos Repco have a pretty good deal going atm for the Penrite LV & I'm considering biting the bullet & getting a 20L drum of the stuff for $167.30 (Repco Member price) which is $8.36/L. Not sure if Toyota/Aisin made any change to the tranny from 40-50 series so perhaps anyone could chime in, pretty sure Ashley is going to say it's great, do it & I'm inclined to. Cheers 😉

Ahh forgot to mention - tyres will make a big difference to grip on these cars, but I'm sure you already know this. Bugger about that dreaded water pump 😐 Yes genuine part definitely better, it's an Aisin part which is owned by Toyota.

Purchased it early this year when on special, yet to use it. Will do so soonish. As you state, I expect very good performance from it especially the UV block which is what I'm after the most, given the car gets pretty hot during the summer months & the leather is going to get some punishment, although I do use an interior windscreen cover & the there's the electric rear sunshade which helps.