ZZT86

The OP has opened up a can of worms similar to oils Header/E85 = 25% plus big fat/flatter torque delivery ! 91>98 = not much difference except less knocking & perhaps a cleaner engine on 91rec cars. Understood re valid point of using E85 in older cars not used to running the stuff, hence it was a mix effectively giving me E10 & only tried once for that very reason, hence also why I'm using 98 since acquiring the Azura a few months ago to help clean up the fuel system & it's running great, acquired with 75K kms.

Dealer keyring ? Sticker on the windscreen ? # on the face of the cars book holder/folder ? Dealer RO/Tax Invoice usually state batch/stock #.

Is it a power gain or a restoration of lost power from knock due to poor fuel ? John Cadogan is a funny f*!@k and I agree with what he's saying. The problem with the minimum RON in this country is that it's not good enough, the fuel is a poorer quality than say in the US where their 91AKI has a "higher resistance to knock" than our equivalent. A good example is my Toyota 86 which has a compression ratio of 12.5:1 & is designed to run on 98 or better yet ecu logging proves exactly what John is talking about - the knock sensors are telling the ecu to pull back timing because the engine is pinging/knocking effectively slowing engine acceleration, ie: engine performance is not 100%. You can hear it & feel the difference when the RON is increased. The same engine with the same & unchanged compression ratio can also be tuned to run on E85 which has a greater/immense resistance to knock - in actual fact logging proves it doesn't to any great degree & therefore the ecu doesn't pull back timing (the fuels high RON allowing more advanced timing than stock even) allowing the engine to perform at it's maximum giving you greater engine acceleration & pulling power unlike the lesser 98 fuel. This is what I believe from experience & believe that 95/98 do the same for 91 although not to the same extent as switching to E85. Where all this matters is if you have a sensitive enough ***** to feel the difference or perhaps you don't need or care for it. I felt the difference almost immediately in my previous gen7 Celica with that highly strung 1.8 VVTLi the moment I poured in some United 100 for testing & I'm certain I'm feeling it in the 1MZ-FE also when I recently tested a mix of 98/E85 for the heck of it, str8 98 even. I'm certain the Aurion will be no different but do you need/want it ? My Camry Azura is a sedately driven daily & I'm thinking I will save the $$ as I'm striving for maximum economy & believe 91 will be fine unless I start hearing it ping its head off like some new cars on the road.

I used to always prefer VPower on my previous celicas, now I have a 2nd car which is my DD - a gen4 Camry Azura with the 1MZ-FE I have been using BP Ultimate 98 mostly - it's good @ the price I pay for it although I don't think is necessary. Have also tried Ultimate with about 5L of E85 in it which is quite impressive ;) Bottom line - 98 in this country should be way better than what it is & certainly cheaper - the price difference is getting ridiculous. I'm not convinced yet that 98 makes that much of a difference in km's driven to offset the cost.

Engine was designed for a 6 speed box not 4 so yeah performance is severely compromised.

The video uploaded of some first impressions for drive testing a lucky few were invited to showcased a turbocharged model - that would be ideal I think. Interior & exterior styling are first class. Edit: Just realised Aust 1.2L model IS turbocharged - that's a pretty small motor.

If the MR2 had a 3S-GE or 2ZZ-GE then I'd maybe consider it, if 3S-GTE probably get it in favour of the BR86, alas it does not. Get the BR86, it's a far better sportscar than the Spyder. The last of the SW20 was the best MR2 imho.

I did my 2001 Camry Azura the other day, used about 1.25 cans of adhesive & about 2M of material. Total cost was about $80 ! The biggest cost was my time but all worth it. An upholsterer will charge b/w $200-$300 to do. Hit me up if you want more info.

Take note of the weight of the wheels in question, the heavier they are the slower you will go. I'm betting the ROH will be lighter as well as better quality.

ft86Club.com/forums

Horses for courses buddy, you wouldn't loose much economy using E10, it's cheaper for them to produce although also cheaper to buy. With E85 it's a different story but still cheaper than the best 98 be it Ultimate or VPower but the biggest difference is not only the cleaner air but the big gains in torque & hp plus that feeling of almost instant acceleration.

Ethanol is great for the enthusiast or performance/track car, its high resistance to knock means the ecu can be tuned to run far more advanced timing & with the absence of knock the ecu isn't pulling the timing back to control it, ie: car acceleration is great & uninterupted, whereas with lesser fuels like 91 & even 98 the ecu is usually always slowing you down cos our petrol in this country is crap. The downside of E is that it generates less energy per given volume thus using more of it - around 25-30% more which is the reason why the OP has worse economy. Ethanol is also a great solvent keeping your engine clean. Essentially E is a performance fuel, not used for economy, it is also much cleaner burning than petrol.

Akio did say the 86 was the first of an exciting new breed of cars people would want to drive that are not your everyday whitegoods boredom. The BR86 was an instant worldwide sensation winning COTY awards all over so I'm hoping the new Camry is the continuation on that theme. The CHR is another interesting car to be released by Toyota.

Whose to say TMCA won't keep the Aurion badge which is essentially a re-badged Camry V6 ? Either way these new engines of today are getting more & more complex & hi-tech, I mean injectors that clean themselves ? Struth, hope it lasts. Love the new look, a mix of previous 2 gens which is much better than current.

A competent mechanic will diagnose the problem well before throwing any money on it, I'd suggest your man is a nong & has no idea. I feel sorry for you bro. Surprised the engine has broken down like that unless very poorly maintained. Wouldn't surprise me if it's a simple repair job to get it up & running & your mechanic is leading you on a wild goose chase.

Have you tried looking where the US sites are pointing to ? The Avalon is a yanky design from memory which we ended up getting here short term, you will most likely find them identical except ours is RHD !

Cabin filter is ridiculously cheap !

Thanks Campo / Ash ;) Great info, just the sort of feedback I was after :) it's nice to get other peoples views based on experience. I've had a bit of a look around & Sachs is one of them brands I've written down, even got part numbers @ the ready. I definitely don't want to lower the car so those springs are also worth looking into. Another brand I penciled in is Lovells which seem to make a complete package but I need to confirm this. I'm inclined to go the exact same spec you went with at this stage - good firm ride & comfy is what I'm after & those brands are trustworthy. Cheers :)

Anyone got any strut recommendations for this car ? Was after something firmer than what I have atm, 2001 Azura too soft.

It's great to see Kia/Hyundai improving but I would still regard them as inferior in the reliability & mechanical refinement stakes, Toyota engineering is usually brilliant. It's pretty hard to beat a Toyota/Lexus !

You're saying that a Kia is more refined than an Aurion mechanically or just interior bling ? Then there's dependability which you must consider.

Anyone here manged to mod the rails or get a custom engineered rail to give you more legroom ? Say about 5cm more ? I have the MCV20R Azura which ideally could do with this mod. I will also look into a new stock ride height coilover in the near future for this car cos the Azura is way too soft imo - Recommendations for something firmer similar to say a ACV36 Sportivo ?

Your Celica has a rippa engine, the last MR2 does not. Can you live with that ? Personally I love the MR2 right up until they released the last model which I side-stepped at the dealership & instead got the 6sp Celica with all the fruit which was an extremely reliable & fun car to drive for many years. my 2 cents Edit: just realised this is an old thread . . . derrrrr

OMG, a blast from the past . . . nice & I would keep it original. I remember briefly driving a 2.4 auto Avante many years ago & I was quite impressed then.

Well bugger me . . . BStone 4 for the price of 3 has them with low stock levels all over the joint cos I couldn't get the EP100's either. Ended up getting the Optimo K415 @ a very good price all up & have been assured they're every bit as good as the BStones. First impressions are good, time will tell.