dave262

If you have a multimeter, it might be an idea to check the voltage of the battery when the car is off, and check again with the car running. Although unlikely, there could be a fault with either the battery or the charging circuit. Although it might seem like a silly question, what made you suspect the battery was flat? I have seen situations where a loose connection to a starter motor would prevent a car from starting with symptoms similar to a flat battery. A poor connection from the battery lead to the terminals could also cause problems with starting and using the accessories (radio etc).

If you have the constant +12v line and the ACC +12v line mixed up, you could very quickly drain the battery. It would essentially be the same as leaving the radio going constantly even when the car is off. It could also be a door or the boot left slightly ajar for an extended period (leaving the door light on). Does the radio work with the keys not in the ignition? That would point to mixed up wiring on the auspack unit.

Far out... didn't realise the Aurions could even rattle that much! Sounds like somebody trying to cut a piece of wood with a handsaw or something... Great tracks btw - haven't got a sub in the car, but the current HT sub I have (actually just a woofer really!) did the job fairly well - just couldn't do much for the really deep notes of the second track. Got a real HT sub on order arriving in like a day though, which I will have to test out once it is run in hehehe. On the parcel shelf, have you simply tried adding some foam tape between all the surfaces in contact?

How could water possibly get into the boot of such a new car? Surely the seal couldn't be leaking after such a short time... right? The banging sound - is that a sort of low "thud" you get after a moderate brake, then accelerating again from stand still (ie. at lights)? If so, I have that same sound - and am almost certain it is the fuel tank as it only occurs on a 3/4-full fuel tank. I will get it looked at when I have one of the rear passenger seatbelts replaced under warranty - as the latching mechanism seems to jam and essentially locks people into the seat! How does the Ultra Racing kit affect the warranty btw? I wouldn't mind looking into something like this, as I do find the handling can get a little sloppy at times - especially around the hills.

Thanks for the replies all! I haven't had time all week until now to check this! I'll be heading to Sydney in the next couple of weeks, and I guess I will check what the wear is like when I'm in Syd and replace if necessary. I might have to check out the deals at Tempe if I need some new tyres when I arrive. The Dunlop 300E tyres actually seem to be quite soft, but it surprises me a little they have even lasted this long (over 20,000km now). It does only seem to be the rear ones that are wearing out however, as the front ones have a reasonable amount of tread on them still (they were rotated last service). Although the Dunlop tyres seem to get a fairly decent review still, has anybody come across anything recently that might be a better substitute than these? I have no real qualms with them, but they do seem to struggle to keep traction during acceleration sometimes (I've had wheelspins going from 2nd to 3rd when overtaking before - which I have never seen happen in a FWD auto before! ).

Hi all, I'm considering going for a drive up to Sydney for work fairly soon, but just noticed I only have maybe 1 - 1.5mm tread before the wear mark on the back wheels. I'm curious how quickly this amount of tread would actually wear generally? They are the stock Dunlop 300E tyres, and I typically don't really drive it *too* hard (usually! ;) ). btw - I know this topic has been mentioned before, but I couldn't find much on the actual wear rate.

This is a reasonably common issue, but is quite easily resolved from the warranty-covered repairs from Toyota... A quick search for "rattle": My dash rattle finally fixed rattle in dash Center console sqeak, rattle and noise. I'd recommend you take a look through these links, as this topic has been covered quite often. If it's done properly by the dealer, the rattles for the most part should disappear.

What were your results from this software fix? With the sudden cold in Melb, the flaring has also become significantly worse for me too to the point where it feels like accelerating in neutral (it doesn't accelerate!). Might have to go and get the software update done too. <_<

I have noticed it does seem a little more responsive too in S mode compared to D. Biggest thing when you are in Sports mode I think is that the torque converter lock doesn't seem to kick in as often or as easily compared to in normal D, which definitely does help the responsiveness. Usually when coasting in S, you will need to keep it at a consistent RPM for quite some time before it will lock, while in D it will lock after only a few seconds (most likely for fuel eco reasons). Suddenly accelerating will also pull out the lock faster from S compared to D. It might just be me, but i think the shift patterns seem to allow the engine to rev much higher in S before the gear change will be triggered?

Page ES-52 of the Engine Control System service manual. It could be only in the US v6 Camry version of the ECU that supports it, but still would be interesting to see if it actually does exist on the Australian version.

Reading through the service manual on the ECU system, it appears that there is indeed no constant data logging facility. There is however *limited* logging in the form of "freeze frame" data, as the service manual refers to - which is basically every piece of data the ECU knows about the car the moment a fault is detected. Unless there was an engine fault at the time of something happening to your car, no data will have been recorded. However, I do remember seeing on Today Tonight some time ago that there are little devices that you can attach to the OBD connector which perform full data logging. It is so small that it could hide quite well, and when you need to get data from it you just connect it to a normal computer. I remember that it was more targeted at "worried parents" who don't trust their kids driving styles, so it something to look into - especially if you are going away somewhere again. I can understand why you would be ******. Entrusting family to look after your belongings, only to find they have been mistreated beyond belief is just inexcusable!

Technically according to the manual, you actually don't really have to wait until the idle is steady. Usually just letting it run for about 30 seconds should be enough to allow the oil to lubricate everything properly. The oil filters in the Aurions (and many other models) aren't like the old style metal canisters from old cars - they are actually internal filter elements installed behind a cap on the engine itself. They are relatively easy to replace, but there are a few extra steps involved and some additional tools needed to do it properly. There is a thread on this forum somewhere about doing the change. The trans appears to be a sealed unit, and is designed to go for a long time without service - so I wouldn't go touching the oil in that unless you have a genuine need to! In relation to the K&N - they are good filters in that they are reusable and are less restrictive, but be careful with the filter oil as it can cause problems with the airflow meter.

I can't say that I've ever noticed this "piston slap" effect in the Aurion engine. My 2008 model has done about 29,300km and was bought brand new, it gets serviced every 15,000km, and it has never had this rattle issue at all. I drive it daily, often for short trips with regular long runs on weekends for day trips and such - and it runs fine. It gets thrashed a bit now and then, driven like a granny other times, yet no rattles, clunks or anything - even during startup. It runs the recommended 10W30 oil with no problems. I would never consider changing it to 20W50 oil, as it is simply too thick for such a modern engine with such tight clearances. I have seen exactly what the effect of piston slap is, as I had a 1990 Mitsubishi Magna which suffered from piston slap in the last 6 months of the engine life - right before it bored the cylinders into oval shapes as a result. I still have the block, pistons and everything as physical evidence of what significant damage piston slap can cause - and can take some pictures if you don't believe how catastrophic it can be. If the Aurion engine seriously had this actual piston slap effect, the engine will likely suffer the same fate of an early grave (the Magna had only done 114,000km before the piston slap caused complete failure)! I don't mean to rant on, but I just can't understand how an engine that is basically a Lexus engine - from a company such as Toyota/Lexus - that will halt sales after a single unique engine failure (the TRD Aurion in early days after a single piston failure) - would release an engine that knowingly has such a significant issue. Keep in mind that this same engine is now used in the Aurion, TRD, Hilux, Tarago and various other models. Would they seriously release an engine that they know will ruin their image for legendary reliable cars and then put it in most their line-up?

Sounds like maybe something to do with the power steering pump? When you turn the steering wheel any direction from center, it puts load on the engine and pump as the power steering pump must force fluid into the steering rack. If there is something wrong with the pump, or a loose belt or anything it may cause the strange "weight" in the steering and possibly strange rattling noises. It could also be the valves in the actual steering rack that might be faulty or the rack itself - given that you mentioned the steering shaft was cracked? I find it surprising that a steering shaft could have cracked though. Did they give you any idea of how this could happen? About the best course of action would be to sit in the car with a Toyota technician, and get them to drive around in the same situation that you would normally see the problem. For such a new car, all the steering components should still be under warranty. A cracked steering shaft in the first place indicates a serious problem, and I personally would not be driving the car until they have found and fixed the problem - even if they need to replace the entire steering system!

Thanks for the reply 1stKill. Can you recall how much it was to get it done? It's honestly bad enough that the moment the sun hits it, what was an invisible scratch turns into a giant multi-coloured gash! I almost dread driving the car during the daytime right now :(

Hi all, Has anyone experienced having their windscreen scratched by a tiny invisible piece of dirt on the windscreen wiper rubber? I used the wipers this morning, and to my annoyance I then found a massive scratch on the drivers side that covers almost the complete distance the wiper arm travels! It's not a deep scratch, and not normally noticeable - but the moment the sun hits the scratch it is 100% noticeable and 100000% annoying! Would a windscreen repair place fix this sort of thing or is there nothing I can do?

The only benefit you will see going with a grounding wiring upgrade will be seen if you are running the ground from the amps directly to the chassis of the car. If you are running a direct ground line back to the battery, there is no need for this as the car is so new that the condition of the grounding wires will be very good. Headlights dimming is simply a sign of excessive current draw that the battery and alternator are struggling to cater for. Remember that car manufacturers design the electrical system to simply cope with the stock car requirements and not much more. Upgrading an alternator will help the issue, as will upgrading the battery - although both may be unnecessary for the relatively minimal power of the amps you are talking about (400W RMS is quite small in the scheme of things). If you look at things above about 1000W RMS, then this is where you start becoming really concerned about batteries and alternators and may consider an upgrade. For your situation, a standard capacitor will help control the power spikes. These spikes (which are causing the dimming of headlights) will eventually damage the alternator and possibly components such as the ECU. The capacitor provides that "reserve" capacity that will be used by the amp during sudden loads, and will recharge when the load from the amp reduces again. Think of it like a water tank really.

The steering goes lighter under heavy acceleration as the front end of the car will lift slightly from the torque, which also makes the front end wave around a bit due to reduction in traction.

But they don't. I have added a Fusion SUB yesterday and the system is really well balanced from Bass through to Treble. I know what your saying re benefits of 6" over 6x9 but in this case it hasn't compromised sound quality at all and several people have commented on clarity of mid and treble from this system and the SUB has just enhanced that. I didn't want BIG boom sounds I just wanted a good response through the range which I have got. BTW the SUB's only a baby - Fusion 10" PP-SW10H with a Fusion PP-AM9002 900W Amp set in a Fusion 10" Sealed Sub Box. If you want clarity of sound, a sealed Sub is the only way to go. Vented is better for deeper and more powerful response, but takes very complex design to get it right. Good choice going with the sealed design!

In the Melbourne suburbs, I often get about 560km before the light comes on, but at last refill of the tank found it still had about 10L in it... so theoretically, I would guess it could get about 650km? Fairly large safety margin! Country driving on freeways, depending on the tailwind, I've had anywhere between 700 - 900km off a tank before the light came on. I drive rather cautiously these days, but when I drive on the right food a bit, suburbs I get about 500km/tank and freeways about 700. Aurion seems very thirsty while accelerating heavily, but if you are light footed it does quite well.

I've noticed this too, but as Supercharged TRD said, you do learn to ignore it somewhat. I've always had some suspicion that the camber and the suspension setup itself have some cause here. Still, it is very good for what is essentially a large "family" car. The strut brace could potentially be some benefit here, as the MacPherson strut setup mounts the suspension at the top of the towers, which can flex a little due to the distance from the wheels. I think a few members of this forum have the Whiteline brace, so maybe check with them and see if they've noticed any improvement? If this is your first FWD, definitely watch for the torque steer if you accelerate hard, as it can be very strong in the Aurion. I personally found this quite scary the first few times I put my foot down, as I ended up nearly halfway into the next lane!

Please help in trying to keep the forum clean, and use the search function, as rattles are not unheard of. A simple search for "rattle" reveals a whole swag of topics. However, answering your question, there is one topic that springs to mind for me, which was related to supposed "piston slap". I don't believe that this could be an issue in such a new car regardless, but the cause of the rattles is most likely the tappets; as was outlined in the thread. These are known to be a little noisy when cold in the Aurions, and will usually quieten down once the car has reached operating temperature. It is normal behavior and doesn't indicate any problems with the car. http://au.toyotaownersclub.com/forums/inde...showtopic=17419 Other possible causes could be the common problem of the air conditioner hose on the drivers side of the car rattling against the car body, which randomly occurs either during startup or moving. There are also common issues with rattles in the dash, but this will typically occur while the car is moving or going over bumps, and rarely during startup. I have personally experienced the air conditioner hose rattle to some frustration, and found the fix as simple as slightly bending a bracket to clear the hoses from the frame. The dash rattle can be fixed by a Toyota dealer over a few hours by fitting a warranty-covered kit.

Not a major fan of the guards over the windows or the chrome handles, but the rest looks quite stunning! Very neat quality and build too, especially that sound system that looks almost like stock. Even the wiring in the engine bay looks rather clean. I'm not sure of what comes standard in that particular model of the Camry, but I take it from the millions of buttons and the remote in the back they are for in-car entertainment or something?

It could also be a result of the random building numbering you find in some areas around Melbourne. I've often gone hunting along for say number 150, and i will find the numbers go 146, 148, 152, 154... then find number 150 about 1km back <_< Happens so often it amazes me that a GPS can find anything!

Noted. Will keep this one in mind from now on. I should point out that I bought my car from Peter Davey in Werribee. They looked after me real well, as did their service department. They were quite good and persistent in isolating an on-and-off rattle under the bonnet somewhere (I couldn't demonstrate it when I took the car in). Turned out to be one of the Air Conditioning pipes being very close to the body and when working hard was vibrating sufficiently hard to touch the pane (and rattle). Impressive that they were able to find that, fixed of course free of charge. Probably only involved pushing/bending it slightly to increase the gap. That is NOT where I went to get my dash rattle fixed. I wish I did. It couldn't have been worse... :) Could you take a picture of the pipe that you found causing this? I've been hunting for this issue for ages, but whenever I take it for service no matter what I do cannot reproduce the noise! Drives me insane, especially when idling as it sounds like there's a metal plate with a bolt rattling around in it...