Emmanuel

I hate them hit and runners!

My other car (ford focus) has a knuckle sized dent which is not easily recognised without glare. For sure the dent was created between saturday night to sunday night because I was detailing it last Saturday afternoon and there was no dent (right rear passenger door). Why oh why!

Sigh.......'

I get about 750kms a tank. I do 60:40 hwy and city driving.

Car: 2007 Levin ZR 6sp

Fuel: any 98 octane yields similar figures

Findings: No significant performance advantage of 98 octane compared to 95 or 91. However, I do get about 60kms more on average if I fill up with 98 octane. This probably offsets the extra cost. Thus there is probably little if not minimal gain when compared to normal fuel in terms of milage.

Average fuel consumption p/100 km: 6.8L B)

read this post, give you lil more info.

Previous topic on sunroof

...

My car was done at Prestige Sunroofs @ wetherill park Hollandia 700 (paid 2.5K), way back in 2003, till date i have not had any problem at ALL .

still works perfectly. Life time Structural Warranty !.

A mate of mine is going to get one done soon he got quoted 2100 .

IMO 2.1k is worth ievery penny, P.S. have done a great job on my stivo!

I went and saw them yesterday afternoon and got quotes for the Hollandia 300 and 700. 700 goes for $2100 (got them to match City Sunroof's quote) and 300 goes for $1650 with cover colour coding. Met Jenny there who is such nice and friendly lady.

I had a talk to my dad and asked him 'Is it worth getting a sunroof at all?'. He said that it depends on how long you want to keep your car for.

What are your opinions in actually deciding if you want a sunroof or not?

Manny

isnt the toyota moonroof a slide in hidden one and only cost 1500??

or is there something wrong with the toyota one??

I think moonroofs are the ones that only tilt up a tiny bit. Sunroofs are the ones that you can fully lift up or hide on top or within the roof of the car.

I could be wrong.

Manny

the choice of sunroof would depend on what you want on your car but i would go for the 700 being a new car as i like the look of the 700. I rangToyota before i put in the sunroof as i still had the warranty. They told me that it wouldn void the warranty at all and if any of the sunroof parts did fail they wouldnt cover it. but if you want to make sure give Toyota a ring If your sunroof for any reason did play up you will also have the companys three year warranty which is what Hollandia (Wesbasto) offer. So overall your car will be covered under any warranty issues by either Toyota or Hollandia for three years (depending on when your Toyota warranty runs out)

Fantastic. I will ring our toyota dealer Lander to confirm about the warranty. Thanks for all the input guys!

Cheers.

Manny

Thanks for the posts guys. Okay; so it is worth getting the top of the line one. Forget about price now, the question is; will the hollandia 300 look better than the 700 one.....well because it has the 'spoiler like' look to it? I`ve got the new rolla levin zr shimmer no mods done to it. Any more inputs would be much appreciated....

Personally I like the spoiler like look. Any comments..??

Oh yeah, nearly forgot ask. Will this sunroof installation procedure VOID any of my new car warranty?

Thanks.

Manny

G'day All,

Could someone provide information about sunroof fitters. So far I have located sunroof city and prestige sunroofs. These two fitters only use Hollandia 300 and 700 series sunroofs.

Quote from Sunroof City:

Hollandia 300 - $1350 full installation GST inclusive (http://www.webasto.com.au/am/en/am_auto_sunroofs_497.html)

- This is quite a decent one. Its not the one that only lifts up a tiny bit. The whole cover can actually get lifted up but not hidden.

Hollandia 700 - $2100 full installation GST inclusive (http://www.webasto.com.au/am/en/am_auto_sunroofs_792.html)

- this is the top of the line one. The cover fully gets hidden within the roof housing.

Quote for prestige sunroof:

no call backs yet

To anybody who have gotten a sunroof fitted, is it really worth investing $700 for the fully hidden sunroof?

Are there other sunroof fitters that are known to be marginally cheaper relative to others?

Any form of feedback would be great.

Manny

I believe one of the standout features of the new Corolla is its interior. They look bloody awesome! (one of the major reasons why I got a Levin ZR 6sp). Bundled with relatively better fuel economy (due to dual vvti) and Toyota's unquestionable build quality, its a very solid car. YES it is heavier (1300kg) and YES it looks like a Yaris on some serious steriods, nevertheless it is arguably the HOTTEST Corolla released.

Manny

I find that sometimes I have to double clutch to get into reverse.

6th gear ratio is too high, It would be nice to cruise at 100km/h at around 2000RPM instead it's around 2800.

Other than that, I love the car and I'll be looking at forced induction when something suitable comes out :)

We need to first engage into any forward gear sometimes before engaging reverse because sometimes it does not want to go in. (no syncros in reverse) As for people experiencing grinding, make sure you are fully stationary before engaging reverse. Apart from the that, the gearbox is bloody awesome to use!

The ratios are pretty similar with gear 4, 5 and 6.. I guess these gears have been tuned to maximise fuel economy. From what I have observed, best instant fuel consumption is between 90 to 100 km/h on a fully flat road (no incline or decline).

Manny

Abrupt steering inputs does not need to happen for VSC to kick in. I do suggest you see the video above as it breaks down ABS only, ABS + VSC together, ABS + VSC + TRC + AVS + Active steering (or VDIM which controls the lot as one unit as opposed to separate units).

VSC still allows you to spin the car at extreme conditions and only when there is grip to the road. If there is no grip, VSC will not work effectively.

Ah ok. But why is it that ESP helped (refer to that video link on youtube) in the conditions of extreme ice in Europe which probably has minimal grip?

Is Toyota's VSC not as good as other ESP modules of different manufacturers?

Do you have a website link that has got some information about the VSC module breakdown?

Cheers.

Manny

1994 Cam,

a = total km driven on ODO : 10,000Ks

b= Ownership in months: 14

c = average weeks in a month: 4.345238095

a/b/c = 164.384 K

****** this is kinda not correct for me. i use buses alot and car siting home all the time. every now and then just when i go to coast or somewhere else i use the car. thats way in last 14 months i olny done 10,000 ks on the clock.

Doing less ks on your car will do wonders for its resale value. Thanks for the post!

Manny

I find that the only problem with my ZR levin auto hatch is that the dash has huge blind spots, nearly crashed once coz couldnt see car coming. and the back middle seat is small, but seeing as not many people get in my car it doesnt really worry me.

Also, the passenger seat has this weight detector thing which goes off its nut if your passenger doesnt have a seatbelt on, but generally its not a passenger its just a load of stuff sitting on my passenger seat so i have to chuck it off.

It runs pretty fast too, which suprised me coming from a 3.8L commodore, it doesnt have the same kick obviously, but it doesnt go like a little car.

Oh, and I find all the orange lights etc, really annoying sometimes. And it took me ages to learn how to turn down the brightness of the speedo.

And the boot is ok once you put ur seats down. I could fit my mountain bike in the boot but now I have sub box and amp in there so no more unless I can be bothered to unhook it :)

Dash is too intrusive - I agree. You cannot even see your bonnet at all! It takes a while to get used to the front end length.

Passenger seatbelt - this is true and quite annoying.

Capability - it is a capable car. The dual vvti spreads an even torque through the rev range of the engine.

Optitron lights - this is one of the highlights of the ZRs. LOOKS BLOODY AWESOME!

Boot size - smaller compared to my Ford Focus 07 which is has a huge boot thanks to its control blade suspension (requires less space than conventional ones)

Manny

LOOKS FRIGGIN AWESOME!

I strongly believe that all cars should be fitted with VSC and TC, especially VSC.

VSC works by detecting a potential spin caused by abrupt steering inputs usually at high speeds. The VSC module will then individually brake any of the four wheels individually or simuntaneously to counter act the spin therefore stabilising the car. By removing the need for the driver to make this steering correction to the spin, he or she can focus on the steering. This can be a life saving feature simply because human reaction times on average are not quick enough to make the steering correction. The VSC modules are even quicker at detecting vehicle instability than Michael Schumacher.

Traction Control on the other hand is like the opposite of ABS. It either works on the Differential end or the braking end. Power is modulated on the drive wheel if a lost of traction is detected. When traction loss is detected, power is cut from the drive wheel/wheels by using one of the two methods I mentioned above.

More info:

Manny

Quite scary cuz the computer warns you unexpectedly:P It warns you about 2 times, first at 34 or someting, then at 20, and probably a couple more beeps in between

Here are my results with 91 RON:

Average Fuel Consumption p/100 km

price of fuel $1.3600

price paid $70.00

litres 51.47058824

kilometres trav. 720

average p/100km 7.14869281

And thats with about 15kms left on the trip computer which is very risky:P

GO THE LEVIN ZRs!!!!

07 Levin

Purchased 12 months ago

26000~

Avg: 541km per week

Avg Fuel: 10L/100km

Nice. What's your driving conditions like? HWY/City like conditions?

2007 ZRE152R Toyota Corolla Ascent sedan auto

Done about 14000 km, it's been about 11 months now. Average fuel economy by trip computer is 9.3L/100km.

Nice Colour - looks like the shimmer colour - GO SHIMMER!.

So you do about 300km p/week on average which is quite ideal because it will not depreciate the value too much in the long-run of your rolla.

I'm guessing you do most of your driving in city like conditions which is why your fuel consumption p/100 is higher than advertised.

Was so close on getting a Sedan, but I fell in love with the ZR features.

Manny

2003 Levin black, sunroof, lowered, K&N filter, plus eyelids yet to paint and mount.

Weekly about 300-400 klms as commuting.

Purchased in Nov07 with 143K klms.

Averaging between 580-660 kilometers from a tank, woohoo. compared to between 400-500 for my last car. yay.

Hey Smithy,

Majority of the people I know do around 300 to 400 kms per week.

So your average fuel consumption p/100km would be:

(580 + 660) / 2 = 620km p/week on average

corolla fuel capacity in ltrs = 55 ltrs

so 54 litres (can't get a perfectly full tank / 6.2) = 8.71 litres p/100 km. Not too Shabby mate.

Whats on your ODO?

How much HWY driving you do?

Manny

Ethanol by nature disperses less energy compared to normal unleaded fuel. Although it has a higher RON of I think 94 as opposed to 91, this compromise does not yield to better mileage. So theoretically, E10 (10% ethanol blend) should give you marginally worse mileage as opposed to normal non-ethanol blended fuel.

Its purpose is probably weighted more on sustainability. It is a renewable energy source (biofuel). Every SINGLE effort counts when it comes to the environment.

Ethanol blended fuel should not damage any contemporary engines, although there are specific models of car manufacturers that are not able to run on them (mostly old models and supercars).

And, for you sports car owners, I would not recommend using Ethanol blended fuel unless there was some sort of non-ethanol fuel shortage world wide.

Manny

G'day all,

I have had my Levin ZR exactly 2 months as of today and already have done 4803 on the ODO.

Car: Levin ZR 07 Hatch

Tranny: 6sp Manual

Total kilometres driven (ODO) 4803

ownership duration in months 2

average weeks in a month 4.345238095 (365/7/12)

Average KM driven per week 552.6739726

Guide with the calculations:

a = total km driven on ODO

b= Ownership in months (easier to calculate as estimate instead of days....) e.g. 2.5 months, etc. and also easier to implement correct average weeks in a month

c = average weeks in a month = 365/7/12

thus your average km driven per week is = a / b / c

The reason I post is because ever since we moved to the West, I have been doing a lot of kilometres which is good and bad for cars (new cars do get exercised but does not help the resale value in the long run).

So for curiosity's sake, please post!

Cheers.

Manny

Also, please correct me if I stuffed up my maths:P

Mine was a slightly hail damaged one which was brand new (had 60km on the ODO). It was on offer for $25,000. The usual brand new price was about $31,990. We offered 24k (drive away) flat and Lander Toyota accepted. They had quite a few brand new cars with slight hail damage from the recent hail storm on offer that weekend, all probably got sold. So yes, we did get a considerable amount of discount.

If I had a choice, I would have gotten a base model or perhaps a conquest if there was no rare hail damage offer like the one we had. The Levin models are quite expensive, but the extra features are quite nice to have.

Woh, thats a pretty good price. Manual Trans?

Did u get the hail fix?

No not yet. It is very hard to notice because of the very light colour (Shimmer). I plan to put a sun-roof soon anyway so it should fix about 80% of the damage. The damage was very minor, so I probably will not get it fixed unless I have to.

Yes it is a stick shift.

Here are some pics!!! (sorry, about the angles, was only testing the camera at that time)

Its still a very nice score at that price.

Yeah by chance we went to the right place at the right time!. Would never have bought one if it was normal price. I believe the extra costs does not justify enough the extras on the ZRs.

Its just too pricey and out of my budget at the time i brought the car. So went for an SX. I'love to have the extras of ZR though although there are no performance gain.

Absolutely. If I was to choose b/w SX and ZR, I would have picked SX simply because there is more value per dollar in it.

If only Toyota were a little bit more sympathetic:P. They could have put sports suspension, VVTi-L (High profile CAMs) etc. You know, something that will make the LEVIN really stand out. After all, the term LEVIN is suppose to be the performance trademark of the classic Corollas.

SX, ZR, Conquest, Ascent - to me its all the same. Running costs are quite low relative to other cars within the market segment; fuel, insurance, servicing, and do not forget the good resale value too. You can never go wrong with Corollas.

Manny

somethign like the Levin ZR are only sold in japan for $22000 or something like that minus the skirts.

Look at the Blade with 3.5L v6 which kicks out 206kw. Its only $32000 equivilant.

Anything comes into aus get water down

'206kw......urghhhhhhh (drooling heavily)'

I'll tell you what though, instead of adding more power to my corolla though, ive been considering taking stuff out - not that i think i'd actually do it. A 1300kg hatchback is pretty darn heavy, and the lack of torque shows with the high weight. (would definately benefit from a S/C) But surely for the top end models they could use lighter seats (sportier), much lighter tyres, and use the whole tube manufacturing process for the frame. But then again, with modifications that severe, they would probably have to do it for all the models for continuity's sake, which would not happen.

Strangely, you dont feel the 1300kg weight when u accel with the corolla.

Try drive an A3. Thats pretty damn heavy that it wouldnt even move between the 2000rpm

Yeah that is true. It takes off quite nicely, probably cuz of the new clutch and gearbox or something. But you do feel the effect of the weight during cornering quite considerably.

The signature corolla body roll. Haha. would a strut bar help?

He he. Maybe the term Corolla actually is an abbreviation for 'Corner Rolla'.

The new Rollas only have torsion beams. No struts to minimize body roll.

I also drive a Ford Focus 07 Model and they have very good rear suspensions (http://www.carbibles.com/suspension_bible.html just before half way down the page) and fantastic front end grip. These control blade suspensions also uses less space than the conventional suspension setup and thus gives more legroom and bootroom. The car is very well behaved in corners.

On the extreme side, my friend has a Supra twin turbo (don't know which year model) which has racing suspensions which is quite f****d up. I mean you feel the bumps inside the cabin if you run over an ant!

Manny.

I'll tell you what though, instead of adding more power to my corolla though, ive been considering taking stuff out - not that i think i'd actually do it. A 1300kg hatchback is pretty darn heavy, and the lack of torque shows with the high weight. (would definately benefit from a S/C) But surely for the top end models they could use lighter seats (sportier), much lighter tyres, and use the whole tube manufacturing process for the frame. But then again, with modifications that severe, they would probably have to do it for all the models for continuity's sake, which would not happen.

Strangely, you dont feel the 1300kg weight when u accel with the corolla.

Try drive an A3. Thats pretty damn heavy that it wouldnt even move between the 2000rpm

Yeah that is true. It takes off quite nicely, probably cuz of the new clutch and gearbox or something. But you do feel the effect of the weight during cornering quite considerably.

I'll tell you what though, instead of adding more power to my corolla though, ive been considering taking stuff out - not that i think i'd actually do it. A 1300kg hatchback is pretty darn heavy, and the lack of torque shows with the high weight. (would definately benefit from a S/C) But surely for the top end models they could use lighter seats (sportier), much lighter tyres, and use the whole tube manufacturing process for the frame. But then again, with modifications that severe, they would probably have to do it for all the models for continuity's sake, which would not happen.

I wish Toyota would do those stuff you mentioned:P.

The Toyota Corolla line-up had always been relatively conservative and practical. I remember my friend telling me, 'this feels like a mini-lexus'. I guess the term 'sporty' will hopefully begin to materialise in the corolla line up sooner or later. But at the moment, Toyota probably feels that there is no need to (yet).

Nice Rolla Picture by the way! Quite stylish...

Manny

Mine was a slightly hail damaged one which was brand new (had 60km on the ODO). It was on offer for $25,000. The usual brand new price was about $31,990. We offered 24k (drive away) flat and Lander Toyota accepted. They had quite a few brand new cars with slight hail damage from the recent hail storm on offer that weekend, all probably got sold. So yes, we did get a considerable amount of discount.

If I had a choice, I would have gotten a base model or perhaps a conquest if there was no rare hail damage offer like the one we had. The Levin models are quite expensive, but the extra features are quite nice to have.

Woh, thats a pretty good price. Manual Trans?

Did u get the hail fix?

No not yet. It is very hard to notice because of the very light colour (Shimmer). I plan to put a sun-roof soon anyway so it should fix about 80% of the damage. The damage was very minor, so I probably will not get it fixed unless I have to.

Yes it is a stick shift.

Here are some pics!!! (sorry, about the angles, was only testing the camera at that time)

Its still a very nice score at that price.

Yeah by chance we went to the right place at the right time!. Would never have bought one if it was normal price. I believe the extra costs does not justify enough the extras on the ZRs.

Its just too pricey and out of my budget at the time i brought the car. So went for an SX. I'love to have the extras of ZR though although there are no performance gain.

Absolutely. If I was to choose b/w SX and ZR, I would have picked SX simply because there is more value per dollar in it.

If only Toyota were a little bit more sympathetic:P. They could have put sports suspension, VVTi-L (High profile CAMs) etc. You know, something that will make the LEVIN really stand out. After all, the term LEVIN is suppose to be the performance trademark of the classic Corollas.

SX, ZR, Conquest, Ascent - to me its all the same. Running costs are quite low relative to other cars within the market segment; fuel, insurance, servicing, and do not forget the good resale value too. You can never go wrong with Corollas.

Manny