DJKOR

I agree as well. That would make it just perfect. Plasmacluster though is a tiny bit of a gimmick. They generate such a small amount of negative ions to be considered useful.

at the end of the day its really depends on how you drive Yeah. Drive like me, expect 3 good months out of the RE001's, then another 3 months of average grip.

I'll give you a run in mine if you want. Cruise sounds good.

I can. I love how the bottom section of the bumper has been widened up and has a more elegant look to it. It's lines have also been sharpened up a little. The Sportivo (white one second from the end in first pic) actually does look sporty. Kind of reminds me of an AMG with it's design cues. That would be the Presara. They usually show photos of the top of the line luxury one to make it look better. Get the Sportivo... you won't get the disgusting woodgrain.

I want to see these stat Go to http://tinypic.com Edit: Never mind Edit edit: I quite like the new design. In the first pic, the middle one reminds me of a Merc.

Well, just a quick update on this. I was busy working today so couldn't go around to a steering specialist for opinions of whether it can be remedied without changing the entire part... just yet. I did however stop back at Southside Toyota and saw the service manager I was dealing with last night. I mentioned the problem I discovered, and not to my surprise, he started taking about the problem like he has dealt with it many times before. He was saying how when they get cases of the knocking sounds, they either change the intermediate shaft or the drivers side steering rack end. He then proceeded to call the parts department to get a price enquiry. I could hear him on the phone mentioning the issue so it's definitely something they are aware of and it seems to be a known fault with these cars. He then mentioned how they had 15 cases of these etc, etc. Anyways, he quoted me about $245 in parts, $110 in labour, and $69 for a wheel alignment. Seriously, what kind of annoys me though is that obviously if he is quoting me the price for the parts and labour, this means that it's not covered by my limited warranty. So in that case, they had no reason earlier to blame the problem on something else (the 'aftermarket' bushes), because they aren't exactly trying to get themselves out of a warranty job.

I just tried again then, and seriously can not tell. The rubber boot is seriously tough enough to make it hard to feel the joint underneath it. In the video, I just applied some upwards force against whatever I could. By the way, are these ball joints made in such a fashion that with the say they sit on the power steering rack (ie. inserted from the rack side), they can't pop out given the right force? Just wondering if a hard corner is going to pop them out in the immediate future.

From Southside Toyota Wooloongabba I payed $207.50. I provided my own engine oil and requested they not use their washer additive. My engine air filter was recently changed as well so they didn't have a need to change it. If you haven't changed yours since last service, they may consider it dirty and change it... adding a little more cost to the service.

This time around it was 15,000km. Had no time for a mid-service this time thanks to work etc, etc.

A simple 2 minute job to help rule out the possibility is to clean out your throttle body. Worth a shot during the troubleshooting process.

Damn. That looks hot. Me likey.

Well here is a long awaited welcome for you then. Which state are you from?

I'm wondering that as well. It might be a mixed bag. Some people who have reported the issue may have the original problem mentioned here, others may have the one I do. The way I narrowed it down was to jiggle the wheel lightly with the car off. I stuck my head down in the footwell area then listened. The sound definitely wasn't coming from the steering shaft. The whole assembly on mine looked rock solid as well. I then got outside the car with the window down and did the exact same thing. I could easily hear it coming from the wheel area. Just another note, this is most certainly a knocking you can feel. You can feel it when you go over a bump, accelerate from a stop (or blipping the throttle while going 10km/h), and turning while rolling slowly.

Lucky f***!!!

I dunno. It's all just theories. Theories that start sounding possible when you really can't figure the damn thing out. Well wither way, just had the car serviced and and yet to hear it come back. Will see how it goes over the next week.

And another post. Still on my caffeine high (thanks to a 710mL can of Rockstar earlier today), I decided to do a quick test to see if I can find the knocking. Lying down on the ground next to the drivers side wheel with the door open, stretching my leg up into the air and using my foot to jiggle the steering wheel, leaving my right arm/hand free (damn I'm creative)... I found the culprit AFTER getting my car checked out. I used their previous suggestion as a staring point and I grabbed onto the bolt going through the offset bushes themselves and could feel the knocking. It was very light though and seemed like this wasn't it. Thinking about what else I could try holding onto, I saw the power steering linkage. I figured why not, and grabbed onto that and jiggled the wheel. Then I REALLY felt it. The following video shows it narrowed down to the source: Please wait a few seconds for Video to Load! It appears to be the ball joint on the power steering rack. For those with a little more experience, can this 'steering rack end sub-assembly' be replaced with the steering rack on the car, or is this going to be some epic job. Just that I would definitely take this in to get changed and wonder what labour is involved in addition to the estimated $150-$200 for both the arms + new boot etc. And more-so, if I get the part, who do I take it to around the Brisbane area? I've only had one issue before with a power steering rack and I took that to B.H.S.S. but that was after I took it off the car.

Actually, that horse-shoe shaped bracket you speak of only joins 2 bolts together from the looks of it. I thought it may have been flatter like the Aurion in which you can mount the bar right on top of it:

Well, just an update on this. I picked my car up then and spoke with the service manager there. He said that they certainly notice the knocking sound that is there and took if for a couple of drives to try and narrow it down. He also mentioned that they got a bar out to help test movement in the suspension related components. He said that the service technician there thinks that it is quite possibly caused by the aftermarket bushes I have fitted. My first through were the new rear sway bar bushes and thought that he has to be joking. He then mentioned that he hasn't really seen bushes like that before... then I remembered the offset castor bushes that I have fitted. I mentioned them and the reason I have them and he said that they found that there was a little bit of play within them which could quite possibly be causing the knocking sound that they and I could here. It nearly seems like they are shifting the blame here since also as well in the report they handed me, it mentions "possible non genuine bushes causing knocking", which makes it sound like non genuine is the cause of it. However with that said, it does in fact seem quite plausible. The knocking sound I noticed isn't coming from up close like the steering shaft like the problem mentioned by the OP. Instead, mine is coming from near the front wheels and kind of sounds like the brake callipers are not done up properly. Given this information, I think my next step would be to take my front wheels off and have a look at the bushes myself since it helps me narrow it down possibly. The main reason it makes sense is because inside the bushes are a metal sleeve in which the supporting bolt goes through as can be seen in the following picture. If it is coming from that, then I need to figure out some way to stop it.

Dropped her off at the doctors earlier this afternoon for her 75,000km routine check-up. Just picked it up then. Feels so fresh again. Slightly feeling funny after letting someone else check out her covered parts.

From reading that, I would assume you that attached to the two inner studs of the strut tower are a metal plate that looks like it joins onto the car body underneath the wipers. If so, that is just like the Aurion. You simply install the strut brace over it.

You mean Phil? Gav won't be racing.

Please wait a few seconds for Video to Load!.... j/k

I wouldn't say it's a case of how much it relies on it... it's more of a case of it either works or it doesn't. If a GPS doesn't give a fairly accurate position, it is stuffed. Full stop. My Garmin GPS II that I got in 1998 can give me my position on the planet accurate to within 7 metres.

Or you had dud tires. Or those mysterious low mileage OEM tires.

The speed sensor is there to help determine your position on the road when reception starts to get a bit iffy and to smoothen out the movement. The GPS relies heavily on (you guessed it) the GPS. Think about it. If you got someone to drive down the road for you and you were only able to see the odometer, you wouldn't be able to know whether they are heading north, south, east, or west.