prometheus

Black cars are like chicks that look good AFTER they have had a shower , done their hair and put on all their makeup.

Silver cars are like chicks that look good nearly all of the time.

I had my ZR6 converted to gas injection in Oct All going well with the conversion, my only issue's are that the gas filler is crammed into the petrol fill point( I did not want an external gas fill point, have to just live with it 'maybe a little re-engineering' ). I have an issue with the VSC lights coming on whilst using gas, I am hoping the manufacturer will fix this soon as it is a programming issue. The VSC lights go out when I switch back to unleaded.

The all important usage figures: NB These figures are not from driving with economy in mind, I enjoy the 200Kw of Toyota power and sports mode

393km using 41.22ltrs = 10.49lt/100km around town running

414km using 38.81ltrs = 9.37lt/100km Sydney/Newcastle trip with around town running

So for around $25 (Gas @ 0.59) I am doing 400km (Based on 10.50lt/100km)

Where as I believe petrol at 9.5lt/100 (petrol @ 1.2) would cost around $45 for 400km

Conversion will pay for itself in two years ($4000 Conversion less $1750 Rebate)

Cheers Hope this helps

Have you had any loss in power ?

I came across this AutoSpeed article about a modded 1996 Camry.

AutoSpeed article

and I quote...

quarter mile time to date is a 14.0 at 106 mph. Note, however, this was achieved on worn street tyres and standard suspension – a 13 second pass seems like a definite. This is further justified when you consider this Camry rips out 178kW at the wheels (on a Dyno Dynamics chassis dyno) along with super-strong torque through the rev range.

Interesting.

Do all model aurions have this feature ?

What happens if you change the standard stereo head unit ?

I guess as well, with the 1.27% smaller diameter, you will get a fraction of extra torque at the wheels, compared to the 1.95% larger diameter of the 195/60R15.

Very Interesting, ... so would it improve the 0-100 klm/hr time ?

Melbourne taxi drivers tend to give me the ****s.

Drivers that reverse park into their parking spots.

Fair dinkum , do these space cadets hope to make a quick getaway after robbing a bank or 7-11 ?

It takes them twice as long to park their cars than it would if they just drove in to the parking bay and what about if they need to put something in the boot when they get back to the car ?

Reverse parking into a parking bay is a sure sign of a moron.

Drivers that try to get onto the freeway from the on-ramp at 70-80 klms/hr ; then everybody that comes up behind them is forced to slow down.

People that drive high-performance cars like a granny on her way to church.

I have read this sort of thing before and there is an element of truth to it.

All the new plastics and various materials in a new car will emit some level of chemicals until they de-gas (for want of a better term) , these chemicals are solvents etc.

So , when the car is new , its probably a good idea to keep a window partly opened when the car is parked at home to allow for ventilation and for any chemical nasties to escape.

As far as cancer causing , EVERYTHING is toxic , what matters is the DOSE.

These chemicals emitted in a new car may give some people a headache or a few other symptoms , but giving you full blown cancer ... thats just scaremongering.

Bargained down to $36k on-road.

Wow , that's damn good considering Toyota have been advertising in The Age in Melbourne , AT-X's (2009 models I think) for $33 990.

I wonder what the AT-X's could be bargained down to.

Not quite. Combined fuel economy ADR 81/02 for yours is 9.9l/100km. July '09 onwards production (facelift) is lowered to 8.8l/100km.

The 9.9L/100klms figure for the pre-facelift Camry is the same as the Aurion , I wonder what real life figures owners have been getting and whether the relatively small saving in fuel is worth the loss in power and smoothness of the Aurion.

As for the facelift Camry from July '09 onwards with the 8.8L/100klms official figure , what real life figures have owners been getting.

It amazes me that in this day and age where so many things are controlled and regulated that "official" fuel consumption figures for cars are so far removed from real world figures.

Who the heck uses undercar lighting these days for a non-show car? That stuff kind of went out the window together with all the other Fast and the Furious craze that occurred years ago.

I agree , it looks lame.

Or those blue LED's that some people put on their windscreen wiper jets ; the only real purpose they serve is to alert other drivers that an idiot is approaching.

Beaurepaires in Melbourne have just started an "Easter" sale on tyres Beaurepaires Easter Sale

I've booked myself in for Monday next week for Dunlop LM701's at $115 a tyre , not bad from being quoted $139 a tyre at a Beaurepaires store a month ago.

Hehe ..... :P

I've had Dunlop Daytona tyres on my 1996 Camry CSi (4 cyl) and they have lasted for 70 000 klms and reckon that the tyres might have up to 5000 klms left in them.

The Daytonas are 195/70 R14 but are no longer made.

The standard size for this model Camry is recommended as 185/75 R14 but there are few tyres made at this size nowdays.

The guy I spoke to at Beaurepaires said that 185/75 is pretty much a 'dead" size as far as tyres go as not many companies are making them.

Anyway , I'm happy to go with the 195/70 R14 size.

When the time comes for purchasing new tyres , I'm thinking of going with the Dunlop LE MANS LM701 which has a Silica based tread compound and at around $129 per tyre fitted and balanced seems like good value.

Can anyone suggest any other tyres in the 195/70 R14 size or a tyre seller that they can recommend in the inner west of Melbourne ?

cheers

Yeah , nothing like Hyundai owners for lame , cheap ***** mods on their cars like fake stick-on bonnet scoops and ridiculous spoilers etc.

I almost pity them.

Don't listen to these guys, it really does work

.... yep , as an attachment to the front of a Barmixer

Maybe he can send it back and get a refund ?

Anyways, time for the figures. At this point in time, I have been driving the car for 21 months and have spent $10,044.70 on fuel.

Dude , over $10 Grand in fuel in less than two years :o

I calculated my fuel bill for the whole of 2009 to be $1435.86 ( for a 96 Camry )

How many klms have you done ?

I wouldn't really call an XR6 a sports car... it is just the sportier version of the XT falcon... same as the aurion SX6/ZR6 is the sportier version of the ATX

Thats right !! If the owner of the XR6 was fair dinkum he would have bought the XR6 Turbo ! .... or a V8

I thought the first line of this article comparing the XR6 Turbo to the Falcon XR8 and Commodore SS was pretty funny...

http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/ArticleD...mparisonID=1482

Ive been for a drive as a passenger in a VW R36 wagon (the owner chose the wagon so that he could use the car for work purposes as well)

Nice car ! , quite roomy inside for the size of the car , classy layout , fairly smooth and quiet and when he put the boot in was pretty quick.

They aren't cheap though, I believe they are up in the 70K mark ?

I've even heard of the Honda Civics having problems with getting their doors to close, some problem with alignment to the body and so on.

Also , I think the servicing costs on the Hondas are significantly higher than Toyotas ?

Goods from Thailand have no import duty to Australia , combine that with a workforce that's cheap to pay and its no wonder the Hondas are being built there.

A while ago I pulled up behind a modded Honda Accord Euro at the lights and could not help but notice that its rear drivers side wheel looked like it was about to fall off.

I resisted the temptation to get out and tell the driver and sure enough , when he pulled away I reealised the car had been lowered so much that the wheels looked like they were on an 80 degree angle to the ground.

Go figure.

My 96 Camry has blown a brake light globe.

I have bought a pair of new globes and would like to try changing the blown globe myself.

I tried going around from the inside (from inside the boot) , no dice.

So , any advice on how to go about it from the outside ?

cheers

Actually the Euro Accord and the Accord and possibly all the other Honda models are made in THAILAND !

Sometimes it is better to hold a gear rather than shift up - this is why you might want to turn overdrive off when towing, because even though the speed might warrant top gear, the extra load that the trailer/caravan etc places could mean that the transmission will shift up, find that there is insufficient torque and then kick back down again, then shifting up due to speed etc etc, this is called "hunting" because the transmission is constantly hunting to find the right gear for the situation. In this case, it is better to turn overdrive off and just keep it in 3rd (if you have a 4-speed auto).

Yes , good point.

My Camry has an overdrive button that I always have on , but why do they even bother giving you the option of the button anyway ?

In what circumstances would you want to leave out your top gear when the gearbox is capable of doing the selecting for you anyway.

The update model of the Aurion that is selling for $35 990 (2009 build plates) is being sold with an extras pack of alloy wheels , rear spolier , display audio system and rear parking camera and I think metallic paint as well.

All of which I like other than the spolier.

I took one for a test drive a couple of weeks ago.

I'd also like to test drive the mid range Mazda 6 Classic to compare to the Aurion.

I think the Mazda 6 is a nicer alternative to the Camry ; if I was to go down the 4 cyl path ... being that petrol prices are up in the $1.30 mark at the moment, and since 2009 the Mazda 6 has been tuned to run on standard 91 RON fuel.

Anyone driven a Mazda 6 ? any comments? ... of course they don't have the same level of power as the Aurion but do seem like a nice classy car.