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Comments
Trunk is definitively small (like my Honda Civic's) Reclining of the back seat is a joke (one inch at most)
Otherwise drive is smooth, silent as expected from a Toyota sedan. Very comfortable
Price are out of reason when I compare to an Acura TL with Navi at 34k$ with much better finish, touchscreen navigation system,....
Just for the record I reclined my seats just a little over 3 inches in travel, not 1. You do have to push a little to get them all the way back. And as the recline, obviously the headrest region will travel further than the bottom of the back, as the top of the arch has to travel further. But mid seat it is about 3 inhes.
Yes, there is a small black box that was placed on the passenger side of the trunk lid for the XM Radio. It is about 2" square and 1" high. The cable runs over the side edge and then down the trunk hinge. This is the one thing that I am not happy about with my new Avalon - the placement and look of this little black box. When I negotiated the deal, I did not confirm with the dealership where the black box would go on the car and just learned of it's placement when I took delivery. I knew there was a need for a black box, but I assumed it would be placed at the middle rear of the trunk lid, which it was not. When I took delivery, I questioned the placement and my salesman said "that is where Toyota told us it should go on the new Avalon". They even sent a template to show the dealer where it should go. I am going to go back to the dealer next week and ask them to relocate it to the center rear of the trunk so at least there is some symetry to the trunk lid.
Here are some pictures I took this afternoon so you can see for yourself:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v715/dshim/4.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v715/dshim/3.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v715/dshim/2.jpg
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v715/dshim/1.jpg
I love the XM service, as I previously had it on a 2002 Chevy Tahoe, which I don't have any more. I took the Tahoe from Iowa to Phoenix in Nov. 2002, and enjoyed uninterupted XM Radio reception the entire trip. All kinds of commercial free music, news, comedy, sports, etc, all for only $9.95 per month.
I chose the Desert Sand Mica again, as it does not show dirt and always looks classy.
If you have any other questions, just let me know and I will reply.
It is offering VSC on all Camry trim levels!
Regarding the XM reciever. It would look much better in the center or on the roof top without any ugly wires but that's impossible. Center trunk will be best.
It is interesting that you and another poster who are 6'4" or more think there is plenty of front and rear headroom, and a couple of 6'1" people don't.
I am torn between desert sand mica (have had 3 cars that or similar color) vs mirage blue. Had you considered any other colors?
I personally go with Indigo Blue or just plain black which looks sharp on the Avalon.
Anybody know if we can have Birch with Graphite Leather? My favorite combo on the Black Exterior.
And the first thing out of my mouth was, "They put it THERE?!!". You should tell the dealer that they should be ashamed of themselves. Template Shmemptlet. They should have a little common sense.
That is such a stupid place to put it, it almost makes me mad.
I'm glad that you are going to have them fix it, and you didn't just go along with it.
Why didn't they just mount it to the middle to the driver's door? Or how about the middle of the hood? Perhaps on the alloy wheels? Sheesh...
P.S.-Nice Corvette (I can see a sliver of it in the pictures!)
Wiktor
Weeks went by with no Strat Limited on the spot so the dealer offered the Mirage Blue Metallic I have now. It was availabe with Ivory and Light Gray. I never inquired the interior color but the one I got was Light Grey.
Would have preferred Ivory but I don't mind the grey either.
Birch with Black would look great (atleast I think seeing the Ivory interior of the SC430 with black and birch steering wheel with black dash)
Actually I like if they let us the consumers choose what we desire.
Did anyone had problem with their rear disc brakes rusting out like my previous Avalons ? I never had that problem with Cressidas that were built in Japan.
(1) the wiring harness to be the same as in the
other models to accomodate the lights.
(2) headlight stalk switch which has a fog light
switch built in.
(3) you would need the required relay.
(4) and of course the fog lights themselves.
I can comfortably say you are looking at over $650 msrp in parts. In this situation installation labor would not be terrible as conditions are ideal but if you use any other method it then becomes labor intensive $$$..
Went to the Chicago Auto Show and there just weren't large crowds around the Avalon at all. They had a Blizzard Pearl Limited on the turntable and several other Avalon's on the floor to climb in and out of and kick the tires.
I finally got an actual brochure as well. The brochure sure does not do anything to sell this car. I think Toyota had better look at some other company to design their brochures.
I'll stick with my comments of last week. This vehicle just isn't a "got to have" vehicle. Hopefully by 2006 or 2007 they will have corrected a few of the faults (no side molding, not VSC on the XL & Touring) and it will be more appealing to me. Until then, I am certainly happy with my 2004 Camry.
Overall, still amazed with this thing. In black with ivory and birch it is lexus like. But more importantly very very nice inside.
The smart key works without touching the buttons 99% of the time. BUT the peripheral lights do not always, actually rarely, turn on when you approach the car. Even when they do, even though the look xenon blue, the do not light up until you are standing next to the car, a little to late to look for a puddle, but at least you can check the interior.
Getting 18 mpg in town, love that. NO hesitation NO torque steer.
Other than that, WOW! What a car, but I'll wait a few months and save a few thousand.
It felt like I was driving my old Avalon (good). Nothing exciting, not much 'feel,' but a lot more go when needed. I checked head room front and back. Less than my 96 XLS. Front seat all the way down gave plenty of head room in front, but my head just brushed the roof in back - unless the rear seat was reclined (not comfortable for me). I'm 5'10", long torso, short legs. My 96 has lots of head room in the back.
No backup camera or sensors. it took four sales people to figure out how to open the trunk. The remote didn't work, nor did the button on the dash. The trunk is a little smaller than the one on my 96.
The nav unit is not intuitive, but does work. The voice activation was not working on the car I drove. Honda/Acura (Alpine) nav systems are much better. Even the old one in my MDX is better and and easier to use.
Front seat area did not feel as roomy as the old car. Probably because of the wider arm rest (moves back and forth - nice feature) and more massive door arm rests. I found the front door pockets to be hard to use with the door closed.
Rear seat area felt less open than the old car, but there is lots of knee room in the new one too. The rear seat reclines about three inches or so at the top. Sounds like a cheap window shade when the seat back moves, but it works fine.
The front cup holders are on the wrong side of the cup holder door. Have to lift high to clear the door.
Ride was firmer than expected. Felt more freeway irregularities than in my old car or my MDX. Not bad at all. Ride was very comfortable. Seat better than my old Avalon. Very quiet around town, with some road noise on the freeway - still very good though.
To me, the car looks much better in person than in pictures. I don't care for the light wood color and the door that cover the radio and nav controls, to me, shouldn't be there.
I notice no torque pull even with rapid starts. Low end torque is not huge - you feel the power 'kick in' as rpm increases.
Fit and finish was outstanding, though the quality of materials (feel) was less than expected.
I want one
The stealer wants $2,200 for 2 headrest and a dual player.
For right now I have bought a $350 single unit from Costco that is hanging from a velcro strap that the wife cooked up.
I'm curious as to what octane gas you are using in your new Avalon, 87/89/91?? The Avg Fuel Economy on mine says only 16 MPG since I took delivery, and I now have a little over 100 miles on the odo. My lower amount is probably from running the car, without moving at the dealership, prior to taking it home. I asked my dealer when they filled up the tank, what octane they used. He asked their shop personnel that did the prep and they said 89. They did not know that 91 octane was recommended. I plan on switching to 91 on my first fill up.
Thanks for your reply.
MikeS.
Nevertheless, yesterday's review was lack luster. This is what he said, in part. "Why look higher when there's Avalon?
Toyota executive Ernest Bastien calls the Avalon ‘a move-up vehicle’ for Camry owners who don’t need a luxury brand.
This car, at these prices, could be a tough competitor for Buick, Mercury, Ford, and Lincoln, which once dominated this niche."
http://www.boston.com/cars/articles/2005/02/13/why_look_higher_wh- - en_theres_avalon/
abfisch
Tee
Tire pressure monitoring and Bluetooth are two things 99% of Americans have never experienced in their cars; but, they are now make-or-break for you? I agree, those are newly emerging options that one would expect to enter an automaker's line from the top down (like HIDs, SmartKey and other neat stuff), but would you avoid the 2005 Avalon if the Corolla didn't offer one of them?
Like I said, not trying to be a jerk, just curious to see if it's the lack of those options that turned you off, or the fact that Toyota offers them on a lesser vehicle that is the bigger issue.
I AM SO GLAD YOU WROTE THIS. THE ALPHA, IF YOU WILL, OR THIS FORUM THINKS MY COMMENTS WERE OUT OF TOUCH IN SORTS 30 POSTS AGO. I HAVE MY DOUBTS THAT MANY ALPHAS HAVE HAD MULTIPLE AVALONS LIKE YOU, AND SO IT IS WITH GREAT PRIDE AND RELIEF THAT YOU HAVE ARTICULATED TO SOME OF these emotional people, that there are certain things for certain people that the old Avalon's had which were priceless.
Specifically, no sunroof, no auto climate control, the minimal amount of useless buttons, terrific headroom, a large trunk, etc.
My rear brakes seized also at less than 40K in NE winters. I replaced the rotors with aftermarket premium rotors and had to relube everything else as well as change the pads. I did not realize the XLS came without a sunroof, but maybe different regions had different packages.
Reclining reat seat does not interestme. I am not a chauffeur, nor do I take long trips were kids sleep in the car.
Having my head hit the top of the roofline is a show stopper, New Avalon or not.
abfisch
The M35 comes *close* to the new Avalon but at $50,000 out the door, 23 mpg highway...
I cannot believe how wonderfully this new Avalon is: what a package! I am 6' 2" and have room to spare headroom-wise.. Yes, the M35 had a rear backup camera but, again, about $15,000 more money! Less horsepower, poorer fuel economy, more road noise, more engine noise;
New black Avalon LTD on its way for hopefully Thursday delivery......
I still do not know how they have achieved this:
sorry to quote Healey but this IS the finest car I have driven since I had the pleasure of driving a Rolls Royce silver shadow.... Simply incredible, in my opinion..
George
Umm, just to be fair and balanced, I did drive the Avalon and there was a pronounced hesitation. It's true that Healey may have repeated what he saw elsewhere, but it may also be equally true that "positive" reviewers are doing the same -- reiterating each other's rave reviews.
I suppose the fact whether or not the Avalon has a delayed throttle response is a function of your driving style. I am so used to my Nissan Maxima and even my wife's Civic Hybrid (with the continuosly variable transmission), that I never think twice about how gently I should hit the gas. I guess that means that I drive aggressively.
When I test drove the Avalon, I quickly found out that I can't drive it the same. Because of the throttle delay, the pressing and releasing the accelerator gets out of sync with the engine response, especially if you alternate (up-down) in a sequence.
It's also probably true that most people who drive like gentlemen (figuratively speaking) will not notice this issue at all. I would also speculate that because most of the Avalon's owners are people of certain respectable age (79 or something, I've been told?), they would drive that beast in the corresponding manner (not trying to catch up with the hooded fellow on a pale horse, that is), and would therefore unlikely to test the limits of the throttle or its drive-by-wire technology.
It's all perfectly logical and makes sense. Except for one thing: I wouldn't call the Avalon "a high performance flagship". That's all.
Is there something similar with the Smart Key or does the valet get access to what I have in the truck too?
The 280 horses are quite real.. I would not hesitate in putting "high performance" next to the Avalon... Especially when compared with its much higher priced brethern such as the yet to be released 240 HP GS300 Lexus at $50,000, Infinity M35, at $48,000..
I went out last week with the goal of purchasing an Infinity M35X.. I only stopped in at the Toyota dealer as a whim on the way back from the Infinity dealer... I am sooo glad I did!