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Comments
I trail with my 02 Avalon on a bimonthly basis. I installed a Class II hitch (Draw-Tite) and put in an electric interior hook up. I trail a small utility trailer, mostly with lawn mowers and snow blowers althouh recently I had about 1500-1800lbs of mulch to bring back from a nursery.
Although sometimes labored, as long as you go slow, things trail with ease. However, I do do a few things different.
1. I change the A/T fluid every 30K.
2. I take it out of OD, whenever the trailer is loaded.
3. I changed my front/rear rotors and pads to High Performance parts (drilled/slotted rotors)as the extra weight certainly affects their performance.
I believe Modulite lite was the electrical harness I used to hook into the back trunk wiring.
abfisch
Thanks so much for the response. I think the frequency you tow will be about the same or more than I will ever use the Avalon for. I take it you changed to High Performance brakes at the time you needed to replace them not just to have better braking at the outset? Why would you take it out of OD?
I now have the attention of Southeast Toyota who is supposedly forthcoming with a recommendation. My local trailer hitch dealer has the Draw-Tite. In 86 Toyota used to recommend a Reese hitch.
Pam
Yes, I needed to change the brakes anyway. But the OEM brake parts to the Avalon are inferior quality. You will see why you take it out of OD the first time you haul someting heavy up steep grades. You will stressing the tranny out, and it will constantly be hunting for the lower gear. I would put more emphasis on the tow hitch place and not the Toyota dealership for towing with your car. The NEW Avalon,has 1/2 the towing capacity of the old one, so if you have a new one, you cannot tow too much. Draw-Tite, Reese, or Hidden Hitch are all good brands. Usually one or the other is made for the Avalon, not usually all three since it is not a popular towing vehicle.
Make sure you change your tranny fluid regularly if you tow.
abfisch
Regards
abfisch
abfisch
anythingtoyota.com. My silver mudflaps match my 2006 XLS just fine with a very good fit. They are
easy to install.
Here in Georgia there is a law that says the insurance company must advise you of any future "devaluation" of your car as a result of the wreck, if they think it has been devalued. They also must pay for that lost value. Your state may or may not be the same.
It is impossible to determine your damage claims on this forum, but ask yourself: Is a stretched/repaired Avalon, at 5 months of age, the same as a new one? My guess is "probably not." Metal is never the same after a "stretch".... and the paint job may be another source of problems. Body shops do wonders but this is a new car.
Other opinions may differ but I would want another one, all else being equal.... My .02, hope it helps.
Does anyone have any idea what this sound could possibly be? I will be taking it into the dealership to get this checked out...
By the way...other than that..We love our Avalon!
If you have no passenger on the right front seat........ buckle the seat belt. Mine 2000XLS drove me nuts several days till I found the source. It rattled against the side air bag cover if it was not hanging straight. Give it a try
Some people hear it, others don't. Some cars are louder than others, even of the same make and model.
If this is what the noise is, it is a normal function.
I am basising these statements on just the description you have made. The wonders of technology has allowed body shops to put cars back together with such precision that they have tv shows know that represent what the body shop industry can do. The stretching of the vehicle is actually putting on a frame machine and have the unibody structure and if necessary the frame itself pulled back into factory specs. Every vehicle is designed with crumple zones to deflect the amount of force/energy of the impact away from the passangers. Most dealership body shops that I know of typically have a laser guided frame machine which is very accurate in putting it back into its original alignment. Now, this is depends on if the shop calibrates its machines regularly and the human factor, the person working on the vehicle is an ethical employee and will not do any short cuts. The reality is that it does happen because insurance companies will not pay for all necessary procedures to put the vehicle back to its original state. However, being a brand new vehicle, you are in the drivers seat and you have absolute control. I am sure this still does not help settle your fears, but you can control it more than you may think, even if you have no knowledge of all the steps it takes putting a car back together. If you have any concerns with the body shop you are taking it to, ask questions about their certifications/creditials from the employees to their equipment. Are they using some of the newest equipment in the market, do they keep it cleaned and calibrated, what type of paint system do they use(PPG,AKZO-Nobel,Sherwin Williams,BASE,etc), will they give you a tour of their facility, any letters from happy customers, how many vehicles they do in a month(could mean the quality of work is very good so they have a backlog of work), do they do work for any dealerships and which ones if the body shop is an independent(dealerships are very touchy about who they do business with because typically their reputation is on the line). I also recommend, if you have a digital camera, take some pictures and bring a company of the estimate from body shop that the car is at and see what another body shop says and ask them what the estimate says and what certain things are being done or not done. Take it to at least a couple of reputable body shops. If you don't know any ask your insurance company. And if there is a pretty big descrepancy between the orginal estimate and the ones you got on your own bring it up with your insurance company and see if they agree with you and have them fight for you.
Hopefully this helps, and I am sorry if this is a little confusing. I am trying to write in a condensed version and cover as much ground to help you out. If you have any more questions please feel free to ask me. Good luck and thanks, Steve.
Basically, when memory seat A or B is selected, the mirror moves to various positions erratically and usually NOT to the preset position. Sometimes it moves only a very small amount and it takes continually pushing of the memory seat button to get it to finally move to the preset definition. Other times, the mirror moves a large amount to some bizarre position like slanted completely towards the car.
I have a dealership appointment but wondered if this might be as simple as pulling a fuse to reset a computer. Anyone know what fuse in the '05 Avalon might make sense to pull and try?
USAID42 :confuse:
Bob
Anyidea how i can remove this part and take a look. doesnt appear to have any screws looking from top.
The new nozzles put out much more of a fine mist coming much more of the windshield that the older nossles with 2 or 3 jets that you can direct. Since I do alot of winter driving, I painted new ones, got them from the new Camry, cause they were outside exactly the same and then replaced them on my Avalon for that year. They work great, better than the ones that came with the vehicle and matched the color with a spray can from Paintscractch website where you can buy the exact color match.
Good luck
abfisch
abfisch
Bob
Bob
Bob
I have 1995 avalaon, Outside temperature display is not working. Can anybody please guide me that how what are the things that i have to test and How can i do them. Thanks you very much all of your time reading my message.
Thanks