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Comments
Back in the fifties when automatics were just becoming available I remember being told that if I wanted the transmission to upshift sooner then I could momentarily lift the accelerator pedal lightly.
Nowadays many of us have BA, Brake Assist, wherein the firmware is seemingly designed to "watch" the rate at which our foot moves from the accelerator pedal to the brake (or maybe even the RATE at which the pedal is lifted and the brake is applied..??) in order to determine if this is a PANIC stop and if so then provide assistance with SEVERE braking.
Late in the last century there was a white paper published by Sierra Research in CA that suggested that a 9.8% fleetwide improvement in FE could be readily achieved with existing, current, vehicles via adoption of several engine/transaxle control routines.
Foremost among those was something referred to as ASL, Aggressive shift Logic. Basically this idea was to UPSHIFT the transaxle AGGRESSIVELY, as soon as feasible in every circumstance.
So, suppose, like those analog computers (hydraulically powered computers) transmission control systems of the fifties modern day engine/transaxle ECU firmware is "watching" your overall actions with the accelerator and brake pedals in an effort to extend the fuel economy by more quickly getting into a higher gear.
My 1988 Porsche 911 is sort of a poor example but an example none-the-less. It has a little indicator (which I have learned to totally ignore) on the instrument panel to let me know "when" an upshift is appropriate to best conserve fuel.
Could you possibly avoid the upshifting sequence by modifying the rate and level at which you lift the gas pedal when you want to coast down to a lower speed, NOT to enter cruise mode??
May be..!!
Try this. When you see that you may wish to change from a coast down mode to acceleration, say during merging into higher speed traffic from an acceleration lane, lift the accelerator pedal QUICKLY and COMPLETELY.
That should be a very DEFINITIVE indication to the engine/transaxle ECU control firmware that your desire is to coast down to a lower speed, NOT to enter cruise mode in which case an upshift would be appropriate.
And we have now learned, via insurance industry statistical data, that having ABS is a slight detriment, overall, to prevention of injury accidents. To be specific it appears that single vehicle accidents, accidents involving vehicles equipped with ABS, are inordinately high. No explanation has been forthcoming as of yet.
But let's suppose the insurance industry has looked at those statistics and determined that FWD and front torque biased AWD systems have a much higher accident rate (obviously adjusted by ratio of each) than RWD and rear torque biased AWD vehicles.
Wouldn't the insurance industry somehow convey those statistics to the automotive industry? And wouldn't that motivate the industry to try to alleviate the "problems" with FWD versus RWD.
Look at what Acura is doing with SH-AWD.
Is the Toyota/Lexus engine/transaxle delay/hesitation symptom, the one that seemingly cannot be "fixed" in four long years, just based on the need to improve FE, or also
the result of the need to remove engine compression braking from the front wheels of FWD and front biased AWD vehicles?
Apparently the American Automobile Association thinks so.
AAA is currently recommending that owners of clutchless (transaxle) vehicles practice shifting the transaxle into neutral in preparation for the day that needs to be done quickly to prevent total loss of control on a slippery roadbed surface.
Thanks
A/C condensate it is no big deal.The top of the coolant
reservoir has dried pink residue around the top. What is it?
It has done it since new.
I have filed a complaint with the attorney general's office, but not have gotten a lawyer because I feel I've already lost enough money. thanks for letting me sound off. It's been a couple of months since my accident, and it still enrages me! By the way, I traded in my Highlander for a 2006 Mitsubishi Galant. It's a fabulous car, and drives just the way you would expect a car to drive!!
tidester, host
drivers door lock problem?
It's very interesting. Almost all of them have distinct problems that are reported repeatedly(such as pulling to the right, brake problems, airbag deployment, etc). I steered clear of those. But the Toyota hesitation and sudden acceleration problems really stood out. I may have seen one or two complaints of it in the other cars I researched, but nothing like the number and severity of the Toyota's. Quite frankly,I found it to be very alarming.
I've been driving for 38 years, and have driven many brands of vehicles including Toyota. I have never had a vehicle behave as scary as my Highlander.
This sounds like the brake pads on the disc brakes moving in their seats, a normal noise. It tends to be most noticable first thing in the morning and you can probably replicate it if you then put the car in drive and pull forward a similar distance.
The brake pads are held within a cage (calipers) and are lightly sprung to hold them in whilst still allowing movement as the brakes are applied. The actual movement fore and aft within the calipers is very small, probably less than 5mm (say 2/10 of an inch) but makes a noticable noise when first used.
If it really bugs you, trying backing into the garage and driving out.
Cheers
Graham
You can also view recalls and investigations here. Note: investigations are different than complaints.
I can't imagine paying around 30K and falling off a hill probably :-)
It is in regards to the panel by drivers right foot.It says to bring it in and have upgraded clips installed to prevent the panel from coming loose and obstructing the throttle cable movement.I see nothing wrong with it myself and have had no problems with over 36K miles.It is too much of a
hassle to take it to service for a nonissue.
It was pouring out and they said that was the reason for the noise so I may go back on a sunny day and drive another one. Any comments anyone? :confuse:
Perhaps crawl under the vehicle and look for missing exhaust system hangers. If the engine is moving, maybe a part of the exhaust is comming in contact with the under-body.
Then again, maybe there is something amiss in the steering / suspension (a loose control arm or shock or something).
Hard to say.
even from 99 sienna
I bought the carpet floor mats option..nothing special here..
Today I noticed that the carpet mat for the 3rd row seat seams to have been "sliced" to fit the width of the interior. It's not like it was torn by accident because if it were, it would be a bigger mess. This definitely looks like it was done on purpose. And it looks like what would've been the original carpeting, the coloring matches, the style matches, etc.. but it's weird that it was cut like that to fit around obstructions and to fit the width.
Anyone else have this same situation?
again, this is the carpet floor mat that was placed for the 3rd row seat.
When i shift the gear from Park to reverse, it makes little hard noise... its only happens when shifting from park to reverse... its any problem or its just common..
or i am being too sensitive :P
A smoker might have owned the Vehicle before you or mabey a dog owner.
It will smell worse after sitting awhile because of the stale air and then get a little better after you have run the air conditioner/cold air has less odor.
My 04' Highlander 4WD with 70k started exhibiting noise and vibration coming from the engine bay or from underneath the car. I can clearly distinguish the noise over the engine/road sound. The noise and vibration start at speeds of about 25Mph and they are most noticeable at about 60Mph. The vibration frequency and noise pitch are speed related. They do not change when I put the engine into neutral, or shift to lower gears. They both go away when the car turns left, even slightly, for example during lane changes.
I believe that this noise is the symptom a problem with the front differential. Does any one know what is the cost of replacement of the front differential/central transfer case on a HL?
Thanks,
P.
Given the problem surfaced a few months after ownership it's possible it's a new problem. If this began coincidental with using the AC in the summer then perhaps the plastic drain tube that normally drains the condensation to the ground outside the vehicle has somehow gotten tucked inside the vehicle and is draining onto the floorboard under the carpet.
I asked the dealer to have it inspected by Toyota and the result came pointing to Rear Wheel Bearing. It was changed, on their expense so I really don't know how much it'd cost.
Hope this helps.