Get your windows tinted and your heat problem will disappear. Because of the way with windows are slanted, the Avalon will pick up a lot of heat from the sun and there is no way to prevent it other than tinting your windows.
On dual climate systems, I'm not sure what controls the temp in the rear ducts. I got my windows tinted on my grey pearl Limited and it not only looks better, it does prevent the inside from getting so hot. Remember those times when you're rolling down the interstate and the sun hits your leg - and its a hot sun? Tinting the windows gets rid of all that. Its well worth the $150 or so you would spend to do this and many of the tinting specialists (at least mine) guarantee the tint for life.
Has anyone successfully added an auxiliary input for an mp3/wma player to a Limited w/NAV & 6 cd changer? If so, what did you buy and how did you connect it? All I'm interested in is an auxiliary input, not necessary to have steering wheel controls. I've searched this forum and haven't seen any successful posting re this.
Any news on the updated firmware? I'm looking to add the IPod as well. Do the text/name show up on your 7" display on the radio? Also, any good radar detectors? I'm looking at Bel 995 or Passport direct wire.
Not sure I understand what you're asking. When you run out of range of one FM station, does the XM automatically find another station or do you have to search for it and are you limited to a certain number of FM stations? Seems like you're mixing FM & XM - two different things, each having nothing to do with the other.
I would suggest you go to a Toyota dealer, look at an Avalon equipped with XM and ask how it works. If there is an aftermarket installation possibility for the dealer, it would seem to me they would bend over backwards to explain it all to you. While the Roady2 is a good unit, it is aftermarket and is pretty much apples & oranges to the integrated unit for the JBL system. zekeman1
Does anybody have a problem hearing the directional signals? Too often I'm driving along and see they haven't gone off when I've turned. I can hear them when I'm stopped , but not with the road noise. Don't have this problem in our other car. Love some feedback. Thanks.
I agree with you. The direction signal indicator is very quiet. But I do like it this way since it is not irritating when they are on and I am stopped at a traffic light.....
The simple solution for Toyota to solve this issue would be for the volume of the signal indicator to be variable based on speed and length of time they are on. If it can be done with radio volume, it could be done with signal indicators. They could be quiet at under 5mph, louder at higher speeds and get louder and louder if they are still on after travelling 1000 feet.
That would be a simple solution! BUT - I can see it now, it would drive many people crazy! Remember the seatbelt chime issue and how to defeat it which was discussed endlessly or having to push "OK" on the navigation system before it comes on?
Wow, I can see the discussion(s) loud turn signals would generate on this board zekeman1
Has anyone out there put the Wooden Shift Knob from the Limited on their XLS. I'd like to buy one and do that if it's not a hassle.
Also, My previous car (04 Maxima SL) had extenders on the Sun Visors, plus a small 2nd sun visor on each side so you could block the sun from both the front and side window at the same time. My new XLS doesn't have that sorely missed feature. Can I order a set of Toyota visors (even if they are for another Toyota model and install those? Thanks, Clay
In my Avvy I found that I could position the rear view mirror higher on the pivot that mounts it to the window (but it may be different as I am up in Canada) and it would block the sun out. Also about your shift knob you should be able to change it, as in Canada our XLS comes with the Ltd Wooden steering wheel and shift knob. Hope that helps.
Go to OriginalToyotaParts.com, select your year of avy under body parts look up and search for term "shift knob". It will let you see the different leather color choices and with or without wood. Looks like 96.18 USD for the part /w wood and leather.
I just drove from Yuma, Arizona to Salt Lake City and back. I placed the XM antenna at the front of the dash, and later as far aft as possible on deck under the rear window. It worked flawlessly in both cases.
I have complained to Toyota about the problem on the last three of their cars that I owned. They could care less.
I would like to find an after market device to deal with it.
It is a common problem that has been noted on various safety sites. Just take note of all of the cars with directionals flashing away. Many of the drivers are seniors, but not all.
I don't know if they have PEP BOYS stores near where you live but they sell the Stoners Invisible Glass cleaner for $2.49 a can (regular price)so that comes to $7.47 for 3 cans. I use this product along old cotton T-shirts to clean the windows and it works fine.
Is it me or am I not understanding this right? WHY would I want to hear my turn signals??? :confuse: I can see them flashing on the outside and inside. Maybe my music is too loud, but I would rather hear music than the turn signals (Use to drive me crazy when I was little and they seem so loud - ughhh!). Wouldn't seeing the turn signals flashing be good enough, after all you turned the signal on, so you know it's on. This is a nice car, but I see (IMO) there is always something that people are not happy about. My biggest concern is that it keeps running as smoothly as the day I drove it off the lot - NO problems so far. :shades: Happy Avy driving to all.
I purchased my 05 Avalon Limited in March but have only been driving it around town to the tune of 2500 miles until Christmas. I had some problems with the auto wipers but took the sensor apart myself and cleaned it and now they work correctly.
Over Christmas I took a trip from Seattle to Portland. Had the speedo pegged at 80 on the way down and got 29 MPG. Same on the way back and got 30 MPG. This car is quieter than my 01 Avalon, handles much better on the highway and is very comfortable and a pleasure to drive. The best milage in my 01 Avalon on the Seattle to Portland run was 27 MPG. BTW I'm getting about 18.5 MPG around town which includes many short trips of less than 2 miles and quite a few hills.
Turn signals should not be on long enough for them to drive you crazy. Turn signal noise makes you unhappy. There is always something that people are not happy about.
Many people do not notice the indicator flashing or hear them and end up driving miles with them on. If they got louder and louder the longer they were on while the car is in motion, people would hear them, get annoyed and then remember to turn them off.
I just don't think there should be sound on a turn signal! You should be able to see the flashers on the side mirrors. If we had sound coming from all corners of the car, then we wouldn't know what part of the car was singing, so what difference would it make. If the signals shouldn't be on long enough to drive you crazy, then you wouldn't have a need for the sound to increase over time would you? :surprise: To each his own. I'm just glad I don't hear something I should see anyway.
"Is it me or am I not understanding this right? WHY would I want to hear my turn signals???"
Well, some may wish to drive with the wheel tilted to such a degree that it obscures the flashing signals. So ibs1's concern of low volume signals is valid for those who prefer this driving position.
If your steering wheel is that far out of alignment you have a real problem. My '01 Buick puts a message in the dash message center and sounds an alarm after you've made a turn and the signal didn't cancel after about, IIRC, three minutes.
"If your steering wheel is that far out of alignment you have a real problem."
Huh? Who said anything about steering wheel alignment? I was referring to the "TILT" adjustment. You know; that little lever underneath the wheel that allows you to adjust the wheel up or down. Seriously though, the signal noise should be loud enough so that its annoyance factor would encourage driver to disengage it. I've witnessed too many, even non-geezers, driving with their signals flashing for long distances. A road hazard IMO.
I have an '06 XLS with 2000 miles on it, and over several fill ups, I've noticed a consistent difference (which seems to be increasing) in the displayed MPG on the blue screen and actual MPG computed manually. At this morning's fill up, the display indicated 27.4 mpg, manual calculations yielded 21.45 mpg.
That's the biggest difference yet, and the worst mpg I've seen since I bought the car. (And I very deliberately avoided "lead foot syndrome" since the last fill up in an effort to boost displayed mpg. Display went up, actual went down.)
As far as I can tell, the odometer is OK - the trip odometer results of a R/T commute to work are identical to what my old Ford produces. I fill up the gas the same way each time . . .
two things - think you will find that your trip odometers are about 4% low, check it! Adding back the actual miles driven will make about a 1 mpg difference. - these new high speed auto shutoff gas pumps will cause a difference in how full the tank actually is. Typically, with my blue screen showing 0 DTE, my Av will take 16.5 gallons but the pump will shutoff in the high 14's, another 10% difference or so. To get a good check on mileage, I have to make sure the car is filled almost up the filler neck. I have found that the blue screen mpg is very close (also typically at 27 mpg (70% hwy)) adding back the 4% for the odometer error and by making sure that each tank starts with same amount of gas.
You are aware that the mpg resets every time you fill the tank, right?
So, if you go right from the gas station fillup to the highway, your mileage will show some great numbers for a while (26-32ish mpg). That is, until you get back to city driving. Then that "average mpg" for the whole tankful will drop and eventually level out to 20-24ish mpg.
I do about 21.5 mpg average per tankful based on my combination of city/highway driving. It sounds like you're doing about the same mix. Does that make sense or do I misunderstand your question?
Right, the MPG display resets every time I fill up, and over a short run, initial MPG can vary widely from the "average."
This morning, I had 269.6 miles on the trip odometer, and the car took 12.567 gallons - that works out to 21.45 mpg, and it's actually my worst tank so far. :confuse:
Though I didn't record the "range" data, IIRC it was showing 90-odd miles at the fillup, which is consistent with mileage in the low 20's, rather than the 27.4 on the display.
I try to be reasonably consistent when refilling the vehicle - first use the "high" flow setting at the pump until it clicks off, then the slowest setting until it clicks off, then I just round off the amount. I expect to see SOME variability between fillups, but a 6 mpg difference seems excessive - that's around a 22% discrepancy.
Odometer check exactly matched my old Ford . . . I'll have to try a run on I-35 and check the odometer against the mile markers.
(Btw, my driving is mostly what I'd term "hill country suburban" . . . about 3/4 on state highways where the limits are 50 - 65 MPH, but it's not flat around here and there are stoplights. The gas you save going downhill doesn't make up for the extra you burn going uphill.)
My Limited has the light colored imitation wood on the shifter knob side pointing to the rear. The side pointing to the dash is the light color leather. While this looks great, the leather gets grey dity pretty fast when you shift in the nanual mode often.With the grey interior probably no color change would be noticed.If they had made the whole knob, wood, it would look better and stay cleaner. angelo1
Am I too young to own and drive an Avalon? I am 30 and my wife likes to give me a hard time. She says there is something wrong if her dad wants my car. I own an 06 limited and love it. When I asked the dealer about this, they said the only unusual thing was alot pay cash and I didn't. And, I was on the young side. Just curious to get a survey on the age of whos driving the new style. I always look when I see one, but I stopped because they all seem like my grandparents age.
By the way, I love it! I would like to get a cold air intake though. K&N just added a filter for it.
if it makes you feel any better, my 25 year old son will be buying an Av shortly. He's a big guy, 6'5/260 loves the space, styling, and most of all - the power! Not what the Avalon used to be - would imagine the new Avalon can scare a few of the older gen. folks! The old Avs average age was about 67, the new one the age has certainly come down a few years - but market perceptions (Japanese Buick) hard to break. Just make sure the gendarmes aren't around when you blow your wife off the road...
I'm curious if there is a problem with the 2006 Avalon's getting the reported mileage. I have an 2006 XLS, and was concerned about the 18-22 mpg of mixed driving I did. I took a long trip - 2 tanks of gas - almost all highway - and the blue screen didn't ever show me above 26mpg.
Occassionally after a new tank of gas, for the first mile or so it shows 27 to 32 mgp and then it's back to the really low numbers.
I already had an O-2 sensor replaced within warranty but that didn't help.
I'm shopping a couple of cars, one being an '06 Avalon Touring with VSC. According to every web site I've looked at, the VSC package includes heated seats. But I just got an email from a dealer saying his Toyota Sourcebook shows that heated seats aren't available on the Touring version, and I don't remember seeing the controls for the seats on the Touring model I drove.
So, does anyone here have an '06 touring with VSC? Does it include heated seats?
I thought you had to show your AARP card to even sit in an Avalon at the dealer. The only real requirement in purchasing an Avalon or anything else is the ability to pay for it. Have 15 th. no trouble miles on my 05.
Agree - showed my AARP card and the dealer even agreed to let me drive it, by myself! Afterwards, wrote a check for it and out the door - (and I didn't even ask my wife if she thought I was old enough to get one!!!
I'm 44 and a young 44. I would never have gotten the old generation Avalons. They were too stuffy-looking to me. I did not hesitate to get this one. Why? It's cool, big, and fast. What more do we younger guys need?
Tell your wife to chill out. What matters is that YOU like it. Toyota deliberately designed these to attract the younger people like us.
Enjoy! Don't worry about what other people think. Have fun!
That dealer is full of it. The VSC package should include heater seats. His "sourcebook" is wrong, or he's just trying to dump a vehicle on you. Go to another dealer.
I drive an '06 Touring with VSC, and those seats are heated.
I think you'll find that there is a problem with all cars getting EPA reported mileage. I have no problem getting the highway mpg (at 55-65) but throw in a quantity of some real city driving at 17-18 and the average suffers. Not unique to the Avalon, other cars (esp. the hybrids) are off by as much as 40%
Any news on the updated firmware? I'm looking to add the IPod as well. Do the text/name show up on your 7" display on the radio? Also, any good radar detectors? I'm looking at Bel 995 or Passport direct wire.
Thanks for all the responses re directional signal-I really thought I was going deaf.(or becoming a "geezer") However, I am surprised when I enter the freeway with a fairly curved entrance the signal does not turn off. How is it determined and can one change the point that the signal turns off?
Anyone else having a problem with erractic behavior of the driver's side mirror, when using it with the memory seat presets? I have a mirror position assigned to memory seat A and a different position assigned to memory seat B. I've reset both positions to make sure they were still assigned.
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?
hi guys i remamber before a while somebody posted the way to fix the passenger seat rattle ! with pics ! can somebody find me that post ? would be appreciated
Comments
When you run out of range of one FM station, does the XM automatically find another station or do you have to search for it and are you limited to a certain number of FM stations? Seems like you're mixing FM & XM - two different things, each having nothing to do with the other.
I would suggest you go to a Toyota dealer, look at an Avalon equipped with XM and ask how it works. If there is an aftermarket installation possibility for the dealer, it would seem to me they would bend over backwards to explain it all to you. While the Roady2 is a good unit, it is aftermarket and is pretty much apples & oranges to the integrated unit for the JBL system.
zekeman1
If it can be done with radio volume, it could be done with signal indicators.
They could be quiet at under 5mph, louder at higher speeds and get louder and louder if they are still on after travelling 1000 feet.
Wow, I can see the discussion(s) loud turn signals would generate on this board
zekeman1
Also, My previous car (04 Maxima SL) had extenders on the Sun Visors, plus a small 2nd sun visor on each side so you
could block the sun from both the front and side window at the same time. My new XLS doesn't have that sorely missed feature. Can I order a set of Toyota visors (even if they are for another Toyota model and install those? Thanks, Clay
Ryan
zekeman1
Go to OriginalToyotaParts.com, select your year of avy under body parts look up and search for term "shift knob". It will let you see the different leather color choices and with or without wood. Looks like 96.18 USD for the part /w wood and leather.
Hope that helps,
Ryan
I would like to find an after market device to deal with it.
It is a common problem that has been noted on various safety sites. Just take note of all of the cars with directionals flashing away. Many of the drivers are seniors, but not all.
Seems like a lot of money for some towels...LOL.
Over Christmas I took a trip from Seattle to Portland. Had the speedo pegged at 80 on the way down and got 29 MPG. Same on the way back and got 30 MPG. This car is quieter than my 01 Avalon, handles much better on the highway and is very comfortable and a pleasure to drive. The best milage in my 01 Avalon on the Seattle to Portland run was 27 MPG. BTW I'm getting about 18.5 MPG around town which includes many short trips of less than 2 miles and quite a few hills.
Just one man's opinion.
Doug
Many people do not notice the indicator flashing or hear them and end up driving miles with them on.
If they got louder and louder the longer they were on while the car is in motion, people would hear them, get annoyed and then remember to turn them off.
Well, some may wish to drive with the wheel tilted to such a degree that it obscures the flashing signals. So ibs1's concern of low volume signals is valid for those who prefer this driving position.
Huh? Who said anything about steering wheel alignment? I was referring to the "TILT" adjustment. You know; that little lever underneath the wheel that allows you to adjust the wheel up or down. Seriously though, the signal noise should be loud enough so that its annoyance factor would encourage driver to disengage it. I've witnessed too many, even non-geezers, driving with their signals flashing for long distances. A road hazard IMO.
That's the biggest difference yet, and the worst mpg I've seen since I bought the car.
As far as I can tell, the odometer is OK - the trip odometer results of a R/T commute to work are identical to what my old Ford produces. I fill up the gas the same way each time . . .
Any ideas as to what's going on?
- think you will find that your trip odometers are about 4% low, check it! Adding back the actual miles driven will make about a 1 mpg difference.
- these new high speed auto shutoff gas pumps will cause a difference in how full the tank actually is. Typically, with my blue screen showing 0 DTE, my Av will take 16.5 gallons but the pump will shutoff in the high 14's, another 10% difference or so. To get a good check on mileage, I have to make sure the car is filled almost up the filler neck.
I have found that the blue screen mpg is very close (also typically at 27 mpg (70% hwy)) adding back the 4% for the odometer error and by making sure that each tank starts with same amount of gas.
You are aware that the mpg resets every time you fill the tank, right?
So, if you go right from the gas station fillup to the highway, your mileage will show some great numbers for a while (26-32ish mpg). That is, until you get back to city driving. Then that "average mpg" for the whole tankful will drop and eventually level out to 20-24ish mpg.
I do about 21.5 mpg average per tankful based on my combination of city/highway driving. It sounds like you're doing about the same mix. Does that make sense or do I misunderstand your question?
This morning, I had 269.6 miles on the trip odometer, and the car took 12.567 gallons - that works out to 21.45 mpg, and it's actually my worst tank so far. :confuse:
Though I didn't record the "range" data, IIRC it was showing 90-odd miles at the fillup, which is consistent with mileage in the low 20's, rather than the 27.4 on the display.
I try to be reasonably consistent when refilling the vehicle - first use the "high" flow setting at the pump until it clicks off, then the slowest setting until it clicks off, then I just round off the amount. I expect to see SOME variability between fillups, but a 6 mpg difference seems excessive - that's around a 22% discrepancy.
Odometer check exactly matched my old Ford . . . I'll have to try a run on I-35 and check the odometer against the mile markers.
(Btw, my driving is mostly what I'd term "hill country suburban" . . . about 3/4 on state highways where the limits are 50 - 65 MPH, but it's not flat around here and there are stoplights. The gas you save going downhill doesn't make up for the extra you burn going uphill.)
Just curious to get a survey on the age of whos driving the new style. I always look when I see one, but I stopped because they all seem like my grandparents age.
By the way, I love it! I would like to get a cold air intake though. K&N just added a filter for it.
Occassionally after a new tank of gas, for the first mile or so it shows 27 to 32 mgp and then it's back to the really low numbers.
I already had an O-2 sensor replaced within warranty but that didn't help.
??? Any thoughts ???
zekeman1
p.s. C'mon, please.
So, does anyone here have an '06 touring with VSC? Does it include heated seats?
Thanks much!
The only real requirement in purchasing an Avalon or anything else is the ability to pay for it.
Have 15 th. no trouble miles on my 05.
Mine is 100% trouble free - love it.
zekeman1
Tell your wife to chill out. What matters is that YOU like it. Toyota deliberately designed these to attract the younger people like us.
Enjoy! Don't worry about what other people think. Have fun!
I drive an '06 Touring with VSC, and those seats are heated.
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?
can somebody find me that post ? would be appreciated
thanks