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The Matrix is starting to look awfull in comparison to the newly styled cars.
http://www.scion.com/drive/drive_xa_photos.html
1. The "rear brake tube freezing" problem did not include my Echo since the newer parts that solve the problem were already included during manufacturing. No charge.
2. The door lock pulls were rattling. New ones seem thicker and, so far, no more rattling. No charge.
3. "Check Engine" light came on. I thought it was because of the gas cap not being tight enough but the reason was because of carbon buildup (code 51). Mechanic cleaned top on engine and cleared the codes. Service provider said it was not under warranty so charged $60 labor plus $20 for the cleaner plus tax. Service provider was very nice but told me to use octane 87 and not 89 or 90. Owner's manual reads "select octane rating 87 or higher." I plan to call Toyota customer service about it.
I think the dealer does have grounds for the clean up charge since the Echo engine was not designed for the higher octane.
http://theserviceadvisor.com/octane.htm
How about going to the LA AutoShow, checking it out and reporting back to us?
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/030102/lath034_1.html
Maybe someone else can answer?
Don Gillespie
Nashville TN
I had the service coordinator show me the mystery cabin air filter.
If you remove the glove box by squeezing its sides, look for a white plastic panel with tabs on each side behind the glove box. Pull the filter out by the tabs. He said it should be replaced every 18 months if it is humid or dusty where you drive. Since its neither of those here in San Francisco, I'm not going to worry, besides it costs $31.14!
The 89 octane actually lowers my mpg as well.
As far as carbon build-up...I don't know. I've used 89 octane in my previous car with no ill effect and three motorcycles ran on Premium when only 87 was req'd. The cylinder heads in those motyorcycles were very clean as were the exhaust outlets.
I plan to keep this car as long as possible. At this point, would it make any sense to flush the oil and move to synthetic oil? If so, is one brand better than another?
Thanks for any insights.
There is absolutely NO advantage to switching to synthetic oil, it will only be more expensive. Synthetic oil will only help your car start in really (0 degrees F or lower) temperatures. You should continue following the maintainence schedule and use regular oil. I realize you are concerned about keeping your car in as good a shape as possible, but synthetic oil IS NO BETTER THAN REGULAR OIL for this purpose. It only works better in extreme conditions.
WARNING:there are lots of things to learn.
http://theoildrop.server101.com/cgi/ultimatebb.cgi
Its something you can do yourself.
My engine idles with a bit more noise than when new and I had a creaking sound from the back-the latch on the seatbacks needed oiling. Other than that, it's holding up fairly well.
If anyone is planning on extended highway driving, I highly recommend using a bra as the design of the front end takes a beating-the nose is fairly blunt and seems to get more stone damage than other cars I've owned. I went through some bad windstorms in the desert and have to have my hood and front bumper repainted.
I plan on upgrading my shocks for something firmer at 50k. Any suggestions out there?
Unfortunately I have no idea where to get different things like shocks for the ECHO. They (the shocks) are pretty small though.
It's been that way for quite some time. I'm surprised to hear that your 1990 Riviera does need it.
I guess they have a pollen filter as available or standard equipment on the Yaris? I would think that Toyota would mention at least the availability of pollen filter on the a/c. In a polluted area like LA, it comes in very handy.
I forgot what number post mentioned the price, etc. but I wonder if this was a Canadian model?
I am getting one sent by a friend of mine in Germany and will let you guys (and gals) know how it fits and works. It's an expensive part which should last for 1 year. If anybody comes up with a supplier for less $$$ I sure would like to know.