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Thanks
There are a few C-best options that you can have the dealer set to alleviate this.
AND LET THE HEATING SYSTEM DO ITS THING. HAVE FOUND NO
PROBLEMS DOING THIS. IN THE PAST WITH PREVIOUS TOYOTAS
WE HAVE OWNED, THE AC ON WHEN FOGGING HAS OCCURED HAS HELPED BUT I CERTAINLY WOULD NOT RUN IT AT ALL TIMES.SOMETIMES
ITS HARD TO FIGURE OUT THE LOGIC.
Thanks
They have been very good as we have lots of bad New England winters up here.
V/R
Newcarbuyer7
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper
My comparison was a 2006 Toyota Hybrid which we also loved with excellent mileage and again the power. However the 2008 is light years ahead of the 2006 and even bigger.
Hope this has been helpful.
I have always had Ford pickup trucks, and now i don't really need a truck so I had my mind set on the Highlander. I did my homework reviewing Consumer Reports and test drove the Sport and the Limited. My final decision was the Limited 4x4 with all the options minus the rear DVD and the navigational system. I bought it in Sept of 07 and to date I am totally satisfied with its performance.
Is it all-wheel or 4-wheel drive?
TC, Traction Control, is using to provide "virtual" LSD capability at the normally open center diff'l and possibly the rear diff'l, but probably not at the front. Any wheel that breaks traction and spins is braked in order to sustain a high level of engine torque for distribution to the wheels with traction. At the same time the braking is used the engine will be severely dethrottled to prevent brake pad and rotor over-heating.
Basically you have a "let's pretend" AWD vehicle.
It
Thanks.
Thanks,
Vince
See pics on my profile:
http://www.carspace.com/denverbrian
...or over at the Toyota Nation website:
http://www.toyotanation.com/forum
Over the holidays, I took it up a forest service road in my home town with 6" of fresh snow on the ground... Its a loose dirt/rock road at about a 25% grade... went up with ease and the ride down w/ DAC was interesting (but safe) if nothing else.
It's very intense when it starts beeping at you while your sliding sideways [eh em, on purpose] through a back-road intersection while it does it thing to straighten you out...
Its not a trail truck, but seems like it will handle almost anything most drivers will encounter.
We have a 4 year old and a 6 mo. old and put them on the sides in the second row which is working well. My older daughter still uses a Britax child seat with anchors, while my younger daughter uses a Graco base that the car seat latches into. We still have room to get adults to get in the 3rd row although it's a bit of a squeeze to get by the pass through. You can use this option if you ever try doing something really crazy like having a second kid.
We have the Limited and have been very happy. I'm sensitive to mileage and for a car this size it's better than most (20-21 in 2/3 highway). The tradeoff is the third row vs. storage. When 3rd row up, very little storage is left, e.g., can't fit our standard stroller back there. However, I like the idea of having a 3rd row when needed. Hope that helps.
Thanks,
Thanks.
http://www.getagauge.com/accessories.cfm
Next time you are at the dealer (oil change or whatever), have them check the pressure in the spare. If you get a flat in the mean time, make the swap but also make sure your very next stop is a gas station to check the air....
Hope this helps. Agree that this is a horrid design. The valve stem extension is an excellent idea !!
Toyota does likely use the technique you described at the front and rear differentials but lots of companies do that (including Audi and Mercedes).
Audi, on their torsen based quattro cars, does not lower engine power if the brakes engage. I don't know about Toyota in this case.
We only have about 500 miles on our Highlander Sport but I've taken it in some deep snow and it did very well. I'm used to Audis and Subarus with snow tires and this was at least as good.
My primary reason for not getting another Lexus is that I don't like many features of their larger SUVs and the RX is only five passenger. We get lots of visitors who stay with us and it's inconvenient not having the extra passenger space.
Anyone care to put in their two cents on why I should finally get off the dime and buy a new HL or perhaps wait for the Pilot. (If five people put in their two cents, I won't have any excuse for not getting off the dime ;-)
Thanks,
Bob
I just traded-in a 2006 HL Limited hybrid (great car) for the '08 HL Sport. Honestly I think the new car is killer but I miss the gas mileage of the hybrid. Vitrually all my miles are around town and my recent mileage was 11.9 MPG. That sucks. Fortunately I only drive about 5 miles a day so gas mileage isn't that critical for me - I just don't burn that much gas. Nevertheless it still stings a bit. Toyota says it has to do with the mixed fuel for winter. Probably true - we also have a '07 Prius and its mileage has also tanked this winter. (FYI a recent rule change required car makers to be more accurate in regards to the "posted mileage," that's a laugh. It's really diapointing.) As for waiting for the '09 Honda... I looked at the Pilot as well. Got to love the 8 passenger capacity. That said, I've never been to impressed with the Pilot design. They're to utilitarian. And the interior looks cheap. It kinda has a Hummer thing going - interior for the manly man. Great if you're 16. They simply don't have the same design bazazz as the HL. Maybe that will change with the '09 but I wouldn't hold my breath. Hope that helps.
Lake
On the plus side, 1) it was better finding out that the spare was low when I didn't need to use it, versus getting stuck with a flat spare; and 2) it forced me to practice lowering the spare, so if I ever do need to use it, I'll have no problem knowing exactly what to do.
My spare has gone low only once in over three years, so it's not a big inconvenience for me.
2. The "seat belt not fastened" beep is driving me nuts. Look, I am not an idiot, I wear my seat belt all the time (when on the road). I know when the belt is on or not, and if I should be asleep and forget, there's a big red light flashing at me!!! None of my other Toyota's had this beep. My driveway is over 300' long, every night when I return home I pull in to the bottom of the driveway and check my mailbox. Then I get to listen to the truck serenade me all the way into the garage. I also use the utility side of this vehicle to tow a trailer... sometimes requiring a lot of maneuvering in very tight places, the "beep---beep---beep---beep-beep-beep" is sooooo distracting!! Anyone know a way to disable just the drivers seat belt 'beep' without having to belt up?
3. The interior plastic seems to scratch very easily. After 8 years of driving the same car and not having a scratch in it, after just 3 months I've lost count. Most of them are on the interior door panels (I'm not even counting the ones in the rear cargo area - which I expected to have anyway). I should mention, there's never been a kid in this car !
Gas Mileage:
E10 mixed: 19-20 MPG
E10 highway: 22 MPG
E10 towing (mixed): 10-13 MPG
Pure Gasoline highway: 24.5-26 MPG (no ethanol)
Too bad I can only get E10 in the county where I live... I still think the shift points are set wrong (too aggressive), but have basically accepted it.
Otherwise, I am very, very happy with my 08 HL Limited.
While the new Pilot design might well have improved quality and a less utilitarian design, it's probably reasonable to think that Honda won't significantly change the focus on an SUV that's had strong sales. I probably should spend more time looking at the 2008 to see how objectionable it looks to me. Appearance isn't at the top of my wish-list but I don't want a car that I or others will regard as butt-ugly!
Bob
For all other times the '01 AWD RX300 is just perfect. Well, maybe perfect is just a tad too strong.
Should anyone wish to take them to court for fraudulent advertising all the evidence you would need can be had at techinfo.toyota.com
If you don't absolutely need to buy now, I would definitely wait and see what Honda has up its sleeve. Of course, there will probably be a price premium involved in being an early purchaser of the new Pilot because it will likely fetch near-MSRP for a while, vs. the discounting already occurring with Highlander.
You're correct, I meant reformulated fuel. I'm in OR and I don't even know for sure if we're using it up here. I just took their word for it. Now you got me thinking. But the low mileage is disappointing. I'm hoping it will improve once the engine breaks-in (presently at about 600). Other than the mileage, I really like the car. It took a while for the design to grow on me but now I can't take my eyes off it (I think it's partly the color - Iced Amethyst Mica - looks like something Big Daddy Ed Roth would have made). That said, I must be getting old, I never thought I would be diggin a SUV. Amoung the long-term cars I drove a '62 Volvo P1800 for 16 years and a '84 300ZX for 10.
Lake
forgot to mention, the highlander hybrid takes regular octane gas, the lexus premium. so off the top you save 15-20 cents per gallon.
http://www.vibratesoftware.com/html_help/html/Toyota/Toyota_Transfer_Units.htm
The Highlader does not use the brakes to transfer torque between the front and rear axles like the Mercedes 4-matic system does.
MF2A ->Viscous Coupling Location->None - Acts as a center differential
Look closely at the part labelled "transfer ring gear mounting case" at the very bottom of the page.
Now go to the same component assembly diagram/breakout for the 2003 RX300 and note that the very "same" component is labelled "Center Differential Control Coupling".
There are also differentials where viscous fluid is used as a lockup device. They allow enough speed differential on either side to not impede normal cornering but will start to lock up the front and rear axles if there is too much spin at one end or another. They have a steady state torque distribution of 50:50. This is what Subaru uses in many of their cars and this is also what the Highlander and RX350 have.
If you have an address in techinfo.toyota.com or some other info that shows the Highlander having a totally open center differential, I'd like to see it. I've seen nothing that says the brakes are used to distribute torque fore and aft. Further, having actually driven it in some heavy snow, I noticed no bogging or slipping.
2004 Highlander New Car features, page 556
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4WD system.
1. General
* The 4WD model of the '04 Highlander has discontinued the viscous coupling in the center differential.
* This system, which has adopted front and center differentials with bevel gears, employs TRAC control in order to assure proper drive when a wheel slips, without the use of an LSD (Limited Slip Differential) mechanism in the center differential. Thus, a lightweight system that offers high level of driving stability and drivability. has been realized.
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The same page indicates the new transfer type as being an MF2A whereas the old one is a MF2AV
You were basically correct, the RX330, RX350, the HL, and the Sienna all share the exact same AWD drive train.
If you look at the RX350 transfer case component diagram/layout you will note that it also does not include a VC.
Or go to techinfo.toyota.com and look up the 2004 RX330.
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CH-36 CHASSIS ---- 4WD SYSTEM
4WD SYSTEM
# DESCRIPTION
* The 4WD model of the '04 RX330 has adopted a full-time 4WD system that constantly distributes torque at a ratio of 50:50 to the front and rear axles.
* This system, which has adopted front and center differentials with bevel gears, employs TRAC control in order to ensure the proper drive when a wheel slips,.....
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Sometimes things are NEVER as they at first seem.