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That is true. I know I sound like a Toyota salesman, but the price is a bargain, particularly compared to what car manufacturers charge for service manuals. This site is a virtual gold mine of technical information, descriptions of features, technicians training manuals, and theory of operation, for all current Toyota and Lexus models.
I opted for the 30 day subscription, and found it well worth the $50 cost. I am used to paying more than $50 just for a wiring diagrams manual. I downloaded more than 2000 pages of PDF files, and will be reading them for many months to come.
Forum contributors should feel free to ask me to look up answers to specific questions. Private messages can be sent to 'n0v8or at cox dot net' (substitute "@ and .", and eliminate the spaces and quote marks; I wrote it this way to confuse the spamming programs).
The training material for the Prius models is especially interesting.
"Sept. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Volkswagen AG, whose earnings have fallen for three years in a row, plans to introduce five new models at the Frankfurt International Motor Show this week, adding to global overcapacity that's eroding carmakers' profits. ... Volkswagen is operating its Western European factories at 73 percent of capacity. DaimlerChrysler's Mercedes plants in the region, including Smart, are operating at 84 percent. General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. this year have reduced or announced plans to cut North American production in each of the first three quarters. Ford was producing at 86 percent of its plant capacity in North America while GM was last at 85 percent. Toyota Motor Corp. stood at 107 percent. To step up production when demand is strong for models, such as Toyota's Avalon sedan, factories add night or weekend shifts and move past the 100 percent mark."
link title
Building Avalons at such high rate may perhaps account for the occasional defects that owners have reported, but it certainly should be something to keep in mind by anybody considering to buy an Auchie over an Avy.
Best wishes,
havalongavalon
Mike
" I did not need a promo code. I called 1-800-967-2346 and told them I wanted to activate a new radio. I then told him it was on a new toyota and the dealer told me that I would get free activation and a couple of free months service as a trial. The phone rep typed on the keyboard for a few seconds and said "yep, new toyota gets free activation and 3 free months" and took my name and address and radio code. He did not ask me for a credit card and said I would be notified before the end on my 3 months about how to continue service. "
http://www.xmradio.com/pdf/dealer_portal/toyota.pdf
Mike
I consider it Toyota's responsibility to ensure customers are given the promotion code. There should have been a nice "promo card" provided to salesman, to hand to you at delivery, on which would be printed the XM activition instructions and code.
The Car – 2005 Limited with all factory options. I have used 87 octane since I got the car in April. Before our trip, at 2,500 miles, I had the oil changed to Mobil 1 synthetic. Tire pressure was 33-34 pounds in each tire. Two adults traveled along with lots of luggage.
The Engine – flawless. Smooth and powerful.
The Transmission – I have previously posted (#5377) my experience with the transmission hesitation at low speed. While using the Laser Cruise Control, the transmission dropped into a lower gear when I drove over my first 2 interstate overpasses in Florida. After that, the problem did not repeat with other overpasses. Perhaps the transmission “learned.” When we reached the hills of Virginia the transmission, on a couple of occasions, did downshift while going up hill. Given the number of hills in Virginia, downshifting only a few times wasn’t that annoying.
The Laser Cruise Control – My first experience with this type of cruise control and I would definitely buy it again. It worked so smooth that I would find myself driving slower than planned for miles before I realized that the cruise had slowed down to adapt to the car in front of me. What’s not so smooth is the 5-mile increments that the LCC uses when you want to speed up. The car would downshift every time I wanted to increase my speed using the LCC stalk. With my previous Camry the old fashioned cruise control would change in 1-2 mile per hour increments when you used the CC stalk to speed up or slow down. Moreover, using the LCC, if the overall traffic slowed us to 60 from our CC setting of 68 and then traffic cleared, my car would downshift and accelerate like a dragster to get us back to the cruise control speed of 68.
The Gas Mileage – Highway mileage was 31.3, 32.2, and 31.8. I noticed that the computer screen “cruise range” increased after each tankful. The highest reading was 402 miles. Glancing at the MPG reading occasionally, I noticed the highest individual reading was 34.2. The LCC on this trip was generally set to 68 mph and the AC was on much of the time. There were occasional excursions under 68 mph and up to 75-80 mph when being chased by trucks and other heavy traffic.
The Navigation System – This is my first experience with such a system and I would buy it again. Very useful getting around locally and POIs for rest areas, restaurants, etc. also very useful. With wife as co-pilot it is a disadvantage to have to stop in order to put in a destination.
Some Comments From Others – From a Walmart employee collecting carts in their parking lot, “Hey Man, sharp car!” From a passenger in the rear seat with 2 other adults, “Gee, you have more room in your back seat than I have in my whole car!”
Rewop
Also, Toyota could make it easier by not requiring you to have a special code. All you should need is a serial number and/or VIN number etc. so they can verify that the free activation and trial service hasn't already been used.
You can always blast them on the post sale survey.
I think you get free trial of the service regardless of the promotion, but otherwise it is only random rotating channels free instead of all channels free with the promotion.
Thanks
The trip was a little over 2000 miles ( with some city driving in Oregon)...Averaged
28.6 actual with the gallons (87 octane) used divided into mileage....This is at mostly 79-81 mph on my cruise control...I'm a leadfoot! and I never turn the air off...
Found this to be very impressive...
I only get around 17.5 around town but I have a 1300 foot climb everyday on the way home...And I have never found myself holding back on the gas...Always over the speed limit!
Love this car and I drove a 96 lexus 400 and a 2002 acura 3.5rl before this.
for corrective procedures.
It only lists the Solara and Camry as applicable 2005 models, but the Toyota Tech training
web site indicates it applies to 2004 and 2005 Avalon as well.
The information is well organized, with a search aid for navigation, though typical document sizes are smaller than optimal for downloading. For example, the "brakes" chapter of the repair manual is 51 pages in length, but divided into 36 separate files, by specific repair topic (caliper, pads, rotors, etc). Many are only a single page. I reassembled them into a single "brakes" document after downloading,
The overall organization is optimized for those with permanent subscriptions who will use the documents "live" as needed, rather than download. Small files with numerous hyperlinks make information navigation fast for a Technician. These hyperlinks no longer work once the documents are downloaded, but the documents provide the chapter number and page so you can find the referenced section yourself.
It takes about 10-15 minutes to become accustomed to the site and learn how to search and download files quickly and methodically.
It took me ~6 hours (via cable modem) total over a two week period to download the 2000-or-so pages devoted to the '05 Avalon, including Technicians training lessons, and Shockwave training movies. I ended up with 50 folders, 850 PDF files, for a grand total of 116MB. I probably could have done it in one marathon night session, but it would be tiring.
The overall wiring diagram is a single 61-page, 1.07MB file. There are separate, more detailed, full color schematics for every Avalon function (77 of them, ~5.5MB total).
All files except the movies are PDF.
But on the Toyota Site is is not an available option in "Configure my toyota"
Has anyone seen this option on an XL? How about without a Moonroof and this option? Where?
My acoustic noise reducing windshield got a chip on my first significant road trip, and I only remember one minor tick from something off of the road.
Thanks,
Bill
I just Googled "park pilot" and from the description in
link title
it appears to be a basically similar system to Awell's, although clunkier looking. Same principle.
Dealers install comparable ultrasonic sensor systems, if this route is your best option. Before I installed the Awell system I had a quote from my Toyota dealer to install the system that they install in Siennas. I don't recall being told a brand name but the functionality was similar. It would have cost me about 5 times what the Awell sold for.
havalongavalon
Mackabee
The TSB is in the form of “action-result-consequential action” flowcharts, and several pages in length, so I will attempt to simplify/paraphrase here:
The first step is to check tire pressures, alignment, left/right vehicle height, and test for brake drag. Remedy any problems found. Assuming all these are OK, and pull/drift still exists, go to (2).
(2) Switch the left and front wheel/tires to see if the pull gets better, worse, or changes from right to left (or vice-versa). If the pull becomes stronger, remove one front tire from its wheel, reverse it and remount, otherwise go to (3). If pull/drift still exists after reversing a tire per the flowchart, go to (3).
(3) Adjust the suspension to introduce differential camber (1 degree maximum) between the two sides. Do not exceed the allowed camber adjustment range. If pull/drift is not corrected, go to (4).
(4) Remove and disassemble the front strut assemblies and rotate the left and right springs and spring seats in the same direction (depends on if the pull is left or right), then assemble and re-install. There are marks on the seats for guidance. The TSB has 2 pages that show how to perform this step. Replace the springs if the pull/drift still exists.
See previous messages #8626, #8648, and #8655 for a description.
When searching the TSB section on this site, select 2005 Avalon first, otherwise the returned list will be long and include TSBs unrelated to this model.
The last time I ran this search, 22 TSBs were listed.
The content of this TSB is essentially identical to similar pulll/drift troubleshooting procedures described in the Suspension chapter of the 05 Avalon repair manual. Only step (4) is new.
This dealer response doesn't make any sense and I would not accept it. When a dealer installs an accessory for a high price, they generally provide a certain guarantee on the device, their installation and its long-term functionality.
Can you hear the buzzer when you stand behind the car with the trunk open? If not, the system is not working. If you can hear it, but not from inside the cabin, then they installed the buzzer in a poor location.
I suggest that you ask the dealer where exactly did they place the buzzer. There are some good and some not so good places. Search this discussion for early posts by johni and havalongavalon discussing two alternative buzzer locations inside the trunk under the rear shelf. I posted photos at the time showing a good location near a rectangular hole, from which sounds carries well into the cabin. More recently n0v8or installed his buzzer on the door pillar as I recall, close to his left ear. For the price you paid, your dealer should be willing to move the buzzer to a better location so that the sound can be easily heard.
Good luck!
havalongavalon
Regards,
Tony
Sorry to hear. I agree that since it was Awell's omission, they should pay for return shipping of the faulty unit. I didn't have any issues with Awell, on the contrary I was impressed by their effort at scheduling a reasonably priced international shipper. Cwell Leung provided helpful support by email, perhaps you could contact him at marketdivision@awellmarket.com.
Best wishes,
havalongavalon
havalongavalon
Am I the only one who finds the road noise in these cars to be terrible and far more than the previous 2000 year series? I have set the tires to the correct 32 lbs (cold) but the road noise is bad. They came with 40psi (why) ?
Any suggestions? Between the front seats and the road noise I am sorry I bought this car.
Thanks for any comments
Thanks
Ron
For the record, I owned a 2001 Avalon XLS before this, and I find the road noise to be very acceptable.
I initially thought the 2005 Limited seats were a bit less comfortable than the 2000 seats. I have since taken the new one on very long road trips (700 miles in one day), and the seat comfort was never an issue. In fact, the new seat is probably a bit more supportive and comfortable for an all day drive.
Max
The problem is that there are very few manufacturers who make a tire in the stock size of 215/55-V17.
I replaced my tires with Bridgestone Turanza LSV in 225/55-V17 and they are VERY quiet. The only downside is that the 225 tire is a little larger in diameter than the OEM, and the spare does not fit in the trunkwell when fully inflated, so I keep a portable inflator with me. Your may want to keep one Michelin as the spare. Discount Tire will give you a partial credit on your Michelins toward something else. If you change tires you must do a balance using the Hunter 9700 Road Force. Discount Tire were the only tire dealer who managed to balance my tires!!!! I recommend Discount.
If Discount don't have the Bridgestones, go to a corporate Bridgestone store and ask if they will give you the 4 for the price of 3 deal. They were running this promo a while back, and after they install them, if they are not balanced, take them to Discount to balance using the Hunter 9700. Bridgestone couldn't balance mine after 3 attempts...
I have Bridgestone Turanza LSH on my 2002 Avalon (quiet), and Turanza LST on my wide's Sienna (quiet) and I had the Turanza Revo Z's on my old LS400. Now my new Avalon rides just as quietly as the 2002. The only quiet riding Bridgetones are the Turanza LS series.... forget about anything else they make. Check out the Turanza LS reviews on http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires.jsp?tireMake=Bridgestone&tireModel=Turanza+LS-V
A 235/50 size tire would have been closer to the original size and would fit into the trunk well. The down side is it appears to only be available in 'Z' rating (LSZ) and is $50 per tire more.