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My two cents (no science behind it) you do not need synthetic as long as you change oil regularly or you do extended high speed driving with heavy loads.
Love the oil wars:
Engine Oil - A slippery subject Part 2
Synthetic motor oil
2008 Canadian Production
Almost all of these engine/transaxle delay/hesitation complaints, if not all of them, involve FWD or front biased AWD vehicles.
When you are coming to a stop, coasting down to a stop, if the roadbed happens to be quite slippery there is a real danger that almost any level of engine compression braking will/can result in complete loss of directional control.
What is, will be, the very first thing you would do, instinctively, if you felt the vehicle was not following the direction set by your stearing inputs?
Lift the accelerator pedal..QUICKLY...!!
If you are very near coming to a full and complete stop and the transaxle has already downshifted into 1st gear the level of engine compression braking could well be high enough to cause the front wheels/tires to completely break traction with the slippery roadbed.
I have been involved in moderately slippery roadbed conditions with a RWD wherein the ABS was so active the vehicle would literally not come to a complete stop. I'm quite sure that had it been a FWD with just a slight level of engine compression braking the ABS would have been ineffective, maybe totally so.
It is in these conditions that the AAA is currently recommending that drivers practice and learn to quickly shift a clutchless FWD vehicle's transaxle into neutral in order to increase the probability of maintaining directional control.
It is hard for me to believe that Toyota would go to these measures to increase the safety factor of their FWD and front biased AWD vehicles and then silently endure the adverse publicity without speaking up with an explanation.
So let's suppose that the insurance industry held a meeting with the automotive industry executives and told them that if they didn't in some way act to reduce or alleviate the number of accidents, injuries and deaths due to FWD engine braking they would go public and start charging a premium for policies involving operation of FWD and/or front biased AWD vehicles.
We all know that BA, Brake Assist, involves monitoring the rate at which the brake pedal is applied and ASSISTING the level of braking if the application rate indicates a PANIC stop.
So what if they are now also monitoring the RATE at which you lift the throttle and then quickly upshifting the transaxle accordingly. A simulation of the AAA recommendation.
And no individual company dare go public absent an agreement amongst all FWD manufacturers.
Look at Honda/Acura, the SH-AWD system specifically, who among us would have ever thought of that marque to the first to break ranks and begin the move away from FWD??
"A search of NHTSA records and interviews with Consumer Reports magazine also show owners of other car makes are suffering from the same hesitation problem, including BMW's 3 Series, Ford Explorers and Escapes, and Dodge Durango 4x4." (From the Post Gazette story JimD linked earlier today).
Interesting thread here (not aimed at you Wwest - you're already there :shades:) :
FWD, AWD, RWD and the Luxury Performance Sedans
Bob
------------------------------------------------------
Does your RAV4 have this hesitation issue?
Yes, I4, 2wd
9% [ 8 ]
No, I4, 2wd
5% [ 5 ]
Yes, I4, 4wd
22% [ 19 ]
No, I4, 4wd
14% [ 12 ]
Yes, V6, 2wd
3% [ 3 ]
No, V6, 2wd
10% [ 9 ]
Yes, V6, 4wd
11% [ 10 ]
No, V6, 4wd
21% [ 18 ]
I have one.....??
FWD or front biased AWD contitutes my "theory".
Not sure if it is in all regions but it is the NY area.
-juice
"I've had my RAV4 Limited V6 4X4 for two weeks now. It's silver with the cloth interior, moonroof, JBL system, tow package, and the accessory package (cargo mats, net). I absolutely love it!
Thanks to everyone on this forum who recommended Fitzmall. I first attempted to purchase my car through CarsDirect. My "salesman" told me that he placed an order for the car, but then I never heard from him again. By that time, the price on their site was no longer competitive. After that, I did the usual car dealer negotiating. I placed a deposit with a local dealer for the same package as above, but with the leather package and the heated seats. After four weeks of being promised that my car would definitely be in that weekend, the dealer finally admitted that he would have to place an order for the car.
In the meantime, I had continued my research online and was impressed with Fitzmall. They had the exact car I wanted listed on their site, but without the leather package. Since the leather package was a nice-to-have on my list, I was ready to buy! It turned out that particular one was presold, but they were able to locate another one for me within 10 days. Even though it was close to a 3 hour drive, it was worth it! The price was great, the service was friendly, and I couldn't be more pleased. I picked up the car with only 3 miles on it and took my time driving it home, with a huge smile on my face the whole time. This is Fitzmall in PA, and I worked with XXXXX. The whole process took less than two hours.
The cloth seats are great and I don't regret compromising on the leather package. My previous car didn't have the automatic climate control, so I'm enjoying that new feature, especially during this heat wave. My old car had zero cargo space, so my first trip to the grocery store was a real pleasure. I actually had enough room for the bags without having to pile them into the passenger seat!
I love the power and AUX ports in the center console for my iPod. In the morning, I just select a playlist and go. In my old car, I had the cassette adapter and power cords dangling from the dashboard, so I love how neatly everything is tucked away. The volume and selection controls on the steering wheel are very convenient.
The cupholders could be improved, of course. It's a small price to pay! I just ordered the mudguards, so I'll be installing them next week.
Thanks again for all of the great advice and valuable contributions all of you have made to this forum! It was very helpful to hear about your experiences. "
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TPMS
Yesterday morning, I drove 30 minutes to the dealer. The manager took a quick look under the dashboard (under the steering wheel). It looked like he was trying to locate something to press. He told me that they would have to re-program it and it would take a while. He then told me he was very sorry but that they were extremely busy and were short handed. They would not have time to look at it and I would have to come back. Needless to say, I was not a happy camper!
This evening, I talked to a neighbor who has a 2007 Camry (about 4 months old). She told me that her warning light has come on for the 2nd time. She bought her car at a dealer 2 hrs away. They had to re-program her car and said the spare tire caused the light to go on. She is driving back to the dealer tomorrow.
Hopefully when I bring the RAV back next week, the dealer will have time to look at it. I have also had a few "hesitation problems". I will ask about that as well.
For all vehicles there is a central marshalling yard for each region. For the RAV it's Port Newark for the Boston, NY and CAT regions. The vehicles may begin to arrive and wait there until just before the official launch date. It's up to the local stores to make sure that all the previous MY inventory is gone by the launch date of the new MY vehicles.
DESCRIPTION
 A direct-sensing type tire pressure warning system has been newly provided as standard equipment on the U.S.A. models.
 If the vehicle continues to be driven with one or more of the five tires inflated to a low tire pressure that
could cause problems in driving, this system will illuminate the tire pressure warning light to inform the
driver of the low tire pressure.
 Furthermore, this system directly senses the each tire pressure through a tire pressure warning valve and
transmitter that is attached to each wheel.
The remote works on RF, putting a rag over any sensor isn't going to tell you anything!!
http://www.edmunds.com/ownership/howto/articles/44921/page001.html
http://www.boatus.com/gov/suvs.htm
The available four-wheel-drive system operates in front-drive mode for optimum fuel-efficiency until a situation (such as quick acceleration from a stop or while driving on slippery roads) demands four-wheel drive, at which point up to 45 percent of the torque is transferred to the rear wheels. A "4WD Lock" switch allows one to manually select that maximum torque output to the rear wheels.
2006 Rav4
2006 Rav4 4WD System
:P
"....Use of winter tires on the front only can lead to excessive traction on the front vs the rear which can result in loss of direction control....."
Toyota 2007 RAV4 owners manual, page 408, right/third column...
"...Do not install snow/tire chains on the rear, ONLY on the front..."
No attempt to replicate exact phasing.
FWD and admittedly unsafe/hazardous to boot...!!
Nuff said...!!
http://www.crutchfield.com/S-u0HLYHM8bil/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=890&I=127SNI135&- search=ground+loop+isolator
From the people who have purchased this, it does work. and elimiated that noise. hope that helps..
Keep those RAV4s rolling.
The iPod will pause, and go to sleep, when the car is shut down. When i get back in the car, just a push or 2 of the play button on the iPod resumes the play right where it left off...