2012 avensis tourer upgrade ?

[giffardo]

Hi all,  

had my 1.8 avensis tourer for nearly 6 years now, its never missed a beat. never failed an MOT, NO issues.

just put 4 new brake pads on at cost of £150 and car only done 48k miles.  part of me wants something new, a new avensis tourer perhaps but they only come in petrol CVT now ?  a RAV 4 hybrid or older Lexus 450h maybe....part of me thinks just keep the thing running as its been ultra reliable!

one thing for sure though, never has a more reliable car than this toyota, I am very wary of moving away from the brand now.

[16_Auris_HSD]

One thing I've learnt during my car ownership journey is that newer isn't always better. Toyota are apparently on a bit of a cost cutting trip and one thing that suffers is the fit and finish. My 16 plate Auris has at least 4 different rattles which can only be explained by cost cutting. I test drove a 65 plate pre facelift Auris with higher mileage and it was solid as a rock. I also had a pleasure of driving 17 plate Avensis and it also rattled like crazy.

[Konrad C]

I just checked the latest Toyota site https://www.toyota.co.uk/new-cars/avensis/grade/EXC and manual tourer is listed. 
Build quality is important but reliability is even more.   

[Heidfirst]

Having recently bought a 17 plate Avensis Touring Sport 1.8 manual they are available.

& mine doesn't rattle like crazy - in fact it is quieter than the 12 plate that I had before (imo most people who have changed to the 15> facelift from earlier would say that it is a nicer car than before).

Having said that a 2012 1.8 manual with 48k should have years of life left in it.

[giffardo]

interesting that you think Toyota are cost cutting, I would have thought that quality was something that they could not skimp on, after all thats what they are known best for.

I see only one 1.8 manual available in UK on autotrader currenty so obviously very rare but good to know they are available.  I think I'll keep running current car until next summer at least.

[Willss]

As I've said before on here I looked for a while for a nearly new one and struggled so ended up buying new (1.8 manual tourer).  No rattles, really pleased with it.  MPG varies from 39-47 depending on type of driving..... hope to up this a bit as I get used to it/it gets used to me. 

You'd be surprised how much you can get off a new one if you ask - finance deposit contribution (then paid off finance so not paying their interest), loyalty bonus for trade in and my local dealership also matched the best online price I could find.  My new one cost less than a 8 month old used one would have (the only one I've seen since).  

I'd recommend the new version - however, in view of what you'd get for your current one and the life left in it (lots hopefully) I'd stick with that as well - perhaps invest a fraction of what you'd spend on the newer car on extending the warranty just in case as presumably that is about to/has just expired!

[Heidfirst]

7 hours ago, giffardo said:

I see only one 1.8 manual available in UK on autotrader currenty so obviously very rare but good to know they are available.  I think I'll keep running current car until next summer at least.

That had been my intention too until I became aware that AC had 5 pre-reg 1.8 man. TS available & knowing how rare these were & as the prices were good I jumped (all 5 sold within a few days) as I couldn't be sure that 1 would be available next year.

Having said that I suspect that Avensis production will end next year so there should be some very good deals for run out models ...

 

44 minutes ago, Willss said:

You'd be surprised how much you can get off a new one if you ask - finance deposit contribution (then paid off finance so not paying their interest), loyalty bonus for trade in and my local dealership also matched the best online price I could find.  My new one cost less than a 8 month old used one would have (the only one I've seen since).  

My 3 month old pre-reg with 27 miles on it (basically delivery) cost me £15,500 minus my trade-in (which I think eventually was a fair amount for the age/mileage/condition although they initially low-balled me). A good deal on a 3 year service plan (I know the dealership & am happy with their service dept.) also helped.

 

 

[giffardo]

There's a bunch of 1.8 CVTs with few thousand miles on for 15k now but no manuals yet.  I guess the avensis is not a popular car with the "in crowd" but taxi drivers know a good motor ;-)

[giffardo]

Also I read somewhere on piston heads the avensis will continue and is to get hybrid in next model 

[Heidfirst]

30 minutes ago, giffardo said:

There's a bunch of 1.8 CVTs with few thousand miles on for 15k now but no manuals yet.  I guess the avensis is not a popular car with the "in crowd" but taxi drivers know a good motor ;-)

HonestJohn reckons that the 1.8 CVT is the best version of the Avensis & having switched from a diesel to the petrol I can possibly understand why. The taxis are pretty much all diesels but yes, pretty popular with private hire cars etc. in the West of Scotland in the last few years - notably more so imo than the first few years of T27s.

 

27 minutes ago, giffardo said:

Also I read somewhere on piston heads the avensis will continue and is to get hybrid in next model 

I think not as is (although the name possibly may carry on?) that whole market sector is dying on it's feet - it is likely to be replaced by another SUV & the replacement almost certainly will have a hybrid option (hopefully with a larger than 1.8 ICE).

[Mr Wolf]

It seems that most of us are happy with our Avensis Tourers, more so if they are the petrol version. In buying them we obviously ignored the negative views of the motoring journalists. Most of them describe the Avensis as a dull drive, with forgettable styling, a dreary interior and rarely award more than 3 points out of 5. We know better. They don't realise that some people put more importance into the practicality and reliability of their vehicles and that their priorities in buying are value for money, spaciousness and refinement.

[Heidfirst]

difference between buying with your own money & having a company foot the bill perhaps ...? 

[Willss]

14 hours ago, Heidfirst said:

My 3 month old pre-reg with 27 miles on it (basically delivery) cost me £15,500 minus my trade-in (which I think eventually was a fair amount for the age/mileage/condition although they initially low-balled me). A good deal on a 3 year service plan (I know the dealership & am happy with their service dept.) also helped.

 

 

My new one (bus' ed' with met paint) cost just under £3k more than that by the time all the bits and pieces had been deducted.  I'd have jumped at a pre reg for that saving......... as long as they'd had a colour that I liked (well to be fair anything other than black or white).......  but I missed out on them!  That said I'm happy with my car and haven't paid silly amounts more . 

I spoke to someone who had bought one last year (a more senior person shall we say) and they had walked in and the dealership had offered them a £600 saving off list price and they'd rejected the finance deal etc so had paid about £23k for theirs.  Salesman must have rubbed his hands with glee.  That customer was also happy with their car and obviously I didn't say what mine had cost.

Interesting to see what happens with the Avensis next year.  My dealership said they'd not been told about a new version or if/when the current one would be discontinued.  They also said they often don't find out until a few weeks before the car is unavailable and that Toyota keep things close to their chest!

[giffardo]

I will try to get a test drive in a 1.8 CVT to see if I like it.  a lot of the things about my current 2012 avensis that annoy me have been improved in new one,  steeeing feel, old dash and orange instrument cluster, seat adjustment ratchet, more modern front end.  I certainy is a car that is overlooked by most, "its just a toyota" whereas the crowd think an Audi is better quality, its perceived quality   ;-)

[Morton54]

On ‎07‎.‎11‎.‎2017 at 9:34 PM, Mr Wolf said:

It seems that most of us are happy with our Avensis Tourers, more so if they are the petrol version. In buying them we obviously ignored the negative views of the motoring journalists. Most of them describe the Avensis as a dull drive, with forgettable styling, a dreary interior and rarely award more than 3 points out of 5. We know better. They don't realise that some people put more importance into the practicality and reliability of their vehicles and that their priorities in buying are value for money, spaciousness and refinement.

I guess I'm that type. Personally  I never understood what these journalists are talking about. I have tried some of these so-called premium cars and I must say it's not clear to me what they mean by dull vs exiting drive etc. I even was persuaded by my neighbour to buy one two years ago because as he said, passing 60, now is your last chance to own a real car. After driving it for 6-7 months I honestly realized that it really didn't justify the extra cost, insurance, service and gas. So I switched back to a used low milage CVT Tourer with a lot of money left over. I have no trouble admitting that certain car enthusiasts will disagree, but I really dont see the big difference.

[Willss]

4 hours ago, giffardo said:

I will try to get a test drive in a 1.8 CVT to see if I like it.  a lot of the things about my current 2012 avensis that annoy me have been improved in new one,  steeeing feel, old dash and orange instrument cluster, seat adjustment ratchet, more modern front end.  I certainy is a car that is overlooked by most, "its just a toyota" whereas the crowd think an Audi is better quality, its perceived quality   ;-)

Do seem to be a lot more nearly new autos available than manuals.  Apparently very reliable and very similar MPG to manual. 

My auris estate is the best car I've ever owned, great to drive, very economical and at 3.5yrs old (owned from new) so far very reliable.  Wasn't loved by anyone who didn't own one when I bought it a few years ago although there seems to be a bit more love for them now.

The Avensis is still very much out of favour by the masses but enjoyed by the majority who own them.  I prefer driving the auris if I'm in a hurry on rural roads but prefer the avensis if I'm on a long journey.  Avensis is more comfortable, far more gadgets/extras - different cars but both nice places to be. I'd buy either again.  Current Avensis in terms of spec' is outstanding.  I looked at the Passat which was actually cheaper to buy new but when I added the extras I wanted (not everything the avensis had but those I wanted) it was several thousand pounds more.