Auris 2.2 SR180 MPG & General Issues

[Infiniti]

Hello Everyone! I’m new to the forums and looking to buy an SR180. I’ve read around a few forums for them but many seem to be quite old! 
 

I’m wondering what issues/ concerns most owners/ ex-owners have come across when owning one. I’ve seen that MPG can be an issue, can this normally be fixed by a good EGR clean? 
Do places now offer remapping/ tuning/ chipping for them? Is it worthwhile and can anyone recommend any places around Nottinghamshire/ Yorkshire area? 
Really any issues or problems anyone has come across and I need to look out for before I waste a couple grand! 
 

Thank you! 

[Phil_1985]

Hi Kyle,

It would be good to know why you're after the SR180 - I can advise / give my point of view based on this. (E.g - it's performance? etc)

Thanks

[Infiniti]

1 hour ago, Phil_1985 said:

Hi Kyle,

It would be good to know why you're after the SR180 - I can advise / give my point of view based on this. (E.g - it's performance? etc)

Thanks

Hey Phil, I’ve had a mk1 Yaris for 3 years and loved everything about it really. I wanted a bigger, more powerful Yaris with more features and hopefully the same reliability and somewhat similar mpg while letting me have some fun with it. I hope that helps in you being able to advise me a bit? 
 

Thank you! Kyle

[Stivino]

I've got an Avensis T180.

The engine is as quiet as a mouse and has more torque than anything in its class.

[Phil_1985]

Hey Kyle,

Have you test drove one yet?

- The car doesn't feel as quick / nimble as the figures suggest - for a diesel, the torque curve is smooth. You won't get the same level of "throw you back into the seat" feeling like you do with VW group diesels. It's a personal preference thing I think.

- Partsking (on this forum) sells a good tuning kit (or did - I haven't owned my Auris for a few years now) - I had this - and it definitely increases hp and torque - and you can feel it!

- Remapping a Toyota diesel ECU is not easy. Anythings possible, but not many places offer remaps for the 180. (Unsure if things have changed in recent years)

- Being brutal - mainstream Toyota's aren't known to be exciting to drive. In my opinion, the 180 falls into this same category. It's ok - but for comparison - the following cars which I drove while I had the Auris 180 were more engaging and more fun to drive - 2010 Megane 1.5dCi / 2012 Ford S-Max 2.0TDCI (no joke - a 7 seater was more engaging to drive than my auris!)

- As above - the 180 has independent rear suspension vs the torsion beam on the standard models. My guess is that they did this to ensure the same level of stability / safety as the car is of higher power vs standard models. Personally, I do not think they did this to improve the 'fun factor' of driving it. 

- By the time I sold my Auris, I was getting 29mpg in the winter and 33mpg in the summer. The 180 is not known for it's fuel efficiency - do not expect good fuel economy from this car. 

- If you do get one, clean the EGR at least every 10k - and don't expect to see any improvement in mpg when you do! (I didn't)

If you want to know more, let me know!

Phil

[Phil_1985]

6 minutes ago, Stivino said:

I've got an Avensis T180.

The engine is as quiet as a mouse and has more torque than anything in its class.

I agree - the engine is very smooth and quiet.

 

It has bags of torque - but it's so smooth and you won't necessarily 'feel' it if you plant your right foot down (this is either a good or bad thing - depending on your preference)

[Infiniti]

24 minutes ago, Phil_1985 said:

Hey Kyle,

Have you test drove one yet?

- The car doesn't feel as quick / nimble as the figures suggest - for a diesel, the torque curve is smooth. You won't get the same level of "throw you back into the seat" feeling like you do with VW group diesels. It's a personal preference thing I think.

- Partsking (on this forum) sells a good tuning kit (or did - I haven't owned my Auris for a few years now) - I had this - and it definitely increases hp and torque - and you can feel it!

- Remapping a Toyota diesel ECU is not easy. Anythings possible, but not many places offer remaps for the 180. (Unsure if things have changed in recent years)

- Being brutal - mainstream Toyota's aren't known to be exciting to drive. In my opinion, the 180 falls into this same category. It's ok - but for comparison - the following cars which I drove while I had the Auris 180 were more engaging and more fun to drive - 2010 Megane 1.5dCi / 2012 Ford S-Max 2.0TDCI (no joke - a 7 seater was more engaging to drive than my auris!)

- As above - the 180 has independent rear suspension vs the torsion beam on the standard models. My guess is that they did this to ensure the same level of stability / safety as the car is of higher power vs standard models. Personally, I do not think they did this to improve the 'fun factor' of driving it. 

- By the time I sold my Auris, I was getting 29mpg in the winter and 33mpg in the summer. The 180 is not known for it's fuel efficiency - do not expect good fuel economy from this car. 

- If you do get one, clean the EGR at least every 10k - and don't expect to see any improvement in mpg when you do! (I didn't)

If you want to know more, let me know!

Phil

I haven’t yet test drove one, that’s Monday’s plan hopefully! 
I should have also probably added I’m still in the category of “young drivers” for insurance, so for the VW group of cars are way out of affordability for me :(. I had seen on other forums that remapping isn’t an easy thing for these, so a tuning box will be what I go with I think (When insurance won’t cost my life) so thank you for the recommendation! 
As for the Megane, I’ll definitely have a look at them! I have just always been a little weary of Renault’s reliability (Whereas from my experience Toyota has been incredible). 
 

Thank you for your advise, it’s greatly appreciated. I’ll definitely make sure you to ask you anything I find 🙂 

[Infiniti]

46 minutes ago, Stivino said:

I've got an Avensis T180.

The engine is as quiet as a mouse and has more torque than anything in its class.

 

38 minutes ago, Phil_1985 said:

I agree - the engine is very smooth and quiet.

 

It has bags of torque - but it's so smooth and you won't necessarily 'feel' it if you plant your right foot down (this is either a good or bad thing - depending on your preference)

Is there anything reliability wise that I need to look out for at certain mileages? Or anything that is prone to going wrong that either of you have experienced? 🙂 

[Stivino]

As long as the EGR valve is clean there won't be any drama.

Apart from a new water pump and EGR clean I've not had to touch it. 

It has a timing chain so no belt to worry about. 

And remember, it's the same engine as used in the Lexus.

[Infiniti]

1 minute ago, Stivino said:

As long as the EGR valve is clean there won't be any drama.

Apart from a new water pump and EGR clean I've not had to touch it. 

It has a timing chain so no belt to worry about. 

And remember, it's the same engine as used in the Lexus.

I’ve seen/ heard that the EGR’s are only meant to be a 30 minute job. May I ask what mpg you’re achieving too? 🙂 

[Stivino]

EGR is a piece of cake. 

My car is hardly ever out of the town and returns about 32mpg in town. Occasionally, it will do a motorway trip and the MPG is a lot higher.  I can give you accurate MPG figures for any type of journey at any time of the year as I have it all recorded. 

But, I didn't buy it for the economy, I couldn't give a toss about that.  

I should also have said that I don't spare the horses.

[Infiniti]

3 minutes ago, Stivino said:

EGR is a piece of cake. 

My car is hardly ever out of the town and returns about 32mpg in town. Occasionally, it will do a motorway trip and the MPG is a lot higher.  I can give you accurate MPG figures for any type of journey at any time of the year as I have it all recorded. 

But, I didn't buy it for the economy, I couldn't give a toss about that.  

I should also have said that I don't spare the horses.

I tend to like to harshly accelerate from roundabouts and such things. Half my time driving is around town doing 20-30-40mph, with the majority of my miles doing 50-60 on A roads and average speed checked roads really. 
 

I’m not hugely fussed for MPG, it just appears to be the main thing everyone comments about, and would like to know what I’m getting myself in for 😄 

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Hi.

If you need any help with insurance at all then please feel free to drop me a line.

Regards,

Dan.

[Infiniti]

18 minutes ago, DAN@ADRIAN FLUX said:

Hi.

If you need any help with insurance at all then please feel free to drop me a line.

Regards,

Dan.

My insurance runs out early September, for the time being I think I’ll have to change the car on my current policy. Unless you offer short-term insurance cover for someone under 21? Thank you 🙂 

[DAN@ADRIAN FLUX]

Quote

 

Hi again, I would say stick with the current provider until renewal as you will likely be earning valuable no claims bonus on this policy.  Let me know when you need cove in September and we can call you.

Thanks,

 

dan

[Infiniti]

On 7/17/2020 at 5:34 PM, Stivino said:

EGR is a piece of cake. 

My car is hardly ever out of the town and returns about 32mpg in town. Occasionally, it will do a motorway trip and the MPG is a lot higher.  I can give you accurate MPG figures for any type of journey at any time of the year as I have it all recorded. 

But, I didn't buy it for the economy, I couldn't give a toss about that.  

I should also have said that I don't spare the horses.

What sort of turbo lag do you experience? It seems to me that in first and second there is no power there until around 2000rpm? Is this normal?

[Stivino]

I don't have turbo lag.

It will pull in any gear from 1,400 or 1,500 revs but the pull is much stronger as it nears 2,000.

[Infiniti]

10 minutes ago, Stivino said:

I don't have turbo lag.

It will pull in any gear from 1,400 or 1,500 revs but the pull is much stronger as it nears 2,000.

Reckon a tank of V-power after an EGR clean should do the trick, as long as nothing greater is wrong?

[MagicBoy]

4 hours ago, Infiniti said:

What sort of turbo lag do you experience? It seems to me that in first and second there is no power there until around 2000rpm? Is this normal?

For a Turbo Diesel, yeah.  It's not lag, it's lack of boost pressure - needs enough flow through the exhaust to make the turbo spin. Lag would be when you change gear, it's doing 2000rpm+ and takes a fraction of a second to rebuild pressure.

Old school 90s ones like a Peugeot XUD the turbo comes in like a switch at 2200rpm and tails off after 3500rpm, later VW group PD lumps and the various common rails pick up boost by 1500rpm and really get into their stride by 1800-2000rpm. Give it a few weeks and your driving style will adjust.

[Infiniti]

45 minutes ago, MagicBoy said:

For a Turbo Diesel, yeah.  It's not lag, it's lack of boost pressure - needs enough flow through the exhaust to make the turbo spin. Lag would be when you change gear, it's doing 2000rpm+ and takes a fraction of a second to rebuild pressure.

Old school 90s ones like a Peugeot XUD the turbo comes in like a switch at 2200rpm and tails off after 3500rpm, later VW group PD lumps and the various common rails pick up boost by 1500rpm and really get into their stride by 1800-2000rpm. Give it a few weeks and your driving style will adjust.

I mean it feels like i'm pulling away in 3rd when driving in 1st or 2nd until the turbo kicks in, if this is normal it's absolutely fine, i just want to make sure that is the expected response.

[Phil_1985]

If it's your first diesel it's something you'll learn and adapt to very quickly. The first thought which comes into my head is the rolling slowly at a busy roundabout waiting for the gap to put your foot down to join the flow - if you're rolling quite slowly in second and put your foot down to pull out - there will be a delay which in the moment, will feel like forever and potentially be dangerous if caught out unexpectedly. When you experience this once, you'll not want a repeat and will quickly adjust!

With the 180 I'd say it's quite easy to adapt to as it's so smooth.