Lean Burn Or Vvt-i ?

[talldave]

I'm new to Toyota but am thinking of buying an Avensis (Auto). My Toyota dealer has a couple of possibilities: A 2 owner 1998/S 1.8 GS 5Dr Auto or a 1 owner 2001/Y 1.8 GS 5Dr Auto, both have done about 50,000. Prices are £3800 and £5500 respectively although I'd hope to knock them down a bit.

The question is - Is it worth paying more for the younger car? I know that they have different engines (e.g the VVTi doesn't have a cambelt) and that the newer one is the revised model - but is it much different?

Will the difference in engines make much difference?

I'd be interested to know the relative fuel consumption figures. I've seen 26mpg urban/44mpg extra urban/35mpg combined as the figures for the VVTi from the vca car fuel data website. I can't find figures for the older lean burn engine but have heard that you can get 35mpg urban and up to 45mpg extra urban.

What is the reality as far as fuel consumption- particularly with an automatic?

Anything else I should know about ?

I only do about 5000 miles a year and would plan to maintain the car myself and keep it for 10-15 years (maybe longer!)

Thanks in advance.

[jamesholden]

The VVTi's are a little bit quicker but in my experience they are noiser and harsher, also the 1.8 VVTi is the engine thats now becoming well known for burning oil.

I would go for the old school engine, to be honest if you can find one the old 2.0 3S-FE is one of the finest 4 cylinder engines toyota ever built.

I would try and get the price down a bit though, I bought my 98 2.0 GLS auto with 28k on it from a Toyota dealer 2 years ago for 4495 so given the lower spec etc I would try for 3500 or less.

[Desmond22]

I had a Carina 1.8 lean burn for 7 years and 80k + miles and it never missed a beat. Incredibly economical too. Presuming it's the same engine as the one in the '98 Avensis I'd go for that and save the cash or buy a new stereo for it! :D

[Steve84]

My dads owned both verisons of the avensis they to where 1.8 gs lean burn and 1.8 vvt-i gs. My dad liked the lean burn car more main reason was he liked the interor better than his current model. Has for mpg bare in mind i'm talking manual gearbox his lean burn would do 45mpg easy and still had a good turn of speed on a good run to the coast he saw 50mpg this from a large family car with full camping kit . The vvt-i is quicker through the gears and is more revvy but down side is same costal trip only saw 47mpg. The difference in Gs specs is diffrenent interior colour the plastics are grey in pre face lift and black in post face lift, also the vvt-i gs gets sat nav and audio controls on the steering wheel and gets auto air-con where has the lean burn gets manual air con and a sun roof. Has for oil usage i've heard about the vvt-i using oil my dads dont use a drop his is on 41k and is a 2000 x plate, on the other hand tho my corolla does thats a 2001 y plate. If it was me i'd go for the vvt-i only reason i say that is the extra pulling power it gives over the lean burn. If the talk of oil usage does put you off the vvt-i unit the get the lean burn has it been proven in the carina and it will give you plenty of trouble free motoring, not saying the vvt-i wont just means you will need to check the oil level every week or you could end up with a very sick car where as with the lean burn unit you can check that when you think about it still worth checking once a week tho.

[Mkuk0]

Phew that was a marathon read, very informative Steve, but without punctuation I forgot to breath and banged me head on keyboard from oxygen starvation :D

[sjrainsford]

My only concern about the lean burn engine (7A-FE) is that it is only just powerful enough for the Avensis.

Once you strap an auto box to it, i'm not so sure how it would perform. I'd have to agree with James on this one, maybe the 3S-FE would be a better choice given that it has a bit more torque.

However, I think the VVTi unit may suit the auto better than the leanburn bacause it is slightly more powerfull.

If power isn't your thing, then you will be very pleased with either of the older engines. They are very smooth for their age, and as said before the leanburn is economical.

[jamesholden]

However, I think the VVTi unit may suit the auto better than the leanburn bacause it is slightly more powerfull.

←

They don't i'm afraid, i've been in both and in Corolla auto's, the VVTi ones rev too much, the older ones don't need to rev as high which IMO suit the auto box better. The 3S-FE auto is wonderful, changes from 1st to 2nd almost straight away unless your flooring it, and all the other gears change at a nice time, the VVTi ones dont like changing until 3000+ unless your really only just pressing the throttle.

I'd go for a pre-VVTi, either that, or have you thought about an old shape Honda Accord or 2.2 Toyota Camry? My dad's had both of them (albeit the Camry was the V6 one) and they were brilliant, they cost about the same as the Avensis used too.

[talldave]

Thanks for all of the advice - very useful. I've also had a look at lots of the postings concerning the oil consumption 'problem' with the VVT-i and to be honest this has put me off it. Even if Toyota have extended the engine warranty to 100,000 miles/5 years I assume that I'd be on my own after 5 years (which would be about this time next year if I go for the 2001/Y).

The stories of numerous 'short engine' replacements and dip sticks showing no oil are a bit worrying. If a new 'short engine' has been fitted would this definately fix the problem? Has the problem been fixed with the current version of the VVT-i engine?

As far as I'm concerned one reason for getting a Toyota is that they are supposed to be reliable and last for a long time.

My current car is an 1984 Peugeot 205 1.1 litre with 184,000 miles on the clock that has been completely reliable and very cheap to run - I'm hoping a Toyota can live up to the same standard.

I've driven the 1.8 VVT-i and it seemed fine to me - I'm going to drive the 1.8 lean burn at the weekend so I'll see how it compares. Mind you after my 205 either would be a significant improvement!

[talldave]

Well I decided on the old school engine and am now the proud owner of what seems to be a fantastic car. The auto box is great and the car is a dream to drive. I look forward to many years of ownership.

[taximark]

Well my 98 Avensis has done 210 k mate and it sounds like its still new! Its a taxi as well!

[talldave]

Fantastic - do you know what sort of mpg you get?

[sjrainsford]

If it's any help, I averaged 38mpg on my 1.8 GS. But that wasn't an auto.