Taken The Plunge!

[lungo]

hi all, i have taken the plunge and got myslf a vvti 1.8 t4 saloon 54 plate. picked up yesterday..

brought it from main dealer so hopefully will be covered and trustworthy and hassle free.

just wanted to know if there is/are anything i should be wary about??

just read about the oil consumption 'problem'

how do i know if i have this problem?? and is there anything else i should be wary about??

also notice that the idle speed waries from 600 - 1000 revs, this normal? just feels like its trying to cut out??

also there seems not to be any torque in the gears or its very slow. my previous car was a 2.0 lt hdi 206.

regards

lungo

[T600]

a vvti 1.8 t4 saloon 54 plate.

Hi.

Good choice. I very much doubt you'll have the oil problem with a 54; it tends to be limited to the earlier cars - some 2003 cars and earlier I think.

But with any car you should keep an eye on your oil levels and if you find you're using too much then report it to your dealer.

Personally I'd try to keep full Toyota service history on the car; yes you can save a few pounds by going to an independent specialist and I wouldn't trust the older performance cars such as GT4s to anyone else, but FTSH on your car would be a good idea if problems do develop.

[TeyaDog]

hi all, i have taken the plunge and got myslf a vvti 1.8 t4 saloon 54 plate. picked up yesterday..

brought it from main dealer so hopefully will be covered and trustworthy and hassle free.

just wanted to know if there is/are anything i should be wary about??

just read about the oil consumption 'problem'

how do i know if i have this problem?? and is there anything else i should be wary about??

also notice that the idle speed waries from 600 - 1000 revs, this normal? just feels like its trying to cut out??

also there seems not to be any torque in the gears or its very slow. my previous car was a 2.0 lt hdi 206.

regards

lungo

Congratulations ............ I've had my 1.8 55 (06) Plate Avensis HB for 5 weeks now and I'm reasonably satisfied. As the previous poster has said, the oil consumption problem relates to earlier versions of the car so you should be fine in this respect. I have experienced exactely the same 'symptoms' re the idle speed and have read similar posts on the forum regarding this so I suspect that it's just a feature of the vvti engine. I haven't experienced any problem re torque although that said, the 1.8 vvti isn't the quickest large family saloon out there but it might just be the most comfortable.

Happy Motoring!

[lungo]

Thanks for all your help and assurance :)

I do have a FDSH, but just realised that I am lacking a manual for the car.

I am very impress with the drive but think I am not used to the slow pulling power of the car.

Maybe because I have been driving the 2.0 lt HDI for too long and in 5th on motorway driving the car will move when I put my put my foot down, in this the car hardly moves ??

anyone have the same feeling as I do??

I changed the car as I now have 2 young kids and do not do the miles to warrant a diesel, maybe i should have still looked at one?

[T600]

Petrol engines, particularly those with VVTi and VVTLi, need revs to get power out of them.

I think it's probably just that you're used to driving a relatively high torque diesel. Once you get used to the petrol engine it'll be fine.

Manuals are available from the dealers; if the one that supplied the car won't give you one FOC (as they should have done) then get a price from Parts King.

[lungo]

Thanks for that.

I have the basic outline manual but I assumed there is an indepth detailed manual for the other controlls.

Is this engine similar to the vtec in the honda??

High revs for more torque??

[T600]

VVTi just alters the valve timing to improve the engine's breathing and this tends to help achieve power at higher revs.

VVTLi is similar to VTEC - i.e. a different cam is used to vary the valve lift too. VVTLi takes the theory even further than VVTi does, and the VVTLi engines have other modifications to allow them to achieve higher rev limits.

Typically diesels produce much more torque than petrol engines, but cannot rev very fast because the fuel burns relatively slowly.

Modern turbo diesels produce huge amounts of torque compared to the equivalent petrol engine, but the petrol engines come into their own at higher revs. So you'll find they're completely different to drive. And if you're used to a diesel it will feel strange to push your petrol engine to its limits.

HTH

[lungo]

Hi, I thought I better mention that the 2lt was the first diesel I have had.

All the rest were petrol, varied from 1.4 to 2lt turbo.

Just that even the cars that i had which were petrol had better torque than this (this includes the 1.5 vtec-e!!)

So was wondering if there is a fault and at what revs this 'power' comes into play??

Which model has the VVTLi ??? all the ones i have seen had the vvti engines??

Thanks again

[T600]

VVTLi was only used in the Celica and Corolla T-Sports (189bhp). Sorry for the confusion.

With VVTLi there is a distinct kick as the high lift comes into play.

With the others the power tends to increase steadily right through the rev range.

I always thought VTECs were relatively low torque engines too, though haven't driven one apart from in an S2000 on a track, so hardly a fair comparison.

[lungo]

thanks again,

thought there was another model which I did not see :)

Yes the vtec is a low torque engine, specially the vtec-e but you can still feel the vtec hit in when you are overtaking, even on the motorway.

Maybe i should have got the 2lt avensis or maybe a diesel ???

[igormus]

hi all, i have taken the plunge and got myslf a vvti 1.8 t4 saloon 54 plate. picked up yesterday..

brought it from main dealer so hopefully will be covered and trustworthy and hassle free.

just wanted to know if there is/are anything i should be wary about??

just read about the oil consumption 'problem'

how do i know if i have this problem?? and is there anything else i should be wary about??

also notice that the idle speed waries from 600 - 1000 revs, this normal? just feels like its trying to cut out??

also there seems not to be any torque in the gears or its very slow. my previous car was a 2.0 lt hdi 206.

regards

lungo

hello Lundo

it is good family car when gives no trouble to the owner.

take a look on the flw: cold condition -- idle RPM=1700-1800-1900; warm condition -- idle RPM=700-750.

interrior fabric condition (!) it likes to absorb too much dust and hardly to clean.

re oil consumption -- have a look even each day after drive. the clear picture will be known after 1000 miles.

good luck/igor

[CarlP]

Firstly I think it is an advantage that you bought the car from the main dealer as I'm not convinced the oil consumption problem is restricted to pre 2004 models. I believe they have extended the warrenty to 7 Years and over 100,000 in this respect but it will help if you get on well with the dealer. Check the oil weekly.

I too have rather erratic fast idle and usually is below 800! I've had it checked by the dealer who confirms it is usual.

Yes the 1.8 can be gutless at times - just try overtaking on a gradient, or better still don't with your loved ones in the car ;) You have to work the engine very hard to make it feel remotely quick and it will drink fuel if you do.

Frankly I'm a bit dissappointed by the performance compared to by previous 2.0 petrol but this is more than compensated by the refinement and quality feel. Just accept that you have bought a very safe (9 airbags!), usually reliable family car at the expense of excitement and driver thrills.