Leighcm

Could it be an antenna-not-quite-making-contact problem? If you can take the car to the dealer (and don't have the radio on while you're driving there), and sit in it with a technician, you might have a chance of showing it to them.

I think 2005 is the most recent version. There may be an upgrade in a few months as the newest version just came out about 2 weeks ago.

I'm on a Toyota mailing list and received this today...thought it was interesting, and may help everyone get a little better mileage: Toyota's recommendations for getting the most out of your mileage: Keep tire pressure at recommended levels; under-inflated tires use more gas. Avoid driving at speeds that are higher than necessary, especially on the highway. Avoid jackrabbit starts and, when possible, avoid sudden stops. Don't carry items in the car that you don't need; additional weight means lower mileage. Use air conditioning in moderation. The mileage tips below come straight from hybrid drivers, and contribute to facilitating the sharing of ideas in the hybrid community: One hybrid owner offers an imaginative analogy for getting the "Zen" of thrifty hybrid driving: "Imagine pedaling a bicycle with your own leg power. You cruise as much as possible. No need to go full throttle before a stop. Glide to a stop instead. Don't race to cruising speed. Take it easy on the engine just as you would on your legs." Another hybrid owner counters this approach, suggesting that rapid acceleration to speed followed by cruising is actually more efficient, though counterintuitive. Perhaps the best thing is to try both and see for yourself. Adding to the old debate over driving with the air conditioning on or the windows open, one Prius owner suggests that with a Prius, keeping the windows open is more economical. The rationale: Battery drain from air conditioning uses more gasoline than aerodynamic drag caused by open windows. Remember that for every mph above 55 in a Prius, you could lose up to one mpg, mostly due to atmospheric drag -- even with its advanced aerodynamic body. Common-sense maintenance also leads to good mileage. Change oil on the maintenance schedule and don't use heavier oil than is recommended in the owner's manual. Heavier oil can mean mpg-robbing drag on the engine. Inspect your air filter and replace it on the maintenance schedule or as needed. A choking engine uses more gas. Techniques of a mileage champion Some Prius owners keep pushing the hybrid mileage envelope to the max. Five of these "hypermileage" enthusiasts recently teamed up and set a record of nearly 110 mpg in a marathon economy run. Hypermileage techniques are not for everyday driving. They have to be practiced in controlled conditions and then become "second nature" because of the attention that must be paid to the dashboard display at first. Here is a description of how Dan Kroushl, one of the marathoners, adapts hypermileage techniques to daily driving in his Prius: "On the highway, I just set cruise control to 55 mph and go. In city driving, during acceleration or maintaining speed uphill, I use the deadband technique. This means no flow to or from the battery while accelerating. I glide (no flow at all, engine is stopped) during mild downhill stretches. I apply the brakes (regenerative) on steeper downhill stretches to keep my speed below 42 mph. "I do this because the motor-generators (MGs) reach their maximum rpm at about 42 mph, which forces the engine to run to prevent damage to the MGs. So at speeds above 42, the engine must run, which creates added friction. This must be compensated for to maintain speed, causing a reduction in fuel economy. "When coming to a stop I coast (foot off the accelerator) until the stop. While braking and coasting, a small amount of energy is regenerated to maintain the battery level. I use this technique on my daily commute which is 50% highway at 55 mph and 50% city at 35 mph. Depending on environmental variables, during the summer my fuel economy ranges from 67 to 72 mpg." Try some of these techniques and see how your mileage improves.

7th gen, I think. If I'm counting right. You can get a manual from any Toyota dealer...or try eBay. Fun car, though. Enjoy!

Not sure on the drivetrain difference, but I can tell you about bringing the engine into the country. Unless you specifically tell the guys at customs that you have a brand new Canadian engine in your US Previa, you won't have to deal with import taxes and paperwork. You're not importing a car, just some pieces. And if you buy it cheap enough, you can legally bring it through anyway. The customs guys are looking for stuff like Cuban cigars, drugs, fruit, plants, and that sort of thing.

No kidding...every time I look at the Aveo, I see Toyota all over it. I never actually investigated, just assumed they were the same because of the GM-Toyota partnership (like the Vibe, Prizm, etc.)

I had a CD player that wouldn't play until the car warmed up in the winter, and would automatically eject the CD after a few minutes. I feel your pain! And it happens a lot when people bring their cars in for an intermittent problem that can't be duplicated by the dealership. It has nothing to do with the dealer, it just seems be a Murphy's Law type thing. Anyway, try calling Toyota corporate and opening a case. You'll probably get some help that way towards getting it replaced. I don't remember the phone number, but it's probably in your owner's manuals somewhere (the one with the lemon law info should have it).

Yes, but it looks a little different. Also, isn't the Chevy AVEO the same car?

Don't hold me to this, but it seems like there's a trim piece around the radio that pops off and gives you better access to pull the stereo out.

Welcome!! Tell us about the plant...I've always wanted to tour one of the Toyota North America plants. I've been through a General Motors plant (dirty, disorganized, dark...you get the idea), but I've heard Toyota plants are almost a work of art compared to a domestic manufacturer.

Scion TCs have a lot of potential though...there's a supercharger available from Toyota that bumps up to the power into the low 200's and turns it into a real pocket-rocket.

GT is the basic Celica, depending on model year. GT4 is an all wheel drive turbo model made in the early 90's...neat car if you can find one. I don't remember a GT-R.

It could easily go out that fast if you have a tendancy to ride the clutch. As you're driving, pay close attention to where your left foot is and don't leave it over the clutch. Even a very light pressure on the clutch can burn it out very rapidly.

No spot checks here in the Cincinnati area, but I've heard they have them in California...am I right? You can get around that just by gutting the cats because it still looks fine from the outside (of course, then you still have the eCheck problem).

It's pretty easy after the first time you do it...the first time, everything is pretty stuck together and it takes forever, but it's fast and simple after that.

5,000 miles is okay, assuming you're not in a really harsh climate (ie., extremely hot, dusty, etc.) If you're a low mileage driver, you need to follow a schedule of months instead of miles...I think it's 5 months for an oil change.

Yes, and if you have eCheck in your area, you can definitely count on not passing your emissions check if you take off the cats. Of course, if you're good at that sort of thing, you could just swap out the pipes right before you take it to be tested.

It also could be a wire that's almost shorted out. I had a similar problem in my Camry. Be sure you check that before you start replacing expensive parts.

Before you buy a remote start, check to see if it's compatible with your car. If you have a Toyota alarm, you might have a problem because a lot of Toyota factory installed alarm systems will have a kill switch as part of the system, and that presents a problem with a remote start. Some of the remote start systems will trigger the engine kill switch and the car won't start.

It's way too soon to complain about gas mileage. The car won't even be properly broken in until close to 5,000 miles, and mileage could vary significantly until then. Other things affect fuel economy too, like driving habits. If you have a tendency to do a lot of sudden acceleration, your gas engine will be on constantly, producing lower gas mileage figures. If you drive the car a little differently, with more attention paid to preventing the gas engine from turning on, you'll get much better economy.

Welcome! Corollas are great cars...

I ran a test pipe on one of my Supras...increased power, increased noise, slightly increased fuel economy with both intake and test pipe. And yes, smells different, more like a race car. You don't have to be very well trained to smell a car without cats. You're not planning to put a test pipe on your ES, are you? Unless it's had an aftermarket turbo added, a test pipe isn't going to give you much of a power increase. It makes the biggest difference on a turbo car.

Not positive...but pretty sure it did have an AllTrac model. Get the VIN and have a Toyota dealer do an inquiry for you. It'll only take them about two minutes and they can pull up an invoice on the car from when it was new.

Very nice truck!! Looks like fun!!

PIAA is a company that makes wipers, wheels, lights, and a few other goodies for cars. Here's the address to the wipers: http://www.piaa.com/WiperBlades/WiperBlades.html Try your local auto parts store for the other parts of the window. I've had good luck with Eagle One glass cleaner for cars.