ColinBarber

Does every thing else work on the car? When you say the immobiliser is not responding I take it you me the security light doesn't go out when you put the key in the ignition?

all series II RXs will be in warranty (if they have less than 60k miles on the clock) so I would let your dealer sort that out.

handbrake light may just be the level not coming all the way up when you release the handbrake. Try pulling it up with your hand/foot when you release it - may just need a lube. ABS/VSC lights coming on could mean several faults so you need to get the error code read, a common fault seems to be a faulty master cylinder. Hopefully it isn't that as it costs about £1800

No, the TEXT button is for the optional MiniDisc changer.

The new engine won't be in either car until 2006. It has the lowest compression ratio of any diesel on the market to reduce the harshness you normally get. Should have best economy for class of engine (not confirmed as they are still working on it?) and it has an electric pre-spool on the turbo to reduce lag.

But the Avensis, along with the new IS, won't have that engine until 2006. Steve, how did you manage to test drive it when it's not ready yet?

If you are going to keep your car past 100k then you could get it done now. Or inspect the belt and see if there is any wear on it.

IS repeater lens aren't very clear, but the LS ones are.

Do you mean standard ones for aftermarket? New sensor, do you mean MAF sensor?

Never had anything too stupid but every year I get a quote from the AA and every year they are at least double what I end up paying! Cannot believe people actually buy insurance from them.

SP60 is actually 'Undefined speed limit offence' It seems SP60s are given when national speed limit applies .

In an perfect world you would want zero back pressure so the engine doesn't have to do any work to expell the gases, this however is not possible and trying to achieve low pressures results in other problems. Increasing the diameter would reduce pressure but it will also decrease the exhaust gas speed which can reduce power/torque. The mapping of an engine ECU is based on a certain amount of pressure so changing the exhaust may not give great benefits unless other work is also done.

Use any of those ratings. You could even use V rated tyres as the top speed of the GS300 is 143mph and V rating is 149mph although you probably wouldn't find V rating on that size of tyre. W - 168 mph Y - 186 mph Z - 150+ mph

If the kerbing wasn't the cause of the corrosion then they will replace them under warranty.

sounds like a problem with the idle control. May be worth cleaning the idle control valve and throttle body. Does it do it if you have the AC on?

yes the 400 stopped and the 430 came out around October 2000. Personally I would have the 430. Worth trying to get a test drive in both.

GPS devices apparently won't be included in the new government bill http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/article/0...1181311,00.html

A friend of mine has just sent me this link for a new Road Angle type device. Looks better value as you don't have to pay for subscriptions. Anybody have any experience of this device? http://www.speedsafety.co.uk/

I guess it depends want he wants in a car? Clearly the 430 has more toys but does he want them or can he justify them for the extra outlay?

The statement about economy of a compact sedan has always come from the US where their compacts are bigger than ours and would be for an auto transmission. Clearly it was never going to have better economy over a UK 1.4 Corolla but it does have better economy over a 1.8 Corolla. People who are that worried about fuel economy aren't really going to be spending £35k+ on a vehicle in the first place. Agreed 0-62 times aren't the last word in real-life performance but with the extra torque of the 400h there is no way you wouldn't feel the difference between it and a 300. That is like saying you cannot feel the difference between a GS300 and a GS430. Also the 7.6seconds time is a little conservative, a US car mag. has tested the car for themselves and achieved 6.9seconds. As for residuals, all these book values only base the prices on standard spec vehicles. That extra £10k you had to spend on the X5d in extras to bring it near to the SE-L spec would nearly all be lost when you trade-in.

You need to find out why the control module isn't switching on the AC. I wouldn't think it is a wiring fault as these are rare. There are a number of inputs to the control module that need to be correct before it will switch on the AC, if these fail or the AC module cannot communicate with the engine ECU then it will not work. There should be a diagnostic procedure to recover any error codes although it is probably part of the OBD-II system so you will need a scanner to get the codes. Somebody with IS workshop manuals should be able to confirm this.

Not really sure those figures are 'very average' for a 275bhp 4x4. I think they are about, or slightly better than, what people expected. Remember the figures for the less powerful RX300 are: Urban: 16.7 mpg, Extra-urban: 30.1 mpg and Combined: 23.2 mpg

old engine so it's 10:1

These days it is more common to see 10:1, 10.5:1 or 11:1 for NA engines.

No but it is recommended to use Toyota LLC. Chris is there any reason why you cannot add pink coolant to older vehicles?