Faults:

Short block had to be replaced, as it was burning oil and the gear box packed in after 95000 miles. Very sluggish when taking off.

My brother had to get block done on his 2004 model, and my sister the same on her 2002 model. We all taxi these and will never buy Toyota again...

General Comments:

I know many taxi drivers who would not buy Toyota as they have lost confidence in the car...

Faults:

Nothing major, fuse blew knocking out remote locking and alarm, but easily fixed with a new fuse.

General Comments:

This is possibly the best car I've ever had. It is comfortable, spacious and ultra reliable. Some people complain about the performance, but honestly, where in the UK can you use high performance vehicles without it being illegal? The performance on the Avensis is perfect for everyday driving.

Faults:

At around 50.000 it started losing oil suddenly. I went to service/dealer, they checked the compression and found that engine is not sealing properly. In fact that seemed to be the bug with some of 1600-1800 ccm engines, but not with diesel ones. As I was told, the piston seals were made in Slovakia, and were not made of a proper steel, so they had to change half the engine completely at their cost. After 24 hours I had my Avensis back and since then (now 130.000) I have not had a single problem regarding the engine.

However, I drive long distances and I noticed that my legs hurt me after some time spent sitting and driving. The front seats are too long (I am 175cm tall) and the front edge cuts circulation from behind. My wife says that sitting behind is very comfortable (there is really a lot of space in this car), but if I drive fast she becomes sick.

General Comments:

I have driven an Oldsmobile Cutlass, Toyota Supra, Toyota Corolla and many other smaller EU made cars like VW, Fiat, Austin etc. The 2001 Avensis is not as good as the Carina was, but it is certainly reliable, well made and designed car to drive in Europe.

Music system is absolutely superb, there is a lot of space (trunk is enormously big for EU car), it has a nice sporty look, even though it is not a car for very fast driving and certainly not a sports one.

There is power in engine though, but you need to learn how to squeeze it out. To cruise with it is a pleasure beyond what you might expect looking from outside, but not above 160-170 km/h when you start losing control.

As a car for business or small family trips it is excellent. To drive within city limits it is probably not a good solution. This car needs air to show what it can do.

Faults:

Keep in mind ALL "mileage" is actually in Km!

Rear door seal started leaking 60,000km. Right after warranty expired.

Starter solenoid went at 80,000km. Made horrible grinding noise when starting - replaced (cheap) Euro 80.

Clutch and flywheel at 82400km. OK, clutch I can understand needing to be changed, but, the flywheel should "never" need replacing with normal wear. The flywheel ALONE was 900Euro. Mechanic insisted NOT to use Toyota part as (he claimed) it had a design flaw they were still manufacturing.

All lights and light-bulbs - rear brakes, turn signals, driving lights... seems like every three months one burns out... or the electrical contacts no longer work.

Driver door lock slips and door can only be opened (reliably) with the remote.

General Comments:

The "good" - excellent fuel (D4D) economy - less than I expected around 6.5L/100 in town and 4-4.2 on the highway. Comfortable ride. Decent acceleration.

The "bad" - comfortable ride means very soft and poor handling, almost downright unstable. Not on par with the Germans or even the Ford Mondeo.

And

The "ugly" - seems like more breakdown issues than any Toyota should have. More on par with a Volkswagen. Should never have to replace a flywheel! Also, body design has a sloped front hood and a short integrated bumper --- meaning anyone backing up in a parking lot and "bumping" your front end has a GOOD chance of denting the hood of the car -- similar problem with rear taillights (replaced BOTH as a result of 2mph parking lot "incidents")