05 1.6 Avensis Strata questions

gyppo

Just a few questions on the above car: I was looking at one yesterday, but I cant remember seeing this.

Does it come with a drivers armrest?
I know its a small thing, but I find the armrest an asset when driving a long distance.

What mpg could i reasonably expect with 30% urban 70% rural driving, ie. is the combined figure of 39mpg realistic?

How successful is t-cutting for removing light scratches? The previous owner must have done a lot of driving close to roadside bushes. The car is dark blue metallic.

Finally, if I really splurge, and decided to buy a new Avensis Strata, could anyone give me a ballpark figure on the dealer delivery charges, preparation, etc. List price on a new one is €25575, what I want to know is what the on the road price is likely to be?

Colm_mcm, I'm sure you can help me out here!

colm_mcm

The only Avensis models to come with an armrest were the 1.8 or 2.0 VVT-i or D-4D Luna, or the 2.0 or 2.4 Sol. No Aura or Strata models have an armrest fitted from factory.

You can, however get your Toyota dealer to fit an armrest. Don't expect much change out of €260 though. It is a split level type armrest, and is ordered as a part, rather than an accessory.

The 39mpg figure is a bit optimistic TBH. more like 33 to 35.

The full retail on the road price on an Avensis Strata is €26,060 plus 550 for metallic paint. €26,610 in total. Discount is obviously availible for a straight deal.

BrianD3

Try T-cut scratch remover (comes in a red tube) Try it on a small area first though to see if it does any good and to make sure it doesn't do any harm. It shouldn't do any harm as it is a very mild abrasive.

As for the mpg it will depend on your driving style and what you mean by "rural driving" (M roads, N roads or R roads?) . For instance, driving on a motorway at 75 mph will use up more petrol than steady 50 mph driving on decent regional roads.

knifey_spoonie

For €26,610 you should push for moulded flaps, fitted mats and petrol, Dont know if youve included them colm.

As for the scratches get the dealer to compound the car fully before you buy, btw the colour (stellar blue) it a fecker to keep.

colm_mcm

knife_fighter wrote:

For €26,610 you should push for moulded flaps, fitted mats and petrol, Dont know if youve included them colm.

As for the scratches get the dealer to compound the car fully before you buy, btw the colour (stellar blue) it a fecker to keep.

Of course I've included them knife fighter, what do you take me for?!

Stellar BLue might be a nightmre to keep, but Night Sky Black is worse

damo605

My dad has a 04 Avensis 1.8 Automatic (Not such what part of the universe its trim level is named after though) and granted he drives it gently but averages a genuine 42MPG :eek:
I was in it the other day and the OBC was showing 42.5mpg so I quizzed him about it and he said he checked it manually on a number of occasions by calculating fill to fill and it really averages about 42mpg over a tank!
His driving is all rural country roads and in and out of town, no easy long runs on big roads - I couldn't believe it!

BrianD3

Yes damo that's good mileage for a 1.8 auto but
a) Dads often get good fuel economy
b) Driving on rural roads may actually give better economy than driving at a constant 62 mph on large N roads

The other day I was driving on some R roads at around 50 mph and got 52 mpg out of my Laguna II 1.6 over a distance of about 20 miles. Whereas on N roads at 62 mph I usually get aroudn 44-45 mpg

maidhc

BrianD3 wrote:

b) Driving on rural roads may actually give better economy than driving at a constant 62 mph on large N roads

You may be right for some bizarre reason. I find when I drive on rural roads which is at least 50% of my driving the needle doesn't drop as fast as you might expect it to.

bazz26

gyppo wrote:

Does it come with a drivers armrest?
I know its a small thing, but I find the armrest an asset when driving a long distance.

Unfortunately no, as Colm said the Luna is the only model with the front arm rest fitted as standard. I have the 1.8 Luna model and do a good bit of driving and find the front arm rest great. You can however get an aftermarket one fitted by a Toyota dealer but it's not cheap.

gyppo wrote:

What mpg could i reasonably expect with 30% urban 70% rural driving, ie. is the combined figure of 39mpg realistic?

Realistically, you will not get 39mpg, I have a 1.8 and I am managing about 32 mpg. The Avensis is a heavy car and the smaller 1.6 can be a bit strained which can impact mpg slightly. My soon to be father-in-law has a Strata and he is averaging about 33 or 34 mpg. So the 1.8 is more suited to the car than the 1.6 litre. Of course about 90% of petrol models sold in Ireland are 1.6 litre. If you can stretch your budget to a 1.8 Luna model then it will have a few nicer things such as duel zone climate control, upgraded interior trim, electric folding mirrors, front and rear arm rests, electrochromatic rear view mirror, traction control, rain sensing wipers and few other things.

gyppo wrote:

How successful is t-cutting for removing light scratches? The previous owner must have done a lot of driving close to roadside bushes. The car is dark blue metallic.

I have that Stellar Blue colour too, it is a lovely colour when clean. Keeping it clean is the problem and unfortunately it shows up every scratch and scrape. If you don't like washing your car regularly then you are better off with a lighter colour.

Best of luck.

bazz26

damo605 wrote:

My dad has a 04 Avensis 1.8 Automatic (Not such what part of the universe its trim level is named after though) and granted he drives it gently but averages a genuine 42MPG :eek:
I was in it the other day and the OBC was showing 42.5mpg so I quizzed him about it and he said he checked it manually on a number of occasions by calculating fill to fill and it really averages about 42mpg over a tank!
His driving is all rural country roads and in and out of town, no easy long runs on big roads - I couldn't believe it!

42mpg from a 1.8 and an automatic. :eek:

I wouldn't get anywhere near that from mine even if the car was rolling down a hill and it had a gale force wind behind it.

colm_mcm

The 1.6 isn't any more or less economical than the 1.8 in urban and rural driving. but on the motorway the 1.8 is more economical, as the engine doesn't rev as high, also the 1.8 isn't under as much pressure as the 1.6

gyppo

Thanks for all the replies.

I've decided not to change my car for the moment. My Leon tdi might be smaller, but with the way fuel prices are at the moment, I'd be taking a big hit going to a petrol car - even thoughI'm very smitten with the avensis.

If I could afford a D4D, I would go for it, but these are costing savage money secondhand - too much for me, I'm afraid.