iRage

So ridiculous squared or cubed...(i.e. Ridiculous to the Nth power)

Well...does anyone know what the actual landed prices of these cars are? Heard of the LC300 prices and they are astronomical. Makes me wonder if SL is truly a cash strapped country (that or I should have changed careers ages ago...). Also, have the used car prices in SL gone down? Seen a bit of a dip but not as much as what these FB goons seem to be pushing (which for the most part is close to pre-pandemic prices).

Uhh...okay....but to get the cruise control to work you need to do more than just install the stalk. In most cases the wiring would be there so you can plug in the stalk but you also need to activate the system. Toyota Safety Sense. It is the integrated safety system in Toyota cars. It would have pre-collision systems, lane keep assist, automatic high beam, etc...the newer the version the more safety equipment it came with. The hitch is with pre-collision systems, configuring a retrospectively installed cruise control can get a bit iffy as it involves automatic braking. if you don't have anyone who KNOWS how to install it, then I would say you should just stay away from doing it or just wait. You probably can find a wiring diagram online. It is not about just connecting the wires. Like I said before, connecting the switch might be as simple as just plugging it into a socket that is already there (in most cases, the wiring harnesses are the same across all trim levels and models). You need to make sure that all the check boxes are ticked to make sure that all the safety systems and the cruise control itself are working properly and not compromised. That is not going to be found in a wiring diagram. For that you need a service manual from Toyota or someone who actually knows what they are doing. If the mechanics over there have the switch I would have assumed that they have done a few of these installations before (considering the car's popularity), but you would know best. What is to your advantage is that the Premio is based on a 15+ year old platform and is quite primitive. So, it shouldn't be too complicated (unlike most newer models).

Is there any car that is NOT ridiculously priced in SL ?

Just that with the full kit...there is another one with just the body kit and suspension..quite a few normal 141 Axios with just the body kit. I doubt the legit one and half legit one is for sale. Which is why I suggested that they could get a 141 Axio and do the build themselves.

Congratulations!

That would be the G Type...depending on the year they will come with either a silver top or a black top (where the black top is concerned between 1995/96 to early 1997 it had the 5MT after 1997 had the 6MT). Not really a GT car. Just a coupe based on the Starlet/Tercel platform. Not fast..not the best handling...but looks funky. As with most of these cars finding a good one is easier said and done. I would stay away from conversions. Most conversions are a mad-hatter's palaa malla. So if things go wrong fixing it is a pain. Also..a lot of dodgy work also maybe involved. So go for a stock version. The Starlet and Carina would be the most common. You also get the Corolla/Sprinter GT (AE111). Sadly for Toyota GT cars that will be your list in SL..there used to be a few Caldinas as well but no idea what happened to those. You also get : Vitz RS <get the actual RS with the rear brake disks, not the trim level of the later models which was just a standard Vitz with a body kit and had rear drum brakes) Vitz Turbo RS There is a Vitz GR Sport (Hybrid)..not sure if it is for sale. Yes it is a Hybrid Vitz but it actually rides and handles quite well. I would suggest Mark IIs, Chasers and Crestas but those are ridiculously pricey now. Does it have to be a Toyota ? If not there are a few VZR Sunny and Pulsar sedans and Lucino hatchbacks. What exactly is the expectation out of this GT car ? There is also the option of buying like a 240 series Allion and then doing some mods to improve the handling and throttle response. Even the humble old Axio....you can get one and do the TRD coversion on it.

It would help if you mention where you are from... But yes...you can retro fit cruise control. Two main paths you can take. 1. Get the actual Toyota parts either brand new (probably expensive) or from a junked car. 2. Get an after-market system (Chinese ones are quite common. Not going to comment on how good they are). The actual range of parts you will need and the complexity would depend on things like which Toyota Safety Sense variant you have, what type of cruise control you want (Adaptive or Non-adaptive, etc...). You should go to a vehicle electronics and accessories shop that handles these and talk to them.

Actually....Nissan does not have any decent modern power trains. The e-Power system is absolutely horrendous on heavy cars. Then the VR and VQs simply are not going to work in many markets, with some variants being somewhat of a dead dinosaur (let's not forget that is one issue with the GTR). I (and most over here) do think that this will be more about technology transfer than any new combined model development (kind of like Subaru and Toyota in the early days). Honda already has a portfolio that works for their strategy. It is just that they don't have the required scope of emerging tech, which Mitsubishi does have when it comes to PHEV and EV tech. Same with Mitsubishi, unless they strongly desire to return to the passenger car segment despite its emerging success in other areas. On top of needing financial stability, what they could use is Honda's distribution network. A lot of the auto journalists were commenting about this article... The article says Mitsubishi has offroad vehicles but fails to realize that so does Honda (WR-V to BRV to the CRV to the HRV/Vezel). In the US they even have crossovers larger than the CRV and even pickup trucks. Honda doesn't have proper off-road SUVs but they have never been interested in that segment. What Honda lags is emerging technology for these vehicles and future models. Now if they are to get the tech I am sure they would be happy to stick a Honda badge on a Pajero just like they did with the Bighorn. So again it is more about the technology than actual models. The article is missing a crucial element. Honda has stated that it will be at the negotiating tables if and only if Uchida leaves. Now..if Nissan has a 27% stake in Mitsubishi and Mitsubishi is not open to a direct merger with Honda then the only way any of this happens is if and only if Uchida and his team leaves (which is a good thing anyway because Uchida was not supposed to be the head in the first place and he and his team are mostly admin guys...not car guys with any form of automobile experience). It is obvious that Nissan is divided internally. Partly because Uchida is over-estimating his capabilities, and he and his team seem to be more interested in self-preservation than saving Nissan. A lot of us were dumbfounded by the whole Nissan merger in the first place because Nissan did not have anything that would have solved Honda's problems. So the Mitsubishi courting was sort of expected. In fact, when Mitsubishi was in trouble in 2016 there were rumors that it was hinted that Mitsubishi should leave the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi alliance and look at other partners closer to home. All in all Nissan still remains the odd-party out and is sort of like the nerdy brother all the guys hang out with just so they get to know his hot sister. A few of Mitsubishi's upcoming models globally are rebadged or re-shelled Renaults. Not sure if that is because of maintaining existing agreements or because Renault is holding on to whatever stake they have in Mitsubishi. If Renault has any stake in Mitsubishi that is going to be something Honda might have concerns over.

At the inspections? What I have heard is that it is with the inspection report (nothing new there). What some known people told me (and one of them was a Japanese party...does not sell cars to SL and says he would rather starve on the street). is: The inspection reports (and registration documents) never put the Year of MANUFACTURE. Only the year of FIRST REGISTRATION. Apparently, these guys first requested the date of manufacture which was denied as that can never be ascertained without the manufacturers themselves looking at serial numbers and their records. Apparently, the Lankan policy is such that if the date of manufacture is not known, it is set to be January of the following year. So our guys are supposedly buying "2022" models and then forging the inspection reports with a newer date. So why the duty reduction ? Not enough imports and estimated tax revenue is not what the government expected? So..in other words we have created a screwed up scenario ? THe question I have is even if they reduce taxes...do people have money to actually buy cars? True people yap this and that but when they see the actual bill do they really have the buying power? The government can't slash the taxes by that much. Even if they slash it at some point they are going to have to raise it again, restrict financing % for cars or increase interest rates to curb imports because every monkey with their uncle's mistress will be importing new cars (let's not forget that interest rate hikes will effect all kinds of borrowing). I feel those who actually have the money probably can afford to buy a some practical car even at the current rate. The sad reality of Lankans is that the masses just go and buy cars they simply can't afford. All these guys talk about the landed costs but no one seems consider the cost of borrowing the money.

Since @Gummybr was the first to suggest what the car was, can we have him take the quiz floor ? Yes..the car is a J55 Toyota Land Cruiser. At the time of release the Americans found it so ugly that they nicknamed it the "Iron Pig" This would be the start of the Land Cruiser wagon series....I found the car cool in the early 80s as it was one of the main cars in the TV series "Born Free"

You need to be more specific with this. What kind of vibration ? Depending on the type of vibration the reason could range from anything from the engine mounts going bad to something like the injectors getting clogged (carb not functioning properly) and engine trying to stall. So please provide more details. What is a no 40 engine ?

Oh good ! Yeah....not many original Noahs from that period around. Most are poor conversions.

Said it before..saying it again....seeing the new 250 series and where Toyota has taken it (unless toyota says they messed up and takes it back to a smaller platform)...the J90 is and will be the best Prado they ever made. The last iteration of the 150 was pretty good but still the J90 was the best balance of analog and digital worlds. Maintained well it will hands-down outlast any of the new Prados.

Not a big fan of the 31 myself....it became a bit of a sloth crossover. Although, even the 2nd gen was quite as functional as the 30 series and in Japan it was offered with a manual transmission (well the GT trim was). The first-gen XTrail can actually fall under the ranks of the Patrol. It was quite capable at the time and was different. Was much capable than the RAV4 despite the RAV4 getting more of the praise. Let's not forget that the 1st gen also came with a SR20 stuck in to it I have to ask though...why a Prius Alpha ? It is just a station wagon. In which case you might as well go for a Corolla Fielder (even the E160 series). I am surprised he is 50:50 with the Terios. It is a bouncy little (little being the operative word) car. It was after all the Raize/Rocky of the time. I don't think you are going to find as practical and all-rounder of a car as the J90. I hope the guy who bought it is enjoying the car.

Yeah....for 8 mil you are going to be stuck with a basic Yaris or for the same price a well spec'd kei car. I would rather live with the high spec kei car. Talking one of my Lankan friends in to getting a NOne RS (manual) for a little less than the price of a Yaris (apparently). Probably....quite a few adverts for the Vezels, Yaris Cross and larger cars are now starting to state "On LC opening basis <+ something about the buyer being responsible for it>". I suppose that means they will not do anything with sourcing a car unless the buyer opens the LC and the purchase is guaranteed? This is why I feel cars like Premios/Allions (even high trimmed Axios ?) will not drop down as much as people believe it will (or like it to). On one hand there really isn't a replacement for these models and one actually needs to have a lot of disposable funds saved up (for most, including myself) 7 to 8 mil just lying around to drop as just 25% downpayment on a car is a no go (at least if one is to be sensible about things). True...the existing cars just need to be kept and let to depreciate over a lot of time (let people who paid hyper-inflated prices get some utility out of it and let subsequent buyers of these cars finance them under reasonable valuations). I believe the CB's intent is sensible. Those who should be importing cars are the ones who really really need to and have no locally source-able options.

Do some checking about the HR-V. The JDM variants did come with the CVT, but it was a time where the export variants actually had a normal Automatic as well (albiet the funky shifting tech ones Honda had at the time). For the Pajero iO, yes the GDI issue is there, but depending on the price it might be worth getting one and restoring the engine. If the GDI issue is what is keeping you away, look into the export variant (Montero iO). That had the non-GDI engine. There are quite a few of them in SL (I would say 50:50). As for the T30 XTrail...there are two GTs in SL as well. No idea where one is and the second is supposed to be with someone who is in love with it. Just for the heck of it....let's say you take your entire budget...any mid sized crossovers you could possibly import ? Also, I suppose something like a MG crossover would be out as I doubt those things (at least the current models) will last too long driving up and down estates.

you do realize that the charcoal canister is in the engine bay right ? The EVAC system has multiple parts that go all the way from the tank, to the fuel filling line to the engine When the charcoal canister is gone bad you will get a fuel smell when the engine is running and even after the engine has been shut off (soon after shutting off the engine or when there is a sudden change in the weather due to temprature changes). When you open the fuel lid when the tank is empty, how bad is the pressure release ? Check for fuel leaks. If there is no leak, and the engine is not running rich, your most likely culprit is going to be the EVAC system (most likely the charcoal canister).

Just so you know fuel smell can also be because of the EVAC system going bad (particularly if the charcoal canister is bad). It is quite common in SL because Lankans have a habit of over filling the the fuel tank. So fuel just floods the EVAC lines (more than it should) and eventually the canister goes bad and doesn't remove the fuel odor. Sri Lanka bein Sri Lanka, it never gets fixed. Even if you want to fix it Toyota does not make the part for it anymore. So your only option is to find a used one. OR find a compatible unit from a newer car (easier said than done) Not saying your EVAN system is pooched...just saying so you know it is a possibility.

Out of that list the 3rd gen RAV4 would be the easiest to drive and own. I have had 4 (the 3rd being my parents car till this day). Fuel economy is not that bad nor that good compared to its competition. One thing you need to look out for is to make sure the car doesn't have oil issues. The earlier versions had piston ring issues which led to oil burn. If properly maintained (i.e. regularly services) the likelihood of things going bad is low but in SL you never know. The facelift models had the issue resolved. CR51/41...not the most refined of cars. Very utilitarian. Easy to drive but also a bit stressful. Rear wheel drive, light rear-end...can get bit of a handful. I used to know people who drove around with sandbags in the back during the rainy season. 1st gen HR-V (I am assuming you are referring to the actual HR-V and not the one that is the Vezel). Fun little car. Most parts interchangeable with Hondas of the era (this also means you get the problems of other Hondas. Including the messy rear-diff which needs regular maintenance and whines without the actual Honda diff oil). Mechanically you will be set, however it is going to be difficult to find any sort of body part. Land Cruiser truck and Axio/Corolla. Okay..funcitonally might work. However practicality might not be as rosy. Finding a decent 70 series and a decent Corolla/Axio is going to be a hard task. The Corolla you are looking at is what wet dreams are made of for a certain market segment of Lankans. Downside to that is they are priced unreasonably and they are all shiney baskets of catloy with fake badges and cheap upgrades. Looking at your history with us on AL, this only means you are going to spend a bucket full of money and countless hours restoring it (which believe me is going to bring out a lot of bad tendencies out of you). Plus....your dad is 74 years old. You are doubling his burden by making him have to maintain two cars. Out of your list...my vote goes to the RAV4. It would feel the most modern and the best all-rounder. It might not be as off-road capable as the 70 series or a Prado but it can handle most average trails most people will throw at it. Get the newest one possible. Another option is something like a StarWagon or a SpaceWagon. Higher end ones come surprisingly well equipped (for its age) and has the durability of the L200 or Pajero drive trains of the period. If you are lucky...You might also be able to find a: a. 3-door shortwheel base 40 series Pajero. There are few of them (original) around, including a port auction with a fairly new registration. b. Mitsubishi Challenger c. Nissan Terrano (is the first gen X-Trail out of the running ?) d. JT series Vitara (2005-2008ish). RWD. Proper part-time 4wd or full-time AWD system, depending on the model. A bit trucking but fairly decent and capable. e. Pajero iO ?

Jimny is a wonderful litte car. However, on long distances you do feel the road fatigue. It gets loud and jittery and you feel it. That way a normal kei car (modern ones) are more comfortable. 8mil should be possible for a car that is around the 2-3 year mark since it is a kei car. Needless to say the Jimny Sierra will be significantly more expensive as the engine is a 1.5L. Fun fact...the Jimny Nomad (i.e. 5 door Jimny) was launched in Japan on the 31st of January. Went to look at the thing on the 1st of February. Not a bad car. I was told the order books were closed because there had been 50,000+ orders and delivery time is nearly 2 years. As for the prices in general...they all say X upwards, so the price quoted would be the lowest spec'd price, and for some of them, you really don't want the lowest spec. For 58mil you are probably looking at the 2.7L petrol LC250. That thing is horrendous. Do not buy it. The car is too heavy for the 2.7L petrol engine. The 2.8L diesel is barely sufficient but it is out of breath doing a 110 on the highway. Corolla for 14.5mil you are looking at a gasoline variant, probably a WxB closer to the 2-3 year mark, in which case you want the 3 year old car instead of the 2 year old car (Toyota sales people themselves say that the petrol Corolla was made to be cheaper to attract business clients as part of th eplan to phase out the Axio). Then, on the other hand, the Axio is probably newer than the quoted Corolla, but what sucks is you only get a business model, so it is very spartan. The new Swift...it is a nice car to drive but there have been engine reliability concerns. Mainly to do with the configuration rather than the engine itself. For a same amount of money I would buy the Vezel over the Corolla (especially if the latter is a petrol). Vezel is more refined, feels more roomy and more practical. Not much change in the Raize than what Lankans are used to. Same with the kei cars over there. Same old song, different melody. There really isn't much improvement in terms of ride and handling from the previous models. Yaris...the 1L still sucks. Hybrid or the 1.5L petrols are the decent ones. Much better ride than the Vitz. Interior still feels cheap and lacking in most grades. If you are going for the Hybrid or Petrol you might as well go for the Yaris Cross. Slightly rolly polly ride compared to the hatch but quite nimble. Not much different in terms of practicality over the hatchback but at least you get the added clearence (and hopefully AWD) but mostly the interior feels a bit more refined. If going for a Hybrid Yaris might as well go for an Aqua. Same platform, same power and drive train but a bit more refined packaging (that is how they market it here as well..Yaris for the youthful, Aqua for the more mature). Hilux...what you really want is the 2.8L diesel (same engine as the 150 and 250 Prados). This is not sold in Japan (except for a few grey imports) so it will have to be sourced from Thailand. The 2.8 is much more potent than the 2.4 which also is not too bad. The GR Sport of the JDM Hilux is mostly a dress-up kit. The export (Thai) GR Sport actually has more power, more torque and better suspension tuning (so again...export model is better than the JDM).

Yeah...got a bit of a shock when I saw the price....hope the resto is good and proper.

Okay.in the interest of keeping the thread going...I shall post a vehicle. This should be pretty easy if you have been on the usual SL FB car pages the last few weeks. Was considered to be rather ugly looking at the time with rather pig-like facial features.

I think it is because of the uncertainty. No one knows what is actually happening with car imports and after car imports. A group of people are worried that prices will tumble and are trying to sell them off. Complementing then you have the potential buyers who are waiting for imports to resume or demanding their prices. But seriously though....there really isn't much choice of what to replace it with is there ?

Okay...you should take your car to a garage and get everything sorted out. Your car can have issues ranging from cat converter going back, O2 sensors etc are going bad, gaskets going bad and fluids mixing up, carbon and sludge deposits, etc...your fuel can be contaminated, your oil can be contaminated (as you just simply top up and not do an actual change). You said your oil is not a good color...what color is it? Do you know if coolant is leaking into it? You said there is black smoke, which is a typical indication of an incomplete burn. This itself can be because there is insufficient air going into the combustion, the fuel is bad (moisture could have built up in the tank; if leaving idle for a long time, you should leave the tank full), to the spark plugs going bad (even though you changed it a year or so ago the car left idle could have caused them to go bad). Leaving a car idle and just starting it to charge the battery is not the best thing to do. There is no guarantee that the engine comes to the proper operating temperature (what you see n the dash is NOT the operating temperature of the engine and the oil !). There are other components that need to get lubricated which doesn't happen when you don't run the car, without this lubrication, gaskets, etc..can go bad if the engine doesn't reach operating temperature. Also if the car doesn't run there is no proper pressure running through air valves (intake and exhaust) then moisture can build up and even carbon deposits can build up. So it is really hard to answer your question because your car seems to suffer from lot rot (car illness that occurs when the car is just left parked for a long time).