iRage

Okie...here is the next quiz. Pretty easy...seems like quite a few are starting to make it over here to SL.

That door handle and key combo looks like it is a Saab Sonett. The side marker seems about it is from one too.

Dude...it is a wagon. Why on earth would a hatchback want to race a wagon. That is like a young dude challenging a pregnant lady with a 3-year-old hanging off of her arm to a 100m race (before finding out the lady can run).

That is a nice ride ! Congratulations ❤️

Too afraid...last time I saw a Honda and Toyota going at speed next to each other the cars got taken by the cops Those 3 gear Hondas are a bad influence. huh ? cant see what is funny. City is the export model name and Grace the Japanese market name. Before the Grace it was City and Fit Aria. When the City became a sedan they couldn't use the City name in Japan because in Japan the City badge was used as a variant name on other little hatchbacks (which is funny because when the City hatch was in Japan it had a variant called the Fit). Nope..cannot be. The CIty/Grace (i.e. 6th gen) came with a 1.5L gasoline or hybrid engine. In Japan they offered both while in Malaysia they offered only the gasoline variant prior to the facelift. The gasoline variant came with a CVT while the Hybrid had the DCT. Are you sure you are not saying the Malaysian variant was smooth because the DCT had the gear shift feel along with a proper feel of reaching the torque limit while the CVT just felt smooth and the engine was endlessly revy ?

DCTs are fun to drive...sadly, they don't hold up too well when it comes to the Lankan style of driving. This applies to all brands. Uhh....this shouldn't be surprising ne ? The Civic should have about 115?-120hp with some decent torque once the turbo spools up (I am reckoning about 175Nm ?) at about 3000-4000rpms ?. Compare that to about 105hp and about 140Nm of torque of a 1.5L Premio/Allion...it should be pretty straight-forward (also explains why it puffs out next to the Hybrid Corolla). This also goes along with Honda's claims on downsizing. They say the 1.5L turbo engines in the Civic/CR-V/Accord should give performance equivalent to that of a 1.8L to 2.0L engines (this is quite different to Toyota's approach to downsizing..at least until now). That has always been one of Hondas traits....the peppy feeling and the driver engagement (irrespective of whether they were actually quicker or not than the competition). In the 80s and 90s they did get the reputation for being the Japanese BMW. Also, this might explain why so many Civic drivers are complete a**h***s on the road. Seriously...so many of them come up and then start this whole drag war thing for no bloody reason. Then they run out of puff and block the lanes. Seriously ! (got dashcam video footage from yesterday to prove it..).

I saw on the internet that it needs only 3 gears to go fast like a rocket Just encountered one of those Civic boys on the road who was being an a$$ and tried to drag the Toyota paddy wagon

The 1L Vitz was never meant for heavy loads. It is primarily sold as a fleet vehicle for modest driving. They are literally used as city driven delivery vehicles or rental cars. True you do see them on the highway driven by sales reps and tourists but once it reaches 100kmph on the highway in about 1 hr 37 minutes and 46 seconds it can just stay at that speed for ages. Also, vehicle weight and suspension setup have a lot to do with road fatigue. So yeah..the Civic is a much nicer family car for some long haul drives (okay..not as comfy as a larger car but still good).

Not really the case and point though...If Toyota REALLY wanted to, are you telling me that the VItz and the Aqua couldn't have been the same car and in specific cases they are? You are looking at the Aqua and the cheapo Vitz in SL that are two cars based based on a period a decade ago! Yes, there was some differentiation, but if you look at the Hybrid or 1.5L or 1.3L Vitz versions of higher grades, it gets very nonsensical. The differentiation is even further reduced with the current models. Now granted, the 1L Yaris is nowhere near the Aqua and should, in fact, be nothing more than sacrificial lambs to ward off evil spirits. The typically most sold Yaris is the 1.5L Hybrid, which, is exactly the Aqua but in different sheet metal. They are both based on the same platform (this time we are talking about most of the frame being the same too) with just new sheet metal and somewhat reshaped interior panels. Toyota's official explanation is that the Yaris is for a youthful vibe and the Aqua for a more refined mature vibe. This has been the case all along but in reverse! Like seriously ! Interviews with the designers, etc...stated the same thing back then but in reverse. Aqua was the youthful car, so they showcased models like convertible aquas and even a luxury one. Going back to the Vitz and the Aqua of the times you mentioned...the difference you state is by design. The Aqua was targeted as a youthful car. Thus things like the handling and ride were made a bit sharper and harder (the Aqua has a really good frame compared to the Vitz. It is quite chuckable). The Vitz was for conservative buyer (older people, office ladies, and fleet owners). Now add in to the mix cars like the Passo..a car that existed simply because the car it replaced got bigger. Huh ? Now...on top of that, Toyota is hinting that it will re-release a Starlet that is the size of a Passo (not the rebadged Baleno but an actual Toyota Starlet..at least as a GR car). This will be based on the same platform as the Yaris and Aqua. So...now..we are bringing back the old model to sit alongside the new model that was the successor to the old model (the Starlet) because the new model is too big and bulky and is no longer the old model it succeeded ? HUH ? Yes...The City is the export model name while Grace was the JDM madel name. Both are the same car and the Grace, for some time and in certain specs, was manufactured in Thailand along side the City for the Japanese market. The Grace did come with different specs than the City. Well..cars have grown in a segment. If you look at the City/Grace, Yaris (sedan)/hatch, Mazda 2 sedan/hatch these are what the Civic, Corolla, Mazda 3 etc..used to be. The Civic, Corolla, Mazda 3 are now what the Accord, Corona/Carina and Mazda Atenza used to be. So yeah...the non-boaty days of the Civic, Corolla are gone. But then it is also because the demographic these cars were aiming for also has grown in age. Civic, Corolla, Familia were cars intended for young families. The kind of first car you buy for your growing family as you start off in your career. Well....now a days people get married in their 30s and by that time they are somewhat at a midpoint in their careers and want more. Same applies to the other models.

K swap it !!!!

In Japan it is doing okay. No significant issues apart from a few service campaigns and minor recalls. Although it was popular at launch sales have been dipping since the launch of the Corolla Cross and upscaling of the Yaris Cross (mostly thanks to Toyota marketing). In SL....I think we are still yet to see how it will do. Right now, the ony reason it is popular is its 1.5L engine (thus lower import duties) thus greater value for money compared to its competitors.

Isn't that always the case though? It's a matter of trickling down technology and also the maturing of the market. A Yaris today is much better equipped than a 141 Axio and light years ahead in terms of packaging compared to an E90 or even an e100 Corolla. A Corolla is as well-equipped as an Allion/Premio, the list goes on. This applies to tech as well as platforms. This is a problem for both the manufacturer and the consumer. The exception to this might be Nissan. They are just simply sliding down by just rebadging and re-shelling cheap French boxes. As tech trickles down, consumers are stuck with ever more complicated and decked-out options at higher prices. Simplicity is lost 90% of the time. On the other hand, manufacturers have the issue of not being able to offer that much differentiation between the products and at times between different brands. Is there really that much difference between the new Crown and the LS ? Some would even argue that the Crown is better (the turbo setup of the LS sort of killed the essence of the LS). Is there really much difference between an Aqua and a Vitz ? Does the difference between the Harrier and the RAV4 REALLY justify having two different models? Why not have one or the other but offer it in different trims? Due to all of this, manufacturers resort to all kinds of insignificant gimmicks to peddle cars to the consumer.

YES ! Jaguar XK120 it is ! Over to you JC !

The 5th-gen Hybrid system is surprisingly good. The gasoline has 120 hp and 145 Nm of torque vs the Hybrid's 140HP combined and 142 Nm of torque from the gasoline engine, plus the electric motor has 180ish Nm of torque. Now, because of how Hybrid systems work, although HP can be combined, torque necessarily cannot be (because it varies on if the car is running in EV mode, non-EV mode or combined mode). So interestingly, the Hybrid does pull better. It will be interesting to see how Toyota's next-gen petrol engines will do. Granted, the petrol variant does feel lighter, which is a blessing and a curse. A blessing as it feels more nimble. A curse, because it makes the car feel a bit bouncy/bouyant. Either way, as much as the Civic is not my favorite car, it is a nicer car to drive than the Corolla (as it should be). that is sad. Sadly this seems to be the biggest frustration of taking care of a car in SL. The garages are ever willing to fix the symptom and get you out the door but are not taking the effort to identify and solve the underlying cause.

Let's agree to disagree I sort of get where you are coming from, same small engine/cvt trying to be in the same market segment but not in the same segment at the same time. However, I believe the factors against the City being a successor to the 1L Civic are more compelling. A successor should carry over the essence of its predecessor or improve on what the predecessor was (not just have a similar engine/transmission combo). If you buy a City expecting it to be anything close to a Civic, you will be sadly disappointed. Quite frankly, equating the Civic to a City is quite an insult to the Civic. I am not saying the City is a bad car...it is not a Civic and cannot be a successor to a Civic because it doesn't have the core elements that make the modern Civic a Civic. Cars of a specific period share the same design language, which gives them hues of other models (which is why the Premio crowd believed they were buying a small Crown). Characteristically (size, form and function) they are quite different too. The City is the entry-level subcompact sedan while the Civic is a mid/high-level sub-compact sedan/hatch. If you consider the engine and transmission combinations to be the basis for succession, then that would be akin to saying that the 1.5L 2WD CR-V is the successor to a Civic wagon, a 2.0L Premio/Allion the successor to a Camry/Vista, or the Fit a successor to the Civic hatch. (**purposely left the Vezel out as it shares the platform with the Civic it doesn't offer a contrast similar to the CIty/Civic..also it is not "long" enough to be a wagon). The mechanical tech in the Civic is far better than that of the City. For the City to succeed the Civic in this regard it will literally have to be a Civic. The FK rides and handles much better than the City (previous and current). Much better refinement (not that the City is bad either). They are in totally different segments to be successors or alternatives for either unless the basis for succession or the alternative is purely a matter of downgrading based on cost. Rather than the City being a Civic successor, the same logic should have been applied in reverse - the 1L Civic is budgeted down to be a successor/"premium alternative" to the City in some markets. Same with the 3rd-gen City and the Civic EF. True...it had the boxy sharp edges, and was built on the EF platform (to save on plant machinery costs, component sharing, etc...) and this was a marketing point for the local agents. However, similar to the current City, in no way did the car ride, handle (suspension was different) or even have the same refinement as the EF. This was somewhat of a disappointing factor for those expecting a continuation of the EF and/or the quirky practicality of the original City.

Here is the thing....all the Corollas in the country for sale (and actually all the new Corollas except for 3) are petrol variants. With the facelift Toyota vastly changed the petrol from the hybrid (the petrol doesn't even share the same/traditional chassis code as the Hybrid variant). The petrol Corolla is not bad..however... 1. The rear suspension sucks. Good for city crawling but go on the highway or drive through the corner the rear becomes quite bouncy thanks to the torsion beam setup. After the Civic you will hate it. 2. DIrect-shift CVT...the physical first gear is fine but from there onwards it is a droney @#@! After the Civic you will lose all passion for driving with this. 3. In JDM Civic is only a hatchback while the Corolla is a proper sedan. You don't get much more space in the Corolla. Moral of the story...go for the Corolla Hybrid (eCVT is not that much better though..but atleast you get more power and torque) or go for the new Civic. There is one already in the country and a trusted source stated that a few others are on the way. New Civic vs. Corolla....Civic.

I saw a blue colored one being posted on the local FB groups claiming to be the first one imported in to SL. Seemed like a LX trim (not sure there weren;t many pics..just a front three-quarter view with the owners standing in front of it). The new Civic is a nice car. Feels more refined than the Corolla, as well as roomier. Handles much better than the gasoline Corolla (I would say on par with the Hybrid Corolla due to the suspension differences between Hybrid and Petrol as well as the weight). The interior feels dark, just as in the Corolla (thanks to modern design elements) but it feels more spacious. What I didn't like about the Civic was the plastic-ness of the knobs and the mesh like thing on the dash/vents. Earlier, the EX trim came in both manual and auto but with the introduction of the RS the manual is offered only in the RS. I would say go with the RS, but that costs about 600,000yen more than the EX. But with the upgraded suspension, it handles nicer, and with the manual transmission, it is actually nice to drive. In Japan, the car has a reputation for being finicky as the engine is perceived to be hyper-sensitive and requires diligent maintenance, but as far as I know there hasn't been any significant number of reported (catastrophic) failures.

Okay...this should be quite simple considering the spotlight this particular car in SL has been getting these days...

No...it is the successor to the previous generation City (or the Grace if it was still alive). Both are quite minimalistic, considering they are both entry-level cars in their own segments. Granted the Honda's interior feels more refined than the Toyota and that is usually always the case with all the Toyotas and Hondas. The issue is in SL most of the Raizes that come are mid or low trim levels, so it is not the most well-equipped. @Noobdriver the better car is the Civic. It holds on to the road much better than the City. Which is to be expected as the City is smaller and has a different suspension specs; a torsion beam setup in the rear vs the Civic's multilink setup (I believe this was the same across the board, even for the budget engine version).

Hard not to give 70s and 80s british rock/pop legendary status to these guys. The car's home-country Embassy had one of the old model sedans. Not sure if anything else is around in SL.

Sorry I am not in Sri Lanka so don't know which garages are still good (the level of service keeps changing frequently). I usually get my stuff done at SpreyMech because of known people and an old school old gentleman. Depending on how long you plan on keeping the car you might want to consider giving the entire engine a refresh (i.e. changing all oil seals, decarbonization, etc...)

Not going to comment on FLAMMA coils. But what I can say is that a lot of Lankans end up spending more money on the long run by opting for cheap/unknown parts in the hope of saving a few thousands at the beginning. Go for the original or a reputed OEM brand. FLAMMA ICs..not the most popular here and people mostly go for them for older cars where the manufacturer and major OEMs don't support it any longer. If the original from Japan is 25,000ish..what is stopping you from getting it down from there ?

It could be that your crank seals are spoiled, and the oil is seeping into the transmission/bellhousing. What a lot of people in SL get wrong is they focus on just fixing visible oil leaks. The thing is if one seal is spoilt the chances are it won't be too long before other seals start going bad too (unless you have verifiable proof that it was replaced within a recent amount of time in the past). Second mistake is people think that if the mileage is low it doesn't matter even if it has been 10 years. The thing is, these materials degrade with time. So even if the mileage is low seals, etc...need to be replaced.

Happening right now with the Hilux. Car sales were harping about the JAPAN GR Sport Hilux, suggesting they were better. But someone realised that the Thai spec with the 2.8L engine was actually better (more aggressive body kit and more power) they sheepishly changed their story . The reality is the Japanese market is more or less dead when it comes to specialty vehicles/specs (local demand for cars like the GR Supra, GR Yaris, and GR Corolla are tapering off too as most are bought by car exporters). Most of the owners of cars like sporty ALtos, GRY/GRC are old people (e.g. myself). So whenever manufacturers introduce "sporty" versions of mass models they offer it in a very conservative manner to attract the average family man (actually, his wife). Interestingly, for cars like the GR Corolla and GR Yaris, they have to go absolutely opposite of that to convince the existing GRC/GRY owners to change their cars. So...JDM spec is not as special as export spec when it comes to global models.

It would help if you state what kind of oil leak (or where the oil leak is) ? Depending on where it is the complexity can change drastically.