Online reference for owners of imported Toyota MPVs.

(Home) Manual or web-site

As an owner of a smoking 28mpg lazy air-con Townie that exhibits a variety of symtoms of wear and tear - this web site makes good reading and lots of helpful hints. There seem to be certain subjects rearing their ugly heads quite frequently and i wonder if this calls for some 'gardening'. Perhaps it calls for categorisation of subjects into a virtual collaborative workshop manual rather than an extensive translation of the manufacturer's manual. After all, many of the problems encountered by owners may not be covered in a manufacturer's manual. For example i wonder if the russian manual covers the issue of cracking piston heads and exhaust manifolds. I'm sure that most people's need for a manual is limited to the user-serviceable bits and common faults - a great number of which are serviced by this board of knowledge! Many of these contributions however are very helpful but do stop short of being 'definitive'. For example, what mpg SHOULD a healthy unladen townie do at 60mph without air con after 10 years on the road? What are the user-friendly adjustments that one can make to the engine without the aid of specialist tools or cocking up all the settings?
I might pay £50 for a townace manual but then again if there was an on line version with some kind of subscription arrangement for printing out pertinent bits for getting dirty in the garage i might prefer this.
mark(ypoos)
ps i mean the MANUAL getting dirty in the garage . . . ?* - (#652) Mark Adams, 24 Jul 01

As an owner of a smoking 28mpg lazy air-con Townie that exhibits a variety of symtoms of wear and tear - this web site makes good reading and lots of helpful hints. There seem to be certain subjects rearing their ugly heads quite frequently and i wonder if this calls for some 'gardening'. Perhaps it calls for categorisation of subjects into a virtual collaborative workshop manual rather than an extensive translation of the manufacturer's manual. After all, many of the problems encountered by owners may not be covered in a manufacturer's manual. For example i wonder if the russian manual covers the issue of cracking piston heads and exhaust manifolds. I'm sure that most people's need for a manual is limited to the user-serviceable bits and common faults - a great number of which are serviced by this board of knowledge! Many of these contributions however are very helpful but do stop short of being 'definitive'. For example, what mpg SHOULD a healthy unladen townie do at 60mph without air con after 10 years on the road? What are the user-friendly adjustments that one can make to the engine without the aid of specialist tools or cocking up all the settings?
Like an FAQ for this board? - Brilliant idea. I might start to go through all the messages still available and see what I can compile. No promises though. I'll announce first results and where to find them in this board.
Holger - (#657) Holger Laux, 26 Jul 01

OK, I started to sift through the messages.
Here is a start. I know it need some formatting and perhaps a better structure. At the moment, I am just collecting the info and sorting it into categories.
Read you soon,
Holger - (#658) Holger Laux, 26 Jul 01

Err ... don't want to dampen anyone's enthusiasm but I currently cut and paste all entries into an indexed document. I've already offered it to Mark for inclusion on the site for anyone that wants it. I'm also aware of another contributor to the site who is taking that info and consolidating it into a linked website. Until that's widely available, anyone who wants the compiled list (it's a Word 97 doc saved as HTML) let me know by e-mailing me. No point in you spending hours screen-scraping (believe me it's painful!)
Ian - (#659) Ian Dunse, 26 Jul 01