Used 2010's Toyota Avalon Thoughts

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Hello yall!!!!

I am interested in looking into maybe purchasing a 2009 and up toyota avalon 3.5l with with a minimum amount of miles of about 60k.
(This is the current market rate of miles that I see being sold, thus what I am considering)
Also maybe even the 2013's (new model) as they are quite cheap $17ish vs $12ish, however being 100% with myself I am not very fond of the new body style...

Any thoughts, concerns, or major things to look into???

This car will Solely be used for highway driving 75 mph commutes of 1 city to another.
Maybe joy rides & going out on weekends so comfort is still top priority.

Priorities:
1) Reliability
2) Comfort/softness/low noise/drives like a boat

Location is Houston Texas.
So temperature is pretty much always 75+ Fahrenheit, altitude sea level, humidity quite high and always raining.

Thanks for reading and/or comments, concerns, thoughts, ideas, etc.
 
Priorities:
1) Reliability
2) Comfort/softness/low noise/drives like a boat

Yup and yup. It is the perfect car if you want #1 and #2.
 
I had a 2011 Avalon that was flawless for the 70k miles I had it. Just going from memory I seem to recall the Avalon had an issue about that vintage with a coolant or oil line coming off. There was a TSB where they replaced the rubber line with a metal line and seems around maybe 2010 it was standard issue on the new ones. Here it is. I had to look it up. Another issue was oil leaks on the timing chain cover. This might have been fixed by 2009. Look for more info on these issues at Toyota Nation forum.
 
My aunt has a 2016 Avalon that we just took on a 5,000 mile road trip last month. That motor has got some extreme power, it'll really scoot! Soft pillow ride, very comfortable, can't take a turn fast though. Got 28.8 mpg on the trip and it was driven hard, lots of mountains and full throttle accelerations, from Montana to AZ the last bit of the trip the cruise was set to 85 mph.
 
All really depends on how the vehicle has been maintained. You do not want a sludged up engine and a tranny that has never been serviced.
 
They have a powerful and fuel efficient engine but the chassis lets it down when you need to turn.
 
Hard to go wrong with a 2010 Avalon, last year before the redesign, most have been older adult owned and probably not abused.

Near Lexus quality, same drive train as the ES-350 but roomier and better visibility. Plus, auto trans issues were long resolved by that point.
 
This drivetrain started with the 2007 MY ES350. By 2009 they had worked out the kinks. The days of Toyota launching a reliable vehicle when a new powertrain is introduced are long gone, unfortunately. As mentioned, if you get a 2009 do check that the hoses to the OCV's have been changed from rubber to a metal component one. Engines were lost because of that flaw.

The newer Avalons are very close to the ES is styling and amenities. In the prior generation, arguably better since the ES's were plagued with horrible wind noise on some MYs. The Avalon is really the current equivalent of what the ES was; the ES has been shrunk from being a roomy near-full size car to a tight mid-sized now.
 
Caution on the newest Gen of Avalon(2013-present), if you are looking for a soft suspension!

When this newest generation of Avalon was introduced, Toyota made the suspension too stiff and it took some hits from the automotive PRESS for trying to be something it's not...SPORTY!

One of the reasons that Toyota made the suspension stiff was because of the PRESS(saying it was too soft). Now, Toyota has rectified this issue.

Recently(around 2016), Toyota is now offering a standard/softer suspension in this generation as before while still keeping the firmer suspension for those who want sporty.

One publication said that the stiff suspension "hurt ride more than it helped handling". AND, Toyota was "admitting to a crime that the car didn't commit"!
 
My wife has an '06 Avalon, I always end up driving my vehicle if we go any real distance together so she is still below 90kmiles (I am pushing 70k in my '14).

I think the Avalon pretty fun to drive, the one thing I really don't like is that the steering is way too light and has no "feel" at all...my wife likes that, she doesn't want to have to put any effort into driving. I also have a hard time not spinning the tires when leaving a light, my AWDs handle my heavy foot way better than that FWD. I had a RAV4 with the same V6 as the Avalon (RAV6) and that engine pushed the heavier SUV along quite nicely, the Avalon is even a little quicker, of course...I would guess that the Camry V6 must be a little screamer, not that I would ever buy one.

My wife did a lot of research before buying the car and found one source (CR?) that felt that the car had poor emergency handling and even bordered on a rollover risk because the suspension was so soft...except in the Sport trim, which was a little stiffer. She ended up buying a Sport, even though she couldn't get all the bells and whistles at that level, because she was very concerned about safety. I think that the Avalon is a good match for her, but she still says she misses her Bonneville (which wasn't even the supercharged version, much to my chagrin). Given that I have driven wagons and SUVs for 20 years, the Avalon doesn't feel too ungainly to me, but I wouldn't call it sporty (even the Sport version). I do have a fun memory of a kid in some stupid, droning little tuner challenging me at a light when I happened to be in the Avalon and me blowing him away without even really trying...he eventually caught up to me on the 55mph road and flew by me at a speed trap I was well aware of, he panicked and locked up his brakes when he saw the cruiser but didn't get pulled over (awwww).

I pushed my wife really hard to buy an S80 instead of the Avalon because AWD would be really handy for her in our climate, but she didn't like the higher price and just calls me at work whenever she gets stuck in the hills around our neighborhood in her FWD vehicle with no snow tires so I can push.
 
I'd consider the '13+ hybrid version. You'll get about 20% better highway mileage than the V6, and about 30% overall. The downside is that you lose 2 cu feet of space in the truck for the battery. Reliability is supposed to be better too, and power is about the same.
 
My wife has owned a 2000 and a 2006 Avalon. The rubber VVT oil line failed, 'burst' in the first week of ownership but fixed under warranty. I call the Avalon a 'Japanese Buick'...to her chagrin. We just bought her a 2013 Lexus ES350 ultra and she loves it. Both Avalons were great, smooth, quiet, pavement eating barges. It sounds like it might be just what you need.

."The Avalon is really the current equivalent of what the ES was; the ES has been shrunk from being a roomy near-full size car to a tight mid-sized now".

^ Oro-o...The sixth gen ES350 is actually bigger than it's predecessors!

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/2013-lexus-es350-first-drive-review
 
Originally Posted By: Virtus_Probi
I also have a hard time not spinning the tires when leaving a light, my AWDs handle my heavy foot way better than that FWD.


YIKES! Really?
Why are you in such a hurry?
 
Originally Posted By: Linctex
Originally Posted By: Virtus_Probi
I also have a hard time not spinning the tires when leaving a light, my AWDs handle my heavy foot way better than that FWD.


YIKES! Really?
Why are you in such a hurry?


I don't like being in clumps of traffic and will do almost anything to avoid merging with other vehicles. I also think taking off is generally fun, so I get on the gas pretty hard a lot.
 
Originally Posted By: Linctex
Originally Posted By: Virtus_Probi
I also have a hard time not spinning the tires when leaving a light, my AWDs handle my heavy foot way better than that FWD.


YIKES! Really?
Why are you in such a hurry?

Some front wheel drive cars are prone to that kind of tire-spinning behavior.
Example: A work 2007 Dodge Caravan with 3.8 engine. Darn thing spun the tires all the time. It comes down to the way the car's suspension responds to acceleration from a standstill. Or a Toyota echo with a new clutch. Thing had 100 horsepower when new, it might be down to 80 horsepower now. Still spins the tires often (annoyingly) when I try to accelerate quickly.

Rear wheel drive - put my foot down, the power goes where i want it to go. Car tucks and goes.
 
I wonder if tire choice comes into play, for a FWD to spin a tire. Some tires more prone to wheelspin.

It can be nice to get more than 3 cars through the light before it changes. It can be annoying to be the 5th guy in line, at a light; and then have to wait. You know how it goes. First car takes off, but the second guy waits a sec or two before he (gently) steps on it. Then the third guy waits a sec or two, and ...
 
Originally Posted By: john_pifer
Highly refined, Japanese take on a Buick Mercedes


Fixed that for 'ya!
 
Originally Posted By: Oro_O
Originally Posted By: john_pifer
Highly refined, Japanese take on a Buick Mercedes


Fixed that for 'ya!


Please.
 
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