2006 Toyota Avalon

I OWN A 2006 TOYOTA AVALON..LIGHT CAME ON TODAY (VSC) DID NOT KNOW WHAT IT WAS UNTIL DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY GOING 65 MPH AND ALL OF A SUDDEN MY VEHICLE LOST POWER AND ENGINE STILL IDLING...PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD, VERY DANGEROUS, NO SHOULDER. I SHUT THE CAR DOWN AND RESTARTED IT...GAVE IT A LITTLE GAS AND THOUGHT I COULD EXIT THE FREEWAY..AS I GAVE IT GAS TRYING TO MERGE BACK INTO THE SLOW LANE WITH 65MPH TRAFFIC..IT NEARLY CAUSED A REAR IN COLLISION WITH ANOTHER VEHICLE.. MY CAR CUT OUT AND THEN IT WENT UP TO 50MPH (CUTTING OUT THE ENTIRE TIME)..ENOUGH TO GET ME OFF THE FREEWAY. TAKING IT TO THE DEALER IN THE MORNING. WHATEVER THE PROBLEM WITH THE VSC...WILL BE DETERMINED IN THE MORNING AT THE TOYOTA DEALER. VERY DANGEROUS. *TR

CAR STARTED LEAKING LARGE AMOUNT OF OIL AND HAD TO BE TOWED TO DEALER. NO OIL LIGHT CAME ON. OIL LINE ON ENGINE LEAKING. OIL COVERED OTHER PARTS THAT HAD TO BE REPLACED. TOYOTA HAD NO MANUFACTURE REPLACEMENT PARTS IN USA AND STATED THEY WOULD HAVE TO BE MANUFACTURED. MANUFACTURE OF PARTS COULD TAKE 60-90 DAYS. DEALER REPLACED PART WITH SUBSTITUTE OIL LINE RECOMMENDED BY TOYOTA IN ORDER TO REPAIR CAR IN A TIMELY MANNER. CAR WAS COVERED IN OIL UNDER CAR AND WAS NOT CLEANED. MOTOR COULD HAVE BEEN RUINED HAD OIL LEAK NOT BEEN DISCOVERED WHEN PARKING THE CAR. NOTICE THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM NATIONALLY AND THERE HAS BEEN NO RECALL. PRICE OF NON TOYOTA PART AND REPAIRS WAS $683.00. THIS SHOULD HAVE BEEN COVERED IN A RECALL, WITH ALL THE PROBLEMS THIS PART IS CAUSING. *TR

CAR COMPLETELY RAN OUT OF OIL WITH NO WARNING LIGHTS EVER ILLUMINATING. THE CAR WAS NOT DRIVABLE AND HAD TO BE TOWED. FOUND OUT VVTI LINE HAD TSB (ALTHOUGH I HAD BEEN IN THE DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPT FOR OIL CHANGE THE MONTH BEFORE) THE PART WAS BEING REDESIGNED BY TOYOTA AND WAS BACKORDERED. SIX WEEKS LATER ( I STILL DO NOT HAVE MY CAR), TOYOTA REPLACED THE PART AND REFUSES TO TEST THE ENGINE FOR DAMAGE CAUSED AS A RESULT OF CAR RUNNING COMPLETELY OUT OF OIL. THEIR CUSTOMER SERVICE DEPARTMENT ASSIGNED US A CASE NUMBER BUT THEN NO ONE EVER CALLED US BACK, MEANWHILE I DO NOT WANT TO ACCEPT MY CAR AS I FEEL IT IS POTENTIALLY UNSAFE DUE THE OBVIOUS ENGINE DAMAGE THAT HAD TO HAVE OCCURRED SINCE THE ENGINE WAS BANGING AND KNOCKING BEFORE I REALIZED WHAT WAS GOING ON. TOYOTA REFUSES TO ISSUE RECALL AND HAS FAILED AT WARNING CONSUMERS AND THE DEALERS HAVE FAILED AT DOING DUE DILIGENCE IN CHECKING THE TSB ISSUES WHEN PEOPLE ARE IN THEIR SHOPS. IF I HAD KNOWN THIS WAS A POTENTIAL ISSUE, THE ENGINE DAMAGE COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED. *TR

1. WITHOUT WARNING, THE ENGINE STARTED MAKING WHIRRING NOISES WHEN IN MOTION AND THE ENGINE CHECK LIGHT ILLUMINATED (UNBEKNOWNST TO ME, IT WAS DROPPING OIL. 2. AFTER IT WAS FIRST REPAIRED UNDER WARRANTY, IT OCCURRED AGAIN. 3. DEALER REPORTED FAILURE OF THE VVT-I PIPE, REPLACING THE PIPE, TIMING CHAIN COVER, GASKETS, CAMSHAFT GEAR ASSEMBLY, CYLINDER HEAD GASKET, CAMSHAFT BEARING, CAMSHAFT GEAR ASSEMBLY, ADDITIONAL GASKETS AND BOLTS. *TR

VVT OIL LINE FAILURE-AS I WAS DRIVING, I HEARD A ?WHIRRING? NOISE FOR 1-2 MINUTES. THEN IT STOPPED, AND THE OIL LIGHT FLASHED ON AND OFF. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED OVER AND CHECKED UNDER THE HOOD, AND OIL WAS SPRAYED ALL OVER THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT AND THERE WAS NO OIL LEVEL INDICATED ON THE DIPSTICK. WHILE WAITING FOR A TOW TRUCK, A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF THE REMAINING OIL DRAINED OUT UNDER THE CAR. THE TOYOTA DEALER INDICATED THEY HAD 3 OTHER AVALONS WITH THE SAME PROBLEM, AND PARTS WERE BACKORDERED. NO REPAIR DATE WAS PROMISED. FROM ON-LINE MESSAGE BOARDS, THIS IS A WIDESPREAD PROBLEM WITH THE 05-06 AVALON. TOYOTA IS APPARENTLY WELL AWARE OF THIS POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS PROBLEM, BUT HAS DONE NOTHING TO PROACTIVE REPAIR/REPLACE THE LINE. THERE IS NO WARNING OF THE PROBLEM UNTIL IT HAPPENS, AND IT MAY LEAVE THE DRIVER AND OCCUPANTS OF THE CAR IN A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. *TR

I WENT OUT THIS MORNING TO WARM MY CAR. WHEN I CAME OUT TO TAKE MY SON TO SCHOOL ALL OF MY OIL HAD LEAKED OUT ON THE GROUND. I HAD JUST WENT IN FOR A REGULAR OIL CHG AT THE TOYOTA DEALER. I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT WAS WRONG. I DROVE THE CAR TO THE DEALER NOT KNOWING THAT MY ENGINE COULD HAVE LOCKED UP ON ME. LUCKILY I MADE IT TO THE DEALER SAFELY. AFTER LOOKING AT MY CAR THE TOYOTA REP. CAME OUT AND TOLD ME THAT MY VVTL LINE HAS BUSTED. I WAS LIKE THIS IS A BRAND NEW CAR. I ONLY HAD IT FOR 3 YEARS. THE REP SAID THAT THE PART IS UNDER WARRANTY AND IT WILL PROBABLY TAKE SOME WEEKS BEFORE THE PART COMES IN. SHE SAID THAT THEY ALREADY HAD CARS THERE WITH THE SAME PROBLEM THAT HAVE BEEN SITTING FOR WEEKS. SHE SAID THAT THE PART WAS ON BACK ORDER. I REALLY THINK THAT ITS CRAZY THAT TOYOTA HAVE HAD THIS MANY COMPLAINTS ON THE VVTL LINE BREAKING AND HAVE NOT MADE THEY CUSTOMERS AWARE OF IT. I AM VERY DISSATISFIED WITH TOYOTA, AND I THINK THAT THEY NEED TO DO A RECALL ON ALL CARS REGARDING THIS PROBLEM. AT LEAST SEND SOMETHING OUT TO THERE CUSTOMERS MAKING THEM AWARE OF IT. THE THING IS NOW THE PART THAT THEY ARE SENDING OUT ..WILL THAT HAVE A DEFECT IN IT TOO? IF THEY ARE JUST REPLACING THE SAME OLD PART WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOUR CAR ISN'T UNDER WARRANTY ANYMORE? IF IT WASN'T FOR MY CO-WORKER TELLING ME ABOUT THIS WEBSITE I WOULD NOT HAVE KNOWN THAT SO MANY PEOPLE HAVE HAD THE SAME PROBLEM. THIS IS JUST SO UPSETTING! *TR

ON 2/3/09 WHILE DRIVING TO WORK MY CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. ONCE I ARRIVED AT WORK I COULD SEE THAT THERE WAS OIL ALL OVER THE REAR AND UNDER CARRIAGE OF MY CAR. I CHECKED THE OIL IN THE ENGINE AND IT WAS EMPTY. I HAD THE CAR TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP. THEY TOLD ME THAT THE VVTI LINE HAD BROKE AND ALL THE OIL IN THE ENGINE WAS GONE. THE PART WAS ON BACK ORDER FOR 2 WEEKS. THEY COULD NOT TELL ME THE EXTENT OF THE DAMAGE TO THE ENGINE UNTIL THEY TAKE IT APART AND INSPECT IT. THEY GAVE ME AN ESTIMATED BILL OF $1800 FOR PARTS ONLY, NOT INCLUDING LABOR CHARGES. MY WARRANTY EXPIRED 2,000 MILES AGO. MY CAR IS TAKEN IN FOR REGULAR SERVICE. WHEN I CALLED TOYOTA THEY SAID THEY CAN NOT HELP ME BECAUSE THE TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN PUT OUT ABOUT THIS PART DID NOT INCLUDE MY CAR, IT WAS FOR THE '05 MODEL NOT THE '06. *TR