[Shanksta]

Nice review!! 1,20,000kms that is almost twice what my Innova has done. It is also a GX 8Str bought in Dec 2009 in Dark Red mica metallic, done about 68,000kms now, 4 years 4 months old now. The Innova in general is a brilliant, rugged, no-nonsense and has bullet-proof reliability(this is getting to be quite a cliche). Few points I would like to mention after going through your review:

- Changing brake pads every 50k kms is decent. But the Discs being changed twice is something unheard of, you'll be surprised to know but my Innova had it's front brake discs changed recently at 62k and the rear brake pads are still the ones that came with the car when it had 30kms on its ODO and still have 5k kms life in them.

- Absolutely right about the After Sales Service provides by Toyota they never overcharge you or push you for unwanted spares. Like for example the rear brake pads I asked him to check them and had mentioned to my SA very clearly they still the first set run for 65k kms all he did was tell me that a change is unnecessary and they can be changed at 70k kms or later when a change is necessary.

- Deja -Vu! have the same HU as yours , have a set-of-4 alloys(Touch-wood! still good) and also had my steering column boot( It is a rubber cover) changed at 50k kms when it had a tear in it. When I had my tires changed at 52k kms the tyre-wala accidentally screwed one bolt in at an angle which ruined the thread on the stud, A quick call and an hour later paid a bill of Rs 134(i think) for a new wheel stud from Toyota A.S.Service.

- Clutch overhaul twice in a span of 120k kms points clearly to clutch riding, well since you mentioned the car has lasted 60k kms after the second overhaul I assume a change in driving style for the better.

- Well other than these as a fellow owner nothing else worth mentioning, it is built robustly and it shows.

EDIT: 30k running per year is crazy, happy to know you're using the vehicle the way its meant to be. Also next time you change the tires go for Continental CPC2's in stock 205/65R15, brilliant tires with a bit of road noise but absolutely amazing wet grip.

Cya!
Shanksta

[samm]

Originally Posted by Shanksta

Also next time you change the tires go for Continental CPC2's in stock 205/65R15, brilliant tires with a bit of road noise but absolutely amazing wet grip.

Cya!
Shanksta

Just going a bit off topic , a contrasting report -
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-a...not-worth.html

If the roads aren't too great, I think Bridgestones does the best job in terms of reliability. I have proof for this all around me .

I replaced the original Bridgestones with Yoko C-Drive 225/60R15, and they have fantastic dry and wet grip. I think there are quite a few reviews on these Yoko C-Drives, but I feel its side walls are a bit on the softer side.

[Shanksta]

Originally Posted by samm

Just going a bit off topic , a contrasting report -
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/tyre-a...not-worth.html

If the roads aren't too great, I think Bridgestones does the best job in terms of reliability. I have proof for this all around me .

I replaced the original Bridgestones with Yoko C-Drive 225/60R15, and they have fantastic dry and wet grip. I think there are quite a few reviews on these Yoko C-Drives, but I feel its side walls are a bit on the softer side.

I went through the thread you have posted and yes all the points mentioned are true, these Conti's are not high performance tires, exactly ideal for the Innova which is a people carrier. The reason I chose the Conti's were firstly as far as imported tires go(Michelin, Yoko, etc.,) these had the strongest side walls. Secondly, since I did not have any experience with either Michelin or Yoko or Conti, went for the latter based on the Tyre-dealer's gyaan. It seems the Conti 4*4 215/70 R15(if I remember correctly) is a popular upgrade among knowledgeable Innova cabbies since it also increases GC. Also was dissuaded from going for the Yoko or Michelin's by the Tyre-dealer since these tires had a higher number of complaints for side-wall bulges and sid-wall cuts, even though these costed Rs2k/tyre more than the Conti's(Very knowledgeable person) . By the way I upgraded to the stock size Cpc2 205/65 R15. As of now after clocking close to 15.5k kms on them am very happy. They definitely have better wet grip compared to stock Goodyear GT3's or Bridgestones.

[samm]

Originally Posted by Shanksta

I went through the thread you have posted and yes all the points mentioned are true, these Conti's are not high performance tires, exactly ideal for the Innova which is a people carrier. The reason I chose the Conti's were firstly as far as imported tires go(Michelin, Yoko, etc.,) these had the strongest side walls. Secondly, since I did not have any experience with either Michelin or Yoko or Conti, went for the latter based on the Tyre-dealer's gyaan. It seems the Conti 4*4 215/70 R15(if I remember correctly) is a popular upgrade among knowledgeable Innova cabbies since it also increases GC. Also was dissuaded from going for the Yoko or Michelin's by the Tyre-dealer since these tires had a higher number of complaints for side-wall bulges and sid-wall cuts, even though these costed Rs2k/tyre more than the Conti's(Very knowledgeable person) . By the way I upgraded to the stock size Cpc2 205/65 R15. As of now after clocking close to 15.5k kms on them am very happy. They definitely have better wet grip compared to stock Goodyear GT3's or Bridgestones.

Thanks for the update. I was aware of the side wall issues since they are softer, but I guess the Yokos are better than Michelins in that aspect.
Will try out Conti's next time especially if I get similar grip at a lesser cost.

[dean5545]

Originally Posted by Shanksta

Nice review!! 1,20,000kms that is almost twice what my Innova has done. It is also a GX 8Str bought in Dec 2009 in Dark Red mica metallic, done about 68,000kms now, 4 years 4 months old now. The Innova in general is a brilliant, rugged, no-nonsense and has bullet-proof reliability(this is getting to be quite a cliche). Few points I would like to mention after going through your review:

Thanks alot! The main reason for excess running is that my dad's factory is 36 km one way from my house,after reaching there it does some errands like picking up clients etc. I like the red shade of the Innova,its very rare in Mumbai atleast.

- Changing brake pads every 50k kms is decent. But the Discs being changed twice is something unheard of, you'll be surprised to know but my Innova had it's front brake discs changed recently at 62k and the rear brake pads are still the ones that came with the car when it had 30kms on its ODO and still have 5k kms life in them.

Even I changed my disc at around 63,000 km approx. Have skimmed the drum first at 70,000 km I guess,don't remember.

- Absolutely right about the After Sales Service provides by Toyota they never overcharge you or push you for unwanted spares. Like for example the rear brake pads I asked him to check them and had mentioned to my SA very clearly they still the first set run for 65k kms all he did was tell me that a change is unnecessary and they can be changed at 70k kms or later when a change is necessary.

To give you an Idea :My friend's Polo cost him more to service than his Fortuner!

- Deja -Vu! have the same HU as yours , have a set-of-4 alloys(Touch-wood! still good) and also had my steering column boot( It is a rubber cover) changed at 50k kms when it had a tear in it. When I had my tires changed at 52k kms the tyre-wala accidentally screwed one bolt in at an angle which ruined the thread on the stud, A quick call and an hour later paid a bill of Rs 134(i think) for a new wheel stud from Toyota A.S.Service.

Hope you don't face similar problems too!

EDIT: 30k running per year is crazy, happy to know you're using the vehicle the way its meant to be. Also next time you change the tires go for Continental CPC2's in stock 205/65R15, brilliant tires with a bit of road noise but absolutely amazing wet grip.

Cya!
Shanksta

The current tyres have done about 5,000 km till now and I am happy with them. Will give the conti's a look though.

Thanks for stopping by and keep sharing your Innova experience we all llearn something new by sharing.

[Shanksta]

Originally Posted by dean5545

Even I changed my disc at around 63,000 km approx. Have skimmed the drum first at 70,000 km I guess,don't remember.


To give you an Idea :My friend's Polo cost him more to service than his Fortuner!

Hope you don't face similar problems too!

Thanks for stopping by and keep sharing your Innova experience we all llearn something new by sharing.

Sorry! I meant Front brake pads not the discs sorry typed in a hurry. The rear drums still have the same brake pads that came from the factory. Gonna get them changed in the 70k kms service next month.

Exactly my point shows the difference between a person who actually does his job of being a SA and another who is a 'fox-in-sheep's-clothing' type.

Touch-wood!! Hope it remains that way.

Thank you! Glad to know I was able to impart some of knowledge on the Innova based on my experience.

[karan561]

Hey dean,

What a detailed & fantastic report of your Innova, it truly shows how much you love your machine

Enjoy

[Simple_car]

Nice and crisp report there dean5545.

Your car has undergone some higher than normal abuse, but I am not surprised , knowing some of the industrial roads in the vasai area.

I would like to point out one of the crucial and perhaps very critical thing which everybody takes for granted in the innova though. The suspension being well sorted is true, but it goes about doing its job silently.. That's one thing I love about the car.

That said, forgive me for saying but your car looks like a typical 'guju' bhais Toyota... Don't take offense though.. I have similar ones in my extended family.

Wish you pleasant and happy long miles with your car. You definitely love it.

Thanks,
Simple_car

[fazonater1911]

Thats a nice report there dean5545. The alloys look sweet

Toyota innova is a no non-sense vehicle. Ask the driver who I usually call for airport runs. He has used all the three generations of Innova and is still in love with them. He used the previous gen innovas for more than a lakh and a half kilometres before selling them off and has recently acquired the current gen Innova and the reason for selling the previous gen Innovas is certainly not because of bad condition of the cars or anything of that sort. The previous innovas were in top shape before selling them. It was purely because he just loved each of its new avatar and wanted to be 'updated' as much as possible :P.

[dean5545]

Originally Posted by karan561

Hey dean,

What a detailed & fantastic report of your Innova, it truly shows how much you love your machine

Enjoy

Thanks alot to take time off and go through my thread. Glad you liked it.
Yes the car is special for us as it's the first car we brought after we started our firm also we believe it has bought us a lot of good luck too!

Originally Posted by Simple_car

Nice and crisp report there dean5545.

Your car has undergone some higher than normal abuse, but I am not surprised , knowing some of the industrial roads in the vasai area.

Luckily the road leading to my factory was paved 2 months back before that I could literally do off-roading there including water-fording. Lets hope it stays that way.

I would like to point out one of the crucial and perhaps very critical thing which everybody takes for granted in the innova though. The suspension being well sorted is true, but it goes about doing its job silently.. That's one thing I love about the car.

Completely agree with you.

That said, forgive me for saying but your car looks like a typical 'guju' bhais Toyota... Don't take offense though.. I have similar ones in my extended family.

Wish you pleasant and happy long miles with your car. You definitely love it.

Thanks,
Simple_car

LOL,What can I say now. My father's friends who were there at the time of the mods were gujjus. By the time I reached the place they had ripped apart my 2 week old car.

Originally Posted by fazonater1911

Thats a nice report there dean5545. The alloys look sweet

Thank you for the compliment.

Toyota innova is a no non-sense vehicle. Ask the driver who I usually call for airport runs. He has used all the three generations of Innova and is still in love with them. He used the previous gen innovas for more than a lakh and a half kilometres before selling them off and has recently acquired the current gen Innova and the reason for selling the previous gen Innovas is certainly not because of bad condition of the cars or anything of that sort. The previous innovas were in top shape before selling them. It was purely because he just loved each of its new avatar and wanted to be 'updated' as much as possible :P.

I know of at least 5 such people who keep changing Innovas. One of them is my Dad's client he has filling plants all over south,so keeps visiting them every month plus with the frequent visits to Mumbai,Delhi etc his Innova clocks 1,00,000 km a year. He then sells it and buys a new one. He has done this 7 times till now.

Another thing I noticed is nowadays even the cabbies buy the VX model which is fully loaded as opposed to the previous GX.

[fazonater1911]

Originally Posted by dean5545

The neatly laid speedometer.Would prefer the VX speedometer,looks much cooler.

You mentioned that the VX variant has a different speedometer. Do you have any pics of that? I kind of searched on google for the same.I thought both variants had the same console.

[dean5545]

Originally Posted by fazonater1911

You mentioned that the VX variant has a different speedometer. Do you have any pics of that? I kind of searched on google for the same.I thought both variants had the same console.

The first pic is that of my Innova's Speedo:

[GTO]

Mod Note: Team-BHP does NOT permit any posts on illegally high speeds. Lets please avoid the same & encourage safe driving practices.

Thanks!

[joybhowmik]

dean
Question for you. The toyota owner's manual does not say anything other than to inspect differential gear oil, manual transmission oil and clutch oil at the recommended inspection intervals.
Have the mechanics actually performed this inspection, and have they replaced these fluids ever in the 120k history of the car.

[dean5545]

Originally Posted by joybhowmik

dean
Question for you. The toyota owner's manual does not say anything other than to inspect differential gear oil, manual transmission oil and clutch oil at the recommended inspection intervals.
Have the mechanics actually performed this inspection, and have they replaced these fluids ever in the 120k history of the car.

As far as I remember have been changing the transmission oil every 40,000 km. Will be giving my car for service in May by then it would have done about 1,25,000 km. At that service the transmission oil and differential oil will be changed.

For the benefit of others I am thinking of getting a print out of my entire service history at my next service,which I will scan and upload here.