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-   -   My Black Ghost : Toyota Etios V Ownership Report (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-drives-initial-ownership-reports/116399-my-black-ghost-toyota-etios-v-ownership-report-5.html)

Agreed. Liva looks cool, specially in the blue avatar. They can add a bright red (the color that Figo and Beat have) and the car will go miles!

That is typical Honda... theyhave freed up a lot of space on the inside and it looks quite premium from outside. Personally I don't like Amaze's front though, the rear is very good. (I think we are digressing from the topic of this thread)

Yeah, especially on the TRD with the 1.5L Engine.... slurp... slurp

It's a white Liva right? Have seen it so many times in the TRIDA parking lot. I even took a pic with mine parked alongside your Liva :).

I'm of the opinion that the Etios looks much better than the new Dzire and the Amaze. The Etios's design looks more complete and doesn't feel like a last minute makeover.

Prospective Etios owners take note. Decide on the colour only after seeing Black and Red coloured ones. I've said this before and I repeat, the car looks good (or better) in black or red only. Of course, this is my personal opinion but I don't think many would disagree on this.

Black looks majestic on Etios. On Liva too. Though I would prefer a brighter red on Etios and Liva.

I was hooked on to the black Liva, but I know the maintenance formalities and finally settled for a white one.

Hi fast&furious,

I was thinking of buying black Etios. Are there any inputs you can kindly share on something one needs to bear in mind because of the 'black' color? Anything like park in shade or else it heats up too much? (bad for both passengers and the car)?

Also, since it's been a while since last update on this thread, can you please share any updates on how your 'Black Ghost' is faring after over 3.5 years?

Thanks,

srideep233.

Sorry to bump upon an old thread but even I'm facing similar problem with my Etios Petrol (2011). As soon as the A.C. is switched on, there's a dearth of power in the bottom end and the engine feels just too strained. But as soon as it is switched off, everything stays in the ORVM. There's too much of a difference in performance and so, my passengers occasionally end up sweating in the hot summer days of Rajasthan. stupid:

Is there any way to overcome this particular issue? Also, I've noticed that if I rev the engine all the way to the redline, thereafter, the engine settles down at around 1100 rpm. Is that normal? I've never faced such issue with my Octavia vRS or even with my Duster. Moreover, I'm really sick of Etios' sheet metal thickness. Just a little force and the sheet metal bends with all its glory. Prospective owners, take note. The built quality isn't really upto the mark.

I have a 2011 Liva V, I have had to switch off the a/c almost always, while overtaking on 2 Lane highways. Yes the A/C steals the power and Torque by a huge margin! In my new Punto, I can barely tell the difference, not a fair comparison as its a Diesel, but still. I am not sure if there is much you can do about it, thats the nature of the engine, the Sedan is much better the 1.2L is a bummer with hardly any torque at the low end.

Like most Japs Etios has flimsy sheet metal and build, but its a well screwed together car. My 40K odd kms old Liva hardly rattles whereas a 10K kms old Test Drive Swift sounded like a tin can. I have found the Liva to be immensely practical, sensible, spacious and cheap to maintain car.

Thank you Parsh, for the detailed review. Did you notice lack of power at say 100+ speeds due to AC being on? And, is the AC powerful enough to cool the cabin? How silent is it? Thank you.

It’s been a looong time since I updated this thread. Sorry guys.

The car still runs pretty much the same way it did 7 years back and Toyota’s after sales service has been excellent. The car has completed 60k km.

I didn't add many bells and whistles to the car. Red and black PU seat cover, an arm rest, a set of horns and a parking sensor + visors and stuff like that. That’s it.

The car has been to all 5 states in South India and Puducherry the union territory. This also includes a 16-18 hour drive from Trivandrum to Hyderabad (more on this later). It’s been driven almost exclusively by me and I’ve pushed this car to its very limits on super smooth tarmac and on a few occasions on mud roads. Despite all that, the car is still great fun to drive and pretty much problem free.

I’m mentioning the maintenance I did voluntarily and the repair works that had to be done. The list doesn’t include regular maintenance/replacements done during service.

Engine oil
Changed to Toyota’s synthetic oil after one year. The car has been on synthetic oil since then. I changed to Mobil 1 0W40 once. Didn’t like it. The engine felt a bit sluggish (probably because of the thicker oil) and the oil got dirty and grainy very quickly. It might be the detergents doing their job but I was worried about the aftermarket filter I had in place. Switched back to TGM oil and filter. Will be giving liqui moly’s fully synthetic oil a try now since Toyota parts are available through their website. I usually change the oil at 7-8k km.

Transmission oil
Changed at 35k km. Front wheel drive cars usually have the differential and the transmission share the same oil. I have pushed this car to its limits on highways several times and that puts a lot of pressure on the transmission and the differential. Gearshifts felt smoother after this. Toyota recommends changing the transmission oil at 40k km if you frequently drive the car for more than 2 hours at greater than 80% of its top speed.

Brake pads
Changed at 40k. The pads weren’t completely worn out and they insisted on keeping it but it just wasn't as good as it used to be and I asked them to change it and things were back to normal. Brake fluid was also changed with the pads.

Tyres
Replaced at 35k. The Goodyears were somewhat okayish but the grip levels were pretty low once the treads started to wear out. Changed to Yokohama Earth 1. Good tyres. Upsized to 195/60 R15 and that solved the underbody scraping issue to a great extent.

Clutch cable
Changed at 44k. There was some faint noise when using the clutch and the rubber boot under the hood was torn.

Strut sleeves, tierod bushings, stabiliser bushings
I asked them to replace these if there’s any visible wear as you don’t inspect these very often. Changed at 44k.

Exhaust zinc coating
More of a preventive maintenance this. I saw the exhausts with and without coating on display at Toyota. The exhaust can rust from the inside but at around ₹1000 I felt it’s a cheap insurance. I’ve seen rust eating up exhaust pipes and even the bolts that support them. And it looks good too.

Throttle body cleaning
I used to do this myself with a TB cleaner. And it’s something which I don’t recommend anyone do that often. I feel it’s a totally unnecessary thing to do very often if you don’t have any issues related to the throttle body. Good to get it done once in a while though. It’s ok to have a butterfly valve that doesn’t shine like sterling silver :).

Repairs and replacements

Suspension
Front right and rear right shocks had to be replaced. I knew something was wrong the moment I drove the car out after service. I’m pretty sure it was their fault as the issue wasn’t there before. Something must have happened when they got the vehicle off the lift. I talked to their manager but he kept appealing to me that nothing of that sort happened. They said labour charges have been waived but I didn’t see much difference in the final bill.

Caliper pin
Front right brake caliper pin was found to be damaged during a checkup. This happened just before the Hyderabad trip. The technician took the tyre off for inspection and the caliper pin came off. The part was difficult to get and I wanted the car ready on that day itself. I think they took one off the display car. Imagine going for a 2600km journey with a faulty caliper pin.

Electrical system
Rats managed to chew off a part of the main wiring. While this didn’t cause any major concern other than the fender indicators not working, guys at Toyota said the only foolproof solution is to change the wiring kit.

Battery
The Tata Green battery lasted for only three years. It was a good battery. I used to have the music system on for long periods with the engine off. Changed to Amaron.

AC refrigerant
The AC became completely ineffective. Asked them to refill it. They filled UV dye as well to look for leaks. They didn’t find any leak but the SA said there’s definitely a leak somewhere. They charged me around ₹3000 for the refrigerant and the oil, which I think is a bit more than normal.


My two cents on aftermarket additives and general maintenance
All of us here are car enthusiasts. We research about every single thing that goes into our cars. But many people unfortunately believe all those aftermarket additives, cleaners etc can magically help our engines last longer. I myself have used fuel system cleaners from Toyota and another brand. Stopped using both products after first use. I might use them like once in 2 years or until I face an issue where I feel a partially clogged valve or injector is the culprit.

I have something to say about those engine oil additives too. Engine oils are created with the right set of additives at the right amounts so that we get a balanced product. Those aftermarket additives may affect that balance. The competition among manufacturers is so fierce that if there’s a magic formula that can prolong the life of your engine, all manufacturers would be using it. We don’t need more of the same thing that’s already in our oil. Those products may be worth a try to see if they can fix an issue you have with the engine. Most of us here use good quality engine oils. And many of us use synthetic oils. It’s funny to see guys buying synthetic oils and a can of oil additives with it. I don’t think you need them even if you use decent mineral oil. Most of of don't have high mileage cars and don't have to worry about very cold starts.

The reality is, you would do your engine a lot more good if you do some basic things like not revving it too hard when it’s cold, driving in the right gear, avoiding long idles etc. I don't use any snake oil additives in my car and I’ve driven it like I stole it. The engine is still in wonderful condition and gears still fall into place with that ‘click’ it had when it was new.

Thoughts about the Etios almost 7 years later
The Etios is an exceptionally good car for the price it's offered at. That combined with Toyota's reliability and after sales service has made it a pleasant ownership experience.

The low end torque and the linear power delivery of this light car makes it extremely fun to drive. The steering feel is very good. It's nicely weighted and is very precise. I still fondly remember @GTO mentioning this in his review.

Some people calling it a 'failed product' surprises me. They should drive the petrol once before commenting.

It has definitely played a huge role in my development as a driver. From a driver's perspective it's near perfect. It's been a pleasure driving this car. But it does have some faults.
Suspension
This is the only major complaint I have. The rear suspension of the Etios is not the most comfortable out there. It bounces around so much that if you're a somewhat aggressive driver, the passengers at the rear will start complaining. Don't know how things are in the latest gen Etios though.

Interiors
The first gen Etios has a very dull and boring interior. Even the Hyundai Eon has better interior. Things have improved a fair bit but it still doesn't feel premium at all.

Low ground clearance/soft suspension
This can be a problem if you travel often travel with 4-5 people and trunk full of luggage. Underbody scraping was a regular incident until I upsized the tyres.

Low idling RPM
This can actually be very irritating. Getting the car off the blocks is not at all a smooth experience because of the low rpm, especially on an incline. The engine makes that 'being strangled' noise if you don't give enough gas. I've learned to adjust to it.

Thoughts about the next car
I'm convinced that I'll have to buy a car at least a few segments above the Etios to feel a proper upgrade. I've driven cars from the next segment and I wasn't really excited. I mean they're well equipped and nicely designed but I didn't feel a huge difference in terms of driving experience. Some of the diesels were good but turbo lag is something that turns me off. Vento diesel was good though.

Despite my love for driving, SUVs have made an impact on me. I don't like the crossover type but a proper SUV might just be the best kinda vehicle if you plan to travel around a lot in a country like India. I haven't driven a proper SUV (like the new Endeavour) on highways. So don't know how it'll be like. Perhaps SUV owners here can shed some light on it. But I'm sure that once you get off the highways and move into village/town roads, SUVs really show their worth. You can roll along without any woes. See what the Etios's suspension and ground clearance has done to me :D.