Pheonix

I know. Toyota would kill if they would add a wall plug in to recharge it at the house.

Have you seen the Prius + project? I'd rather have a turbo prius, but getting 75-100mpg in the city is just crazy.

mattvds

Thank you for posting this bulliten! I have been noticing this "flare-up" between 3-4th when I drive home from work.. but didnt know what it was or how to reproduce it. I am going to take it in and get it fixed.

wanderer99

Yes, I have this too. I always wondered why it was more prominent when the vehicle is cold. Now I know why. I can duplicate this myself now when driving out of my parking garage in the morning - just use really light throttle. Before this TSB I was just waiting for my trans to die. Maybe it will be OK now if I get this done.

Anyone have the TSB work performed on their vehicle yet? What were your results?

Pheonix

I've run across a few Camry/Avalon's that have already had the fix that seemed to post that it was better, but not any ES's.

antisludge

[QUOTE=tmsusa;2058756]Those are good points. Please keep in mind that this effort to be a little more proactive in our nontraditional means of communicating to consumers is new--Never before have we gone to online forums or blogs or other 24/7 internet-based channels to get accurate information out to the public in such a transparent manner.

With all due respect, tmsusa, you indeed have gone online forums to "get accurate information...". Remember when the Toyota engine oil sludge matter resulted in thousands of Toyota owner postings on various vehicle owner forums? You came to Edmund's Town Hall (name changed to CarSpace) in 2002 and helped divert all discussion of the Toyota sludge matter to one discussion thread. You stayed there for five weeks and then Edmund's CLOSED the discussion.

Just like here, you reached out to help a few people expedite their resolutions. You even met with me personally in Virginia to discuss my vehicle issues; you made it clear that it was my individual case you were addressing. When I asked you if Toyota could show proof that the sludge problem was an owner maintenance problem, you said that the information was "proprietary" and could not be shown to the owners. I had hoped that our discussion would be about how Toyota would help all affected owners but it was not.

I posted on Edmund's for 15 days and then was BANNED from further postings. Interestingly, I was harassed by one of the regular members there at Edmund's, and he kept insinuating that I created the Toyota sludge issue....said it was a big hoax. Ironically (or intentionally?), he was allowed to remain on Edmund's. In addition, five very vocal Toyota owners who were champions of other Toyota owners were also banned from that popular web site. Seems Edmund's and some of the companies advertising there didn't want to delve too deeply into the Toyota sludge matter. So much for the claim of "freedom of speech" on that particular site!

In truth, I simply wanted to gather more information from Toyota owners. That was back in 2000 and early 2001. The ones that were guilty of defamation back then were the ones trying to stop my Toyota owner networking. Kind of ironic that despite all the propagandist's protests about my efforts, turns out Toyota really did have a significant engine oil sludge problem (see Toyota's Customer Support Program for Engine Oil Gelation).

In 2001, I uncovered the link to "Engine Sludge Policy" on the Toyota Financial Services website, too, and when I exposed it, it was removed from the TFS site within 48 hours. It had to do with auctioned Toyotas...allowed a period for discovery of engine sludge.

I was by no means the first to post about Toyota sludge. It had already been discussed on Edmund's and many owners had experienced the frustration by then. I was the "target," though, and Toyota dealership employees were involved in some of the defamation. Forgive me, but I can't help but question Toyota's sincerity in having an online presence right now. After hearing from hundreds of Toyota owners over the last six years and knowing that a significant number got no real satisfaction from Toyota in the sludge fiasco, I wonder what the real point is.

Are you here to actually resolve the problems the vehicle owners are experiencing? Or, are you here to quiet the few very vocal owners who simply won't go away? Are you here to make certain owners get the quality they paid for? Or, are you here to subtly manipulate the discussions in an attempt to smooth things over? Are you willing to hear Toyota owners speak out? Or, are you willing to participate in closing discussions when you deem that they should be?

Again, with all due respect, I would appreciate knowing. In the recent past, I have heard from several owners (sludge victims) who tried to get resolution through you but who have not. I am wondering what fair treatment is in that matter. You helped some; others have been unfairly mistreated. Help us understand the concept of this "Consumer-Generated Media" initiative and its true benefit for ALL Toyota customers...including those without internet access.

Charlene Blake
cblake@erols.com
Toyota Owners Unite for Resolution
http://www.petitiononline.com/TMC2003/petition.html

e-man

[QUOTE=antisludge;2328254]Wow. Interesting post.

wanderer99

antisludge - interesting post. I don't think TMSUSA will respond to you though, as I don't think there has been any further response since the posts above a few months ago. What prompted TMSUSA to post on this board in the first place was undoubtably the thread that mentioned the "R" word, by reporting that there would be a supposed Recall on the ES350 due to the trans problems the car was having. That thread was locked and then forgotten. No "R" ever occurred.

There has been some buybacks, and some of us left with defective ES350\Camry vehicles are choosing to just move on and sell our cars or trade into other vehicles. From PMs I know of a few people that haven't purchased ES350 vehicles as a result of these apparently unsolvable issues, as well as others who have an ES350 and are now looking to get out but aren't posting that publicly. So it's a good thing that the currently known information is out there, and people - including potential customers - are clearly paying attention.

dunnojack

toyota will never fix this shift flare. mark my words.

did they even fix the shift hesitation from the last gen model?
i remember the "fix" made the car jolt or something.

garsarno

I'm just concerned our ES350 will join the models to avoid in the Consumer Report 2008 buying guide report because of this.

onsknht

I'd be more concerned with the resale value of the 07s when the used market figures out there are 2007 bombs and rebuilts all over the market when the 08s are just around the corner... Anyone who would be in the market for the ES or Camry will no doubt skip the 07s and go right for an 08, unless they're completely clueless.

FWIW - anyone try and google TMSUSA, interesting, very interesting.

garsarno

Maybe I will be able to buy the car with an attractive price below residual when the 36 month lease runs out........

gooch

I posted a couple of times about what has been going on with my car. At 2416 miles, the valve replaced, at 4000 miles, the tranmission supposedly replaced, now at 6800 miles, my case is at Lexus headquarters where my car is being officially declared a LEMON!. The same flare is occuring again, they caught it on the machine, and they recommended replacing the tranny again. I told them this was unacceptable, so Lexus has to either give my money back, give me a new car, or replace the tranny. Here is my problem though: I got a 100K warranty and the e-sport wheels out of the deal for free. I am demanding the warranty and my wheels changed over to the new ES. I do not think that Lexus is going to fix this problem. It happened in the loaner they gave me to drive. I drove a Camry and an Avalon and they don't come close to the ES. It really makes you appreciate the way the car rides and handles. But if they can't fix this and I am going to be concerned about it as long as I own the car, I don't want another one. There is also a intermentent rattle in the back that is driving me crazy that they supposedly fixed, but didn't. I am very disappointed in my Lexus experience even though they are standing behind their product. I expected more out of the supposedly No 1 luxury manufacturer. Makes me wonder if there are any good cars out there. Maybe I should go back to a Honda Civic where you don't expect much. Just drive them for 200K miles and change the oil.

garsarno

Another car for e-bay buyback sale.

onsknht

If the TL fails me in such short order as the SE V6 Camry... I'm going to start buying the cheapest beer cans on 4 wheels I can find (KIA Diahatsu, Suzuki, etc)... I'll do absolutely no maintenance on it, park it where ever I want, follow people too closely and race the engine every chance I get. When it develops a problem it will stay where it drops, I'll pull the plates and buy a new one.

For some reason I think I'm going to end up with a chit-box Kia and it will last the next 15 years without so much as even a hint of a problem even though it rattles to all hell.

Patric

I like your thinking.

Reminds me of the old used 58 Rambler wagon I drove for four years. Never washed it, changed the oil or even dusted the dash. It ran like a Rolex.

Sometimes our expectations can be problematic in themselves.

Pat