alpha17

Both might be equally equipped but since you’ve already owned a Hilux, better to go for the same again. Engine might be different, but opposed to Rangers Hilux is much famous around here, so you’ll be ok with finding parts and selling due to toyota badge. A fully loaded one from the Toy**a La**a would be about 11.9 million, but it’s not the rocco version.

But I think mostly it’s due to the Toyota’s reasons other than japanese regulations. Every luxury car maker had moved to diesel engines (bmw,merc,audi and even jags) but still Lexus is using petrol engines. As I remember (correct me if I’m wrong) Mazda Axela had diesel engine options in Japanese market. But even the famous 1KD-FTV had been swept away from the Prados.

If you really want to make an investment, better to deposit them in a bank or buy a land. I mean, those are two entirely different vehicles and each one of them would give you different outputs. Owning a KDH would have the resale value, practicality and go anywhere advantage. But the Shuttle would be much of a sportier and comfortable drive at the expense of resale value and expensive running costs. A car would carry a bit of more prestige than a Van here in SL. Anyway whether you go for a van or a car deep down inside it’s just A to B transportation so, it’s your choice.

That’s quite a ride mate!! Congratz!!!

I would advise you to go for the 2015 Santafe. Usually koreans are not well built as japanese vehicles (eventhough they use nice materials and interesting designs, fit and finish is not upto that of japs). So getting a newer one would be much safer and would likely to last longer since they have been improving their quality recently.

Well most of us might be seeing an Alto Turbo RS rocketing in the streets in the near future....

Also note that the car you get have been used for around 7-8 years in SL, so don’t expect it to be in brand new condition. Repainted buffers(even 1 or 2 body panel) is not a major issue, if the job is done in the right way. But make sure to perform a full inspection from the agent before proceeding to the final step of the transaction if the car suits you(cost around 6000-8000). This would let you know about damages caused by crashes, which is really helpful in long term use. A relation of mine bought a gp1 in pristine condition, few years ago, clocked around 40,000km, which had met with a severe crash and repaired. He had an issue with the gearbox and the mechanic told him about the accident, which was most probably took place in Japan. Save some money aside for the repairs, atleast around 100k

I had driven the GP1 for a trip to the airport, and a full day around Kegalle town. I agree that it is a breeze to park and reverse the car due to the small size. Handling is easy. But issue about driving in the traffic might be because I’m new to the car.

Forgot to mention. GP1 has the climbing issue. I once had to push a car to help on a very steep hill without even being loaded. On the same place a FIT ARIA also hesitated and had to push that also(road towards next door house). The same hill is easily climbed by a 1.2l CHR every day. But the issue is more apparent in the GP5 hybrid system. At the beginning of the hill the car stops like its been confused to choose the right gear. This issue is present in the Grace and Vezel too. I experience the same issue even in the new 1.5 Turbo CRV(even the car had no passengers and had plenty of power). But never experienced this issue in the good old ES5.

Getting the Tank would be much safer since it has the Toyota badge. Same car, but try to get a fully loaded variant. There is a good review done in sinhala in the youtube (a black toyota tank) and he shows off all the gimmicks you can do with it.

Not too many people own them, but carries the same engines from the previous generation, so there won’t be any major issues since those were solid engines. Most owners from countries like Pakistan claim the 9th gen to be more comfortable than the 8th gen. On the other hand you’ll get a less sportier ride than the 8th gen. Most claim that the fuel economy is bit better than the 8th gen, but not in the Axio and Allions territory. I personally couldn’t tolerate the look of the back end, but the front is okish. Unlike the FD series FB series were not popular in SL, so you’ll be having a hard time selling the car. p.s- If you really want to go for it, I would install the boot lid and tail lights from the UAE model?

I’ll explain what are the differences you’ll notice. -GP5 is considerably faster than the GP1 and fun to drive. In terms of acceleration it is on a totally different planet when compared with Vitz and Aquas -Interior is nicely done in the GP5and has an upmarket look than the GP1, but same as the GP1 all materials are hard plastic -GP5’s Handling is a bit better than the GP1 -Some models of the GP1 came with the serious engine oil burning issue which is a real headache. But only a range of cars are affected. You can search in the forum form for their chassis number range to avoid. This was rectified in the GP5 and later GP1s -Comfort wise almost the same -GP5 has the faster wearing Dual Clutch gearbox, which tends to pack up around 80,000kms and above (due to the SL climate) -Both cars don’t have serious battery issues like the Civic Hybrid, but most of the GP1s would be in their final stages due to their age. -GP1 is a more like your usual Petrol car without any serious differences in driving experiences, and the powertrain is really smooth. But GP5 is filled with more electronics. You’ll get a Prius style gear shifter and a parking brake switch. I personally find that the powertrain of the GP5 is unrefined. Some times there is a delay to kick in the engine. But when you put your foot down it just rockets out. -I find that the driving the GP1 in the traffic is a bit hard until you get used to it, because when you leave the breaks the car feels like its in a hurry to go even without pressing the accelerator. Haven’t noticed that in the GP5. -GP5 is one of the most favourite cars that I would love to DRIVE.

Most likely not. Some of them have SD cards, which is an alternative to USB(2 slots; one for map chip and one for audio) When you select the source do you get an option to chose as USB?

Plenty for the 121 and 2-3 for the Allion? But the reason is that the area I live is filled with those undercarriage scraping places?

If you buy a used car with odo over 100,000km, your luck depends on how the previous owners had taken care of. I had 121 for 7 years and I never had any trouble and no replacement or repair cost me over Rs.45,000. Only had to do the running repairs like tune ups, oil changes and suspesion components replacements. A relation of mine owned the same model which had done 300,000km and he also had no major or costly repairs. So make sure you are buying a trustworthy car in good condition. I would choose a 150,000km done car with service records over a 50,000km done car without records.

You have no idea how I have changed my plans on journeys to carry less than 5 people. Even try to balance the weight by asking passengers to switch their seats. Yes, in my book, I call it abuse?

@matroska So the car is much more comfortable? Or is there a hidden story?? I’m a huge fan of Walter White?

I totally agree with you. Even with 4 grown ups in the car most JDMs are more likely to scrape underneath.

I’m a humble guy my dear friend?

Oh man! I can’t believe what I’m seeing!!! You can carry 5 people + 2 enemies(killed and loaded in the boot) in the Allion or Premio

Check the engine mounts. Usually mounts starts failing around 100,000km. Are you sure about the mileage?

A neighbor of mine had one, a few years ago. The car was on K plates, like KB or something. This was about 10 years ago. He never stopped complaining about the issues. He also had to met with an accident due to a problem with the steering(steering was disconnected from the front wheels). At that time the car was on brand new condition. But he said that fuel consumption is around 15kmpl on outstation. He may have used it for about 2-3 years and by the time he sold the car, it was showing the age like its been extensively used for about 10 years(eventhough he used it rarely). But I guess this was the 2005-2006 model. So the earlier model might be different.

I have driven the CRV for a very short distance, including a hill climb on bad road with potholes. The 1.5 Turbo engine hesitated at the start of the hill climb, eventhough it has plenty of power. I was really amazed because the 1.0 Vitz climbed the same hill with 3 grown people on board without an issue. But the interior is nice with soft padding on most of the places you touch. Infotainment system is a bit of a headache to use, but has android auto and apple car play which is a huge benefit. But I think comfort and interior quality wise, Peugeot would be better.

2009 and above Mazda 3/Axela Lancer EX Civic FD1 or FD4 Those cars would give better drive than a Toyota but will be a bit harder to sell. GP5 is a nice car to drive despite its busy ride(specially if you are going from a sedan), but the DCT replacement will cost around 200k to fix.

I would advice you to stay away from any Micro made car. You’d be better off with an Indian Alto. There is no doubt that at the first glance Panda will look like a bargain, but almost all the people I know had many issues related to the build quality. Poor workmanship at Micro is the main issue. In that case Marutis are proven reliable with a good history with better manufacturing quality than SL assembled Micros. Like I said, panda looks better and expensive with better options for a lower price, but durability is the problem