Welcome to all owners of Toyota Fortuner [ARCHIVED]

[Monseratto]

[number001]

anybody here using a turbo timer for their fortuners? is it a requirement or you don't really need it?

Not really required if you yourself is willing to wait enough for the vehicle to idle as the turbo cool downs or have someone else to do that for you.

Or if you really dont have the patience nor time to wait for the turbo to cool down, then installing a turbo timer would be quite a God-sent .

[beebs]

the 1.73 Million includes 49K for the insurance, 13K for the LTO, 10K for the rustproofing, 100k for the leather seats and 25K for the freight. no freebies e.g. matting and tint

grabe naman ang dealer mo. sa toyota makati ang hinihiling lang sa akin comp ins, less than 40k. i really can't believe the price they are offering you, 100k for leather seats? at bakit may bayad ang freight? sorry to say but i think if you will turn down their offer you might not get a unit. ganyan kakapal ang ibang dealers.

[ale828]

There are lots of previous SUV with turbos but most of them never had a turbo timer placed or have known that their turbos deteriorated because drivers didn't cool down the turbo.
I am just questioning if a turbo timer or a cool down is really needed in a regular turbo, i know Volvos that have a turbo doesn't have a turbo timer. From what i know turbo timer are used in cars or even SUV that have turbo which are in constant high usage, namely race cars, or cars/SUV whos turbos are being trashed more often than that used in normal driving. But cooling down the turbo will help further the life of a turbo only if you plan to run to the ground your Fortuner.

[vicoyski]

There is an abosolute need to cool down the turbo after prolonged use. With prolonged use, the air inside the turbo chamber becomes superheated. This superheated air needs to be vented-out by 2-3 minutes of idling (with or without a turbo timer). If you just turn-off your engine after a prolonged high speed drive where the turbo got activated, the superheated air in the chamber can actually melt the turbo impeller blades, consequently damaging your turbo...

[andre]

Correct! By the way its in the manual.

[beebs]

from Manila Times....

Tuesday, August 30, 2005


TEST REPORT

Dude, where’s my SUV?

Toyota’s Fortuner is so hot, you can’t drive one home

By Vernon B. Sarne, Motoring Editor

CHRISTOPHER Bautista, a vice president at SM Holdings and management professor at De La Salle University, recently contacted me to say he had walked into a Toyota dealership to buy the hot-selling Fortuner SUV, the third and last installment (at least in the Philippines) in the Innovative Multipurpose Vehicle lineup of the country’s No. 1 automaker. To his disappointment, however, he was told the dealer couldn’t give him a unit until early next year. Yes, early next year—that’s exactly how long the customer queue is right now for the Fortuner.

He brought his case to me believing that motoring journalists could help expedite all things related to cars. I told him I could only expedite his appointment with his doctor if we met frequently enough for long drinking sessions like we used to.

Bautista is just one of the many disgruntled Fortuner buyers who complain about Toyota’s inability to keep up with demand. Danny Isla, Toyota Motor Philippines’ first vice president for marketing, said the Fortuner backlog had, at one point, reached over 3,000 units, while Toyota’s Thailand facility could only supply them about 300 units a month. You do the math.

It’s easy to see why the Fortuner is such a big hit. It has drop-dead-gorgeous SUV looks and midsize-SUV heft for a price range that gives compact sport-utes a run for their money. The downside to this—insofar as Toyota is concerned—is that even both its very own Innova and RAV4 models are adversely affected. So much so that Toyota has been consciously giving the Innova a marketing push while keeping uncharacteristically silent about the Fortuner.

We were loaned a 4x2 gasoline unit for a week, which got us asking: Is the Fortuner worth the hype and the long waiting list?

Well, yes and no.

Yes because of the tasteful, macho styling. The Fortuner’s is the kind of exterior that puts the capital M in manly. It’s Levi’s-rugged and Tag Heuer-cool. No other SUV in its class right now exudes this rare combination of attributes. Call it a guy thing but there’s just something so attention-grabbing about the Fortuner’s lines and curves. Go ask the thousands of males who patiently fall in line just to buy a unit.

Yes because of the robust gasoline engine (we haven’t tried the diesel), although rising fuel costs might make potential buyers think twice about getting a rather thirsty SUV. The 2.7-liter 16-valve DOHC engine, aided by variable valve timing, manages to squeeze 158 horsepower from four in-line cylinders. That’s more than enough to pull a 1,735-kilogram collection of steel, rubber and plastic.

Yes because the Fortuner is decently appointed. Single-disc in-dash CD player with six speakers; Optitron gauges; dual front airbags; anti-lock brakes; alarm and keyless entry; roof rails; fog lamps; multi-information meter; 16-inch alloy wheels; five cup holders and seven bottle holders; and front and rear 12-volt power outlets make this vehicle one of the most loaded SUVs on the market today.

The one big no to the question happens to be an important one, and it concerns the Fortuner’s painfully bouncy ride. I’m tempted to think that SUVs based on pickups (the Fortuner shares underpinnings with the Hilux) are naturally prone to have pickup-quality rides, but this is not true with the Isuzu Alterra. The D-Max-based Alterra—monumentally underrated when placed beside the Fortuner—possesses the kind of ride that will make you suspect the Fortuner glides along on leaf springs. In reality, Toyota’s SUV already sits on double wishbones with coil springs in front and four-link suspension also with coil springs in the rear, yet the ride is barely better than that of a Tamaraw FX. Okay, maybe that’s stretching it a bit too far. But the Fortuner—like its IMV siblings Innova and Hilux—can be nauseating. I tried the cramped third row and nearly threw up.

The 4x2 Gasoline sells for P1.228 million. There is no 4x4 variant for the gasoline engine. If you want power on all four wheels, a 4x4 3.0-liter turbodiesel model is available for P1.533 million.

Overall, the Fortuner is an average vehicle that proves once again that Toyota’s new blueprint for world domination consists of building vehicles that are relatively cheap at the expense of true quality.

Spec Sheet
TOYOTA FORTUNER 4X2 GAS
Vehicle type: Five-door, rear-wheel-drive SUV

Engine: 2.7-liter in-line-four, 16-valve DOHC VVT-i (158 horsepower * 5,200 rpm)

Transmission: Four-speed automatic
Seating capacity: 7
Main features: Single-disc in-dash CD player with 6 speakers; dual front airbags; ABS; alarm and keyless entry; roof rails; fog lamps; multi-information meter; 16-inch alloy wheels
Price: P1,228,000

Plus
Toyota-smooth transmission; robust, if a bit thirsty, engine; legitimately sporty SUV looks

Minus
Bumpy ride; long waiting lista

[bilog]

the 1.73 Million includes 49K for the insurance, 13K for the LTO, 10K for the rustproofing, 100k for the leather seats and 25K for the freight. no freebies e.g. matting and tint

let me compare the quotation given by my agent at TOYOTA P. TAMO
(yours)
Insurance: 45,000 49k
LTO: 9,000 13k
Rustproofing: 4,000 10k
Leatherseats: 70,000 100k
free umbrella tint and 1,200 worth of goodies...

[larshell]

Not really required if you yourself is willing to wait enough for the vehicle to idle as the turbo cool downs or have someone else to do that for you.

Or if you really dont have the patience nor time to wait for the turbo to cool down, then installing a turbo timer would be quite a God-sent .

Kahit ba short distance lang or city driving you need to wait for the turbo to cool down?

[BlueBimmer]

just keep the revs low on short distances so as not to activate the turbo?