Very important information about Corolla/Matrix/Vibe

[feng]

I own a 09 1.8L Vibe which uses the same engine and transmission corolla/matrix made by toyota nummi. I also notice the oil consumption problem.

However, I think that I find the reason.

The car has 3-D, 2, L. I always assumed it meant 3=D, and there's nothing in the owner's manual to suggest otherwise.
But it is not ture. "3" and "D" are two different gears. You can bump the lever to the right to get into D, and bump the lever to the left to get into 3.

When I use "3", the engine is noisy, especially when the speed is more than 80km/h, and the RPM is always between 3000-4000 or even higher, which I think made the engine consume more engine oil (High tempreture and High RPM). Also, the mileage is poor.

When I use "D", the engine is quite, especially when the speed is more than 80km/h, and the RPM is always between 2000-3000 which I think made the engine consume less engine oil (Low tempreture and Low RPM).
And the mileage is good.

I may be stupid. I noticed the difference between "3" and "D" after driving my car for more than 2500 km (2000 miles). Before that time, most of the time of driving, I was using "3" instead of "D". So I had a oil consumption problem and poor mileage on my vibe 09.

Now, I am using "D" gear during my driving, the oil consumption problem seems gone and the mileage is really good now.

I hope my experience can help others.

Any comments are welcome.

[Frank@toronto]

Newbie does come to mind...

[feng]

Originally Posted by Frank@toronto

Newbie does come to mind...

It seems I am the only guy think that the "3-D" gear is one gear after reading the manual. LOL

[jdhog]

You're not the only one.

Way back when they first came out someone on here mentioned that they had accidentally been driving in 3 a couple of times before realizing. And another member was reporting bad Fuel Economy and I told them to check it's in D not 3 and nyou know what, they were also driving around in 3!!!!????

It's the same in the Yaris, so close together and on the same level. I wonder just how many people are driving around in 3 like that without realizing it's limiting the gears

lol

oh and the oil burning problem might still remain. Mine is burning oil as well, so I just switched to 5w30 instead of the thinner 20w recommended.

[dpanda88]

the 3 is like the overdrive.. just not in button..

i got a tiptronic so i get the manual feel and no 3-2-1

[feng]

Thanks for the hint. I will keep monitoring the oil level.

According to my knowledge, all engines burn engine oil and the one working at high temp and high RPM burns more. So I thought using low gear ("3") caused the oil burning problem.

Originally Posted by jdhog

You're not the only one.

Way back when they first came out someone on here mentioned that they had accidentally been driving in 3 a couple of times before realizing. And another member was reporting bad Fuel Economy and I told them to check it's in D not 3 and nyou know what, they were also driving around in 3!!!!????

It's the same in the Yaris, so close together and on the same level. I wonder just how many people are driving around in 3 like that without realizing it's limiting the gears

lol

oh and the oil burning problem might still remain. Mine is burning oil as well, so I just switched to 5w30 instead of the thinner 20w recommended.

[feng]

Originally Posted by dpanda88

the 3 is like the overdrive.. just not in button..

i got a tiptronic so i get the manual feel and no 3-2-1

LOL, that is exact what I am thinking.

In the manual, it only mentioned D, 2, L. There is no "3" at all.
It also mentioned that you can push the accelerator pedal all the way down to gain more power for passing at D gear.

So I thought that the "3-D" gear is a combination of "D" and "O/D". LOL

[Sundance_XR]

My aunt did this in her Sienna for a half of a year. She was driving in "4" instead of "D" and she just assumed it was the same gear, even though I told her it wasnt. She eventually went to the dealer because of the horrible gas milage and the noisy engine on the highway (was at about 2500RPM at 100KM/H which is not good for a 3.3V6), when they went for a drive with her driving and immidiatly found the problem. I think Toyota needs to switch the places with the 3rd or 4th gear and the drive gear, because when you put it in the forward gear it just seems like thats where the drive should be. Either that or dont put the drive and 3rd on the same level.

[feng]

Hi guys, thanks for the comments.
I wonder if it is harmful for my car. I have been driving on "3" for more than 2000km, most in city. The highest speed is 80-90km/h.

[Frank the Tank]

Originally Posted by feng

Hi guys, thanks for the comments.
I wonder if it is harmful for my car. I have been driving on "3" for more than 2000km, most in city. The highest speed is 80-90km/h.

LMAO!!!!

[Sundance_XR]

Originally Posted by feng

Hi guys, thanks for the comments.
I wonder if it is harmful for my car. I have been driving on "3" for more than 2000km, most in city. The highest speed is 80-90km/h.

Im sure its fine. Its just working the motor more then it needs to be. Not so much in the city but at 80-90KM/H. Now that you know just be sure to put it in the regular drive mode.

[dpanda88]

i would just use the D more than any other number spots. It will hurt the engine/transmission quite over time.

[Timbits93]

Many manufacturers have the Selection Lever like that because of the gated shifter design.

Of course its easy to get it in the next lower gear than D =P

[Matrix_Master_G]

I just switch from D to 3 when I need extra power to merge on the highway. Then I put it back to D