I am new here! Please help me

[BZR4AGE]

Hi Guys, I recently purchased a 2000 1.0 Toyota Vitz as a work car.
Its got the 1SZ-FE engine. Its done 83,000ks and is a fresh japanese import.
A few questions I would like to ask

1) The engine sounds like a diseal at very low rpm when the car is moving. but it sounds perfectly fine at higher RPM. it almost sounds like detonation. How do I fix this? what is the likely cause? I know the car engine oil been changed in the car yard, but i suspect they will use cheap stuff. So I am intending to give it a good service myself with good oil and filter and air filters and sparkplugs etc etc. Another thing that comes to mind is that in Japan the minimum octane they run is 100, maybe it needs a tune for NZ petrol (91)?

2) Just yesterday night, the rear lights set on the right hand side stop functioning (brake light, reverse, and indicator). I am sure is not the bulbs becuase when I switch the bulbs to the left side it works perfectly fine. I was fiddling around trying to find a fuse box, but could't locate it, and out of no where the lights started working again! Any ideas?

3) Its got a factory stereo.

I would like to purchase a new stereo for it. How do i do it?

Thanks in advance guys

[jambo101]

Here in North America we arent familiar with any engines below 1.5L but usually when buying a used car all filters and fluids should be changed and plugs and wires,this gives your car a baseline for a new maintenance history,your intermittent light problem sounds like a faulty ground somewhere,had it been a fuse it would not have come back on,If the car came with an owners manual re read it especially the part about which gas octane should be used. As for the car sounding like a diesel at low RPMs it sounds like you are lugging the motor by trying to get power with too few rpms,shifting at 2500-3500rpms should be the norm.
Good luck and welcome to the forum..

[Dake]

And for future reference, the fuse box is located behind a panel in the little tray cubby underneath the steering wheel (at least in US Echos).

Detonation and knocking are two very different things. I would think the engine could run on 87 Octane, which is the minimum recommended Octane rating for ours over here. If you are using good gas at 87 or above then you may need to dig deeper.

[Yaris Hilton]

New Zealand posts Research Octane Numbers. The U.S. posts Research + Motor /2. Our "87 octane" is equivalent to somewhere around 91-93 octane on the R.O.N. system. Most likely on the low end of that range.