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Bought a new (to me) "Avalong"

1522 Views 37 Replies 12 Participants Last post by  Yamahog
First time Toyota owner. Picked up this guy recently, XSE Hybrid w/ 20k miles. Was really in the market for a Camry XSE Hybrid, but 1) was having a really hard time locating one new and 2) used ones w/10-20k miles were selling well over MSRP. I pretty much got this Avalon close to what I was seeing the Camrys go for.

Considering I like the styling of the Avalon more and the added leg room in the back, I had to jump on it.

First impressions are great.

Only "nuances" are:
  • The temp gage doesn't sit in the center. Whatever, that's fine.
  • Fuel gage sits well past "F" when full. Whatever, that's fine.
  • Passenger front headlight has a "haze" to it when looking at it at the right angle. Really strange, but with the wee bit of digging I already did around here it sounds like this isn't uncommon.
  • Had a rattle in the car over larger bumps. I learned that it's the button on the center console. There is about a 1/16" of play in it that isn't spring loaded so when I go over a rougher surface on the road it rattles a bit. Not a big deal, I'm glad I know where it's coming from - I should be able to come up with a fix so the button has some dampening to it.
These are obviously pretty petty things - I've only been in the car for less than a week so not much to complain about.

Obviously love the styling, the fuel economy, and I am really looking forward to some peace of mind. My wife has a Prius and that thing is a marvel to me. It just goes...

My previous car was a CC so I'm also thrilled to have retained most (if not all) of the features I had in it. Plus, now I have lots of the bells and whistles that were absent in the CC as well. Only thing I miss are the rain-sensing wipers... I feel like all cars should have them. Good thing is I'll only be reminded of it when it's raining.
Wheel Tire Car Land vehicle Vehicle

Car Wheel Tire Land vehicle Vehicle

Got through my first tank... lots of highway driving - averaged 45.4mpg according to my fill-up and the Trip ODO. The dash display should be pretty accurate too. I reset the integrated mpg counter a couple days ago and the mpgs have been climbing since. I had 46mpg on the readout before I cleared it, and am at 42.5mpg now so I expect it to average around 44mpg once I get more miles in.
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I will say that once the hybrid honeymoon phase is over and I'll probably see more around 41-43 to a tank. I've been really easy on it when in EV mode and have been capitalizing on coasting down the mountains without getting on the throttle.

That is all.
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@turtlepoppin,

If your car is a 2022 Avalon Hybrid XSE Nightshade, I'm confused by the door handles and fin not being black and I'm not seeing "XSE" on the back of the car. 🤔

I didn't notice these details previously.
Also, you don't need 93 octane fuel for the avalon hybrid. It does fine with 87 octane where I live.
Yes sir. I put 87 in the Avalon. My post was pretty vague. The price break I get in gas now is not only in the increase in mpg but the drop from 93 to 87 octane also.

@turtlepoppin,

If your car is a 2022 Avalon Hybrid XSE Nightshade, I'm confused by the door handles and fin not being black and I'm not seeing "XSE" on the back of the car. 🤔

I didn't notice these details previously.
According to a previous post it isn't a Nightshade. Just an XSE, and I presume the car was de-badged by the previous owner. When they took the car in to "detail" it the dealer threw on their "Flow" badging... which I hate. I'm sure I could argued for it's removal since I didn't want any of that nonsense on the car.
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.......

According to a previous post it isn't a Nightshade. Just an XSE, and I presume the car was de-badged by the previous owner. When they took the car in to "detail" it the dealer threw on their "Flow" badging... which I hate. I'm sure I could argued for it's removal since I didn't want any of that nonsense on the car.
Unless I missed it, your OP doesn't mention what year the car is. ;)
Unless I missed it, your OP doesn't mention what year the car is. ;)
In post #8 the OP answers the question of what year it it with " '21 "
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For me also, the lower octane that my Avalon uses (vs. the 93 my old Lexus guzzled) is huge. I just checked and it's a $0.90 / gallon difference.
For me also, the lower octane that my Avalon uses (vs. the 93 my old Lexus guzzled) is huge. I just checked and it's a $0.90 / gallon difference.
Yea it's amazing what the spread is now a days between 87 and 93. About 15 years ago when I started driving, 87, 90, 93 were just a dime apart. And then there is diesel which is in it's own category now.
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Can anyone confirm what the color code is for my car, or where it is identified on the car? Thanks.

Edit: I'm leaning towards 1J9, Celestial Silver Metallic... But need confirmation.
Can anyone confirm what the color code is for my car, or where it is identified on the car? Thanks.

Edit: I'm leaning towards 1J9, Celestial Silver Metallic... But need confirmation.
Look at the tad in the driver's side door jam.

Font Parallel Rectangle Electric blue Monochrome

C/TR. IS COLOR and trim level
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Look at the tad in the driver's side door jam.

View attachment 412398
C/TR. IS COLOR and trim level
Ahh nice. Don't know how I missed that - I'm actually on touchupdirect to try and cover a couple rock chips on the front bumper!
Have another question someone might be able to help me out with. I'm having a hard time discerning what materials in the interior are real leather vs what is synthetic.

I know the steering wheel is real leather, and that the suede in the seats is synthetic. I believe the entire seat is made from synthetic materials actually. The center console, door cards, and the steering wheel are all quite soft, so I presume it's real leather. Can anyone confirm each of these bit so I can care for them accordingly?
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The seats are Leatherette/sueded microfiber. No leather
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The seats are Leatherette/sueded microfiber. No leather
What about the balance of the parts?
As far as I can tell, it's synthetic

And I'm talking from being an owner of my 2021 blueprint blue avalon XSE hybrid

Wheel Car Tire Vehicle Plant
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Since I tend to own my cars long term, I bit the bullet and paid for some PPF to protect the front end. Even over the last 4-5 weeks I managed to catch some rock chips on the front clip. As mentioned previously, she sees over 80mi a day, a good 40 of which is through a construction zone (and will be for the foreseeable future). My only regret is not doing it as soon as I received the car.

Not much to see with the pics, but I suppose that's a good thing! Got full coverage on the bumper, hood, fenders, headlights, and mirror caps.
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My plan is to source another grill while they're readily available. I guess that's the good thing about them, they take up such a big part of the fascia that I can swap it for a fresh one in the future if it gets beat up. The grill obviously doesn't have any PPF coverage.
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I really want(ed) to swap my Limited grille for the black one on your XSE (since it's not that expensive and easy to replace) but I'm not sure how it would look with the bright wheels and chrome window trim.
I really want(ed) to swap my Limited grille for the black one on your XSE (since it's not that expensive and easy to replace) but I'm not sure how it would look with the bright wheels and chrome window trim.
The stock XSE comes with chrome trim around the side windows and grayish wheels.

It cost me about 900.00 USD to CHANGE out the trim, but you can also do a chrome delete at good vinyl/tint shops for about 400.00 USD.

You can either get your existing wheels power coated or buy new wheels.

You can do all of that in stages
@Woodman911 ran into issues with his blackout wrapping which gave me pause.



The stock XSE comes with chrome trim around the side windows and grayish wheels.

It cost me about 900.00 USD to CHANGE out the trim, but you can also do a chrome delete at good vinyl/tint shops gor about 400.00 USD.

You can either get your existing wheels power coated or buy new wheels.

You can do all of that in stages
@Woodman911 ran into issues with his blackout wrapping which gave me pause.

I agree about the vinyl wrap, it only lasts about 5 yrs if done WELL AND WITH BEST MATERIALS,. That's why I replaced the trim (2x the price of wrap but long lasting). I bought the OEM toyota parts from a toyota dealership, installed all of the top trim around the windows myself, the trim along the bottom of the windows and the 2 rear quarter windows were changed at a auto glass shop.

I couldn't figure out hot to get the bottom trim ro come off the car.
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