Just my 2 cents.

You mention work being done or conditions reported 7 yrs. ago - 2009

The engine could not have been too terribly damaged and survive 7 yrs.

 

Thanks Mike. That is what I was thinking as well. I guess I am just looking for reassurance that I did not waste my money. According to the records on carfax, the car was otherwise regularly maintained at the dealership.

How accurate is the mpg that is represented on the display screen? My mpg does seem worse than expected according to the number displayed. I am now tracking it the old fashioned way to get an accurate reading of my mpg.

 

Hello all,

I bought a 2006 Avalon Limited 11 ...

I thought a well cared for example...

Congratulations, welcome to the club!

...
Imagine my surprise a day or so after buying the car to come across the carcomplaints.com website and the “avoid like the plague” designation the 2006 Avalon has earned there.

That website is going to have a list of the worst complaints about any given car. And...lets face it, EVERY CAR MADE...has the potential to be a problem child. Depending on all kinds of issues. I don't think "avoid like the plague" reflects most owner's experience. On on the whole, I think you will find the Avalon lives up to its reputation as a fairly reliable car, if you do the factory recommended maintenance.

... this service guy is a tad more helpful. We go inside and he tells me that my car is not even listed as a part of that recall. As he is looking at some service history, a “severe oil leak” event caught my eye. It was April 2009. This event is NOT on carfax.

Doesn't surprise me. I did run a CARFAX on my 2009 XL before I bought it. Some things that the previous owner told me he had done were NOT on the Carfax. But you know you can also register as the owner on the Toyota web site and see dealer service history for your particular VIN, right? If not, I recommend that you go do that, too.

So, to summarize: 4/09 – severe oil leak from busted vvti hose. how can I find out if there was engine damage?

As you already deduced, the fact that engine has continued to run this long indicates there wasn't anything too severe. Otherwise, it would have manifested itself by now.

Any other suggestions, tips, and hints would be greatly appreciated!

My recommendation is to look at the Factory Maintenance Service Guide (it's available free online at Toyota.com if you can't find a copy in the glovebox) and make sure you are up to date on all the required service items.

Some folks on here will recommend that if you buy a used car, be proactive and do all the required fluid changes (oil, coolant, trans, brakes) up front.

I think that's a bit excessive myself, especially considering you have the service history record.
But it really doesn't hurt and can give the new owner some peace of mind, knowing you are starting with a "fresh slate" when it comes to maintenance.


From what I've read (but thankfully not experienced myself), the faulty oil line is one of the few serious issues this generation of Avalons had....and you've already had yours replaced. From what I have read, some folks had the replacement line fail too, but not sure how common that is.

There are many threads on this forum dealing with the "oil line issue", and some folks say the way to make sure it doesn't rear it's head again is to get it replace with an ALL METAL line.

Here is a thread that talks about the part numbers for that all metal line:

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/156-3rd-generation-2005-2012/796498-vvt-oil-line-replacement.html

 

But you know you can also register as the owner on the Toyota web site and see dealer service history for your particular VIN, right? If not, I recommend that you go do that, too.

Sorry for my delayed reply. I took the Avalon on a quick road trip out of town. On the way home - all interstate - I set the cruise on 70 with the a/c on and I averaged 31 mpg over the course of the 200 mile journey. Very pleased with those results.

Thank you for informing me about registering as the owner on the Toyota website. I did not know that was available to me. I am now registered and have accessed the service history.

I have a couple of other issues that i need to address, but I will start a new topic for those. Thank you for providing all the helpful information.