Ask The Guide

The Polo is very nice to drive and has refinement levels that most of its competition can’t match. It’s also among the best of the small hatches to actually drive with dynamics that make it feel like a full size bigger in terms of its ride and handling. It’s no toy, that’s for sure.

VW now offers capped price servicing on the Polo and, given the 15,000km/12 month intervals, it stacks up reasonably well when compared with its major competition. The 12 month/15,000km service per VW’s capped-price deal will cost you $332, followed by $468 at the two-year mark, $426 after three years, $789 at the major service at four years and $332 for the fifth year. Those prices are for the DSG-transmission version, but the prices for the manual-transmission Polo are almost identical.

As far as we know, the V6 turbo-diesel widely tipped to power the next LandCruiser (the 300 Series) is still just a maybe for the HiLux range. And even if it did make it into the HiLux, it would almost certainly be restricted to a sporty GR badged version as Toyota leverages its Dakar rally experience into a marketing role. With that in mind, the V6 would be an unlikely starter for the Fortuner which is aimed much more closely at families and, for whom, seating capacity and running costs are far more important than the ability to get to 100km/h in a hurry.

Even then, there’s plenty of historical evidence to suggest that a V6 turbo-diesel HiLux will remain just an idea (a nice one, though). Toyota has never really taken the opportunity to share engines between its HiLux and full sized (ie: Not the Prado) LandCruiser ranges. With a couple of notable exceptions (all of them petrol-powered) the HiLux has remained a four-cylinder vehicle throughout its life. And when Toyota did build a (petrol) supercharged V6 HiLux tagged the TRD back in 2008, it was a sales flop.

In any case, a hot-rod Fortuner is probably not on the cards despite the HiLux and Fortuner sharing a lot of engineering and componentry.

I don’t think you have anything to worry about, Yash. Oil seals often weep a bit of oil and it’s good to see that the dealership has noticed it and wants to change the seal, rather than ignore it and make it your problem once the car is out of warranty. Speaking of warranty, your car came with six years of factory cover, so even if the seal leaks again in that time, it won’t cost you anything to have it fixed.

As for your other concerns; an oil seal is not a big problem and won’t cause any other damage (unless the oil is pouring out and leaving the engine without sufficient oil (which it isn’t in your case). Changing the seal will have no effect on the rest of the car, the problem will probably never occur again (not in the 10 years you plan to own it, anyway), the seal can be changed simply without opening the engine, and the cause is probably something as simple as a seal with a small manufacturing defect or one that was accidentally `pinched’ during assembly at the Hyundai factory.

Modern cars are incredibly complex machines consisting of thousands of parts. Even the best models from the best makes can have small defects like this one. Don’t sweat it.

This engine was a great thing to drive with superb fuel economy and plenty of performance. Unfortunately, it was also overly complex and prone to failures like the one yours has experienced. Because the car is so far out of warranty, you can probably forget about Volkswagen helping with the cost of repairs. But I’d still give its customer service department a call and state my case on the basis that 136,000km is hardly the expectation for a modern engine in terms of longevity, along with the fact that this engine has a rich history of failures exactly like yours.

If you can organise to have part of the cost taken car of by VW, then maybe it would be worth repairing the car. Beyond that, however, you’d be spending almost $6500 on a car that, even in working order, is worth something like $8000 or $9000. It doesn’t realty add up at that point, does it? Even then, you might find that other parts of the engine (like the turbocharger or supercharger or the complex system of intake plumbing that allows it all to work) might be next to go bang.

The MQ Triton doesn’t seem any better or worse than its rivals in this department. But, like other makes and models, there’s a healthy aftermarket supply of replacement intercoolers and the pipework that feeds them, so it’s definitely not an unknown problem.

But your experience is exceptional. Were all five vehicles bought brand-new at the same time? If so, they’re all likely to be from the same production run which could explain a faulty batch of hoses.

You should be able to prise open the key’s plastic body and then gain access to the battery-case within. But be careful, as older plastics become brittle with age and you don’t want to snap any of the locking tabs or the body itself (if you do, replacement keys are available online). If that all sounds a bit difficult, you could take the key to a shop or kiosk that cuts keys (and sells watch-bands and batteries) and they should be able to supply and fit the new battery for you. If you do it at home, make sure you dispose of the old button-battery safely as these pose a real threat to babies and toddlers.

The facelifted HiLux is in showrooms now, Jay, including the SR5+ model. The good news is that the suspension has been refined to improve ride and the engine has been given a once-over with a larger turbocharger to boost power to 150kW. Toyota also claims it has addressed the diesel particulate filter problems that were an issue for owners of the previous version. Prices start at around $60,000 and up for the model you’re interested in. The good news is that the Extra-Cab layout is available in SR5 trim and while it doesn’t offer the full interior space of a dual-cab, the two small occasional seats in the rear do bump its seating capacity to four.

Blowing a major fuse suggests that your car has suffered a short-circuit somewhere within its kilometres of wiring. But a modern vehicle like your Isuzu will also have fuses protecting the various systems it needs to operate, so there’s a chance there’s a second fuse that protects the stereo system that has also blown when the problem occurred. Your owner’s manual should be able to identify the locations of the car’s various fuses. Don’t forget to replace them with a fuse of the correct amperage or you could cause more damage if the fuse ever needs to act as a circuit-breaker again (which is exactly the fuse’s role).

The other possibility is that the stereo unit itself has an internal fuse. Check around the rear of the unit (usually where the wiring for the speakers exits the stereo) and you might be able to locate the fuse in question. This is often the case in aftermarket stereo systems.

You’re on the right track, Don, with your guess that the whistling noise has something to do with the turbocharger’s bearing. But unfortunately, if you’re right and it’s the turbo bearing that’s making the whistling noise (and I agree with your theory) then a new or rebuilt turbocharger is the only real fix. Turbos have a hard life, dealing with extremes of temperature as well as the requirement to accelerate from almost nothing to anything up to 250,000rpm. The bearings that allow for this are sealed units and – generally – are not serviceable.

But you might be lucky: A lack of turbo boost can be caused by many things, so check the basics like a loose boost pipe before you start tearing the engine apart.

Ford did, in fact, upgrade the Territory’s power-steering system to an electric set-up in the name of improved fuel economy, but that didn’t happen until mid-2011. As such, Rodney, your 2008 Territory still uses conventional hydraulic power-steering.

While the fuel consumption benefits of electric power-assistance are clear, keener drivers generally prefer a conventional hydraulic set-up for the extra feel and feedback it offers through the steering wheel. But it’s a dying technology and just about all new car designs feature electrical assistance.