Toyota Kluger Problems

There are many SUVs that would fit within your budget. I would suggest you try a Toyota Kluger, Hyundai Santa Fe, Kia Sorento, Isuzu MU-X, Jeep Grand Cherokee.

We've asked Toyota a few times to clarify timing on the new-generation Kluger (Highlander), but they're keeping quiet on when we can expect it.

An insider's guess would be that it should be on sale here mid-2020, but nothing is confirmed just yet. 

Stay tuned to our news section for more info as it comes to hand. 

The model Kluger you are referring to uses an engine with the code-name 3MZ-FE. It uses a timing belt rather than a timing chain, so it requires periodic belt changes. This is especially important as the version of the engine fitted to your car is an interference type. That means that the pistons cannot move freely up and down if the camshafts aren’t also turning and, if the belt breaks while the engine is running, the ensuing collision between pistons and valves will probably destroy the engine.

Toyota recommends a timing-belt change every 150,000km which is actually pretty good compared with many other engines which require a new belt closer to every 100,000km or even less. The other piece of advice is to replace the belt tensioners and water pump while the engine is apart for the timing-belt replacement. It’s a lot cheaper to replace those items at that point, rather than having to open the engine up again down the track.

We would need to know what the trailer and its load weighs to give you any meaningful suggestions. You could look at most of the one-tonne utes with diesel engines, also SUVs such as the Toyota Kluger.

It has remote opening, not closing.

How do you know how many litres are in the tank when it’s “running on fumes”? Unless you drain the tank, you don’t.

I haven’t heard of this one before, Brooke, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist in other Klugers, rather that other owners don’t find it as annoying as you clearly do. I have to agree with the dealer, though, in that conditioning the leather regularly would keep it supple. Chances are that the harder the leather becomes (with age and UV radiation) the more likely it is to squeak. Conditioning the seats will ensure they don’t split, too. Perhaps there’s a conditioning product that is designed specifically to stop squeaking leather, although from what I can see on most labelling, the majority of them already claim this as one of the product’s qualities.

I can understand why you might not want to spend all your time in the car with one seat folded down (Klugers are usually bought for their passenger-carrying abilities, after all) but perhaps carefully placing a soft cloth or old towel between the offending bits of leather really would do the trick. But here’s a tip that has been proven to work in the past: sprinkle a little baby powder on the offending sections of leather. It seems to work for leather shoes, so perhaps it will work in a Toyota.

It isn’t something that has appeared on our radar, but I can’t believe that Toyota wouldn’t be able to fix it. You should consult Toyota’s customer assistance people and lodge your concerns with them.

 The top-of-the-line Grande did, but the GX and GXL didn’t.

It all depends on how much below 2000kg, Jenny. The highest towing limit I could find for any 2019 RAV4 variant – the GXL 4X4 model – was 1500kg, well shy of your target limit. And to be honest, I think that even if you could find a mid-sized SUV with the legal ability to tow anything like 2000kg, you’d be stretching the friendship. It’s not all about engine power, after all; the mass of the towing vehicle itself and its footprint on the road also comes into the reckoning. I’ve seen plenty of medium SUVs towing loads that are, in practical terms, too heavy for them, holding up traffic and making a holiday vastly less fun than it should be.

You’re probably better to go shopping one size bigger and look at, say, the Toyota Kluger which can legally tow 2000kg and will give you a bit of performance headroom, making things safer and more relaxed on the road.