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.

Having a replacement engine fitted will not damage your car’s resale value. In fact, I think the situation would be quite the opposite. If the vehicle is burning oil to the extent that Toyota wants to replace the engine under warranty, then there’s something not right inside the engine. And trying to sell a vehicle in that condition would be virtually impossible, not to mention that you’d be tearing up dollars because it would be worth a fraction of the same Kluger with a good engine.

Continuing to drive a car that’s burning excess oil can damage the catalytic converter in the exhaust system, so it’s not wise to simply keep topping the oil up; the problem needs to be addressed and fixed permanently.

About the only way a replacement engine will affect resale value is in the case of a classic or collector vehicle where potential buyers want to see a car with its original engine and transmission. With all due respect to the Toyota Kluger, that’s not likely to ever be an issue with your car.

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.

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.

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

It would seem very strange to me that an almost-new Toyota V6 engine would be burning oil to the extent that a new short motor would be required. And it seems that wasn’t the problem anyway, but I agree that more than a litre per 1500km is too much. Had the short motor (pistons and piston-rings) been the problem, the new short motor should have fixed it, but a leak-down and compression test should have given a few clues, too. In any case, the dealer should now be looking for the real source of the problem. I’d be starting with the valve-stem seals or valve guides which are part of the cylinder head and aren’t replaced when a new short motor is fitted (because the original cylinder heads are retained). I’d also be checking the operation of the PCV (crankcase ventilation valve) which can also make oil disappear if it’s faulty.

As for your next step, well, thank goodness for new-car warranties, eh? Basically, you’re covered whatever happens because that’s how warranties work. It’s up to the dealer to decide what steps it takes from here, but while ever the dealer is trying to fix the problem, you need to give them the chance to do so. It would be nice if you were provided with a replacement vehicle while yours is being assessed or fixed, and I’d definitely be asking for that much. Have you contacted Toyota Australia’s customer service number? Sometimes you’ll have a quicker resolution if head office gets involved. The other option if you’re really unhappy with how things are progressing is to contact the ACCC.

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.