Toyota Problems

The capacity is 65 litres, but you won't be able to get 65 litres into it when refuelling, as there will always be a reserve, even when the low fuel warning light comes on. Toyota suggested: “the fuel warning light could be coming on prior to the tank being completely empty. The "low fuel" warning lamp setting might err towards the conservative, however this ensures our customers have ample time to refill their tanks before running dry and minimising the possibility that they'd ever run out of fuel.”

Your budget of $5000 is a problem. Whatever you buy will be old and have a lot of kilometres on the clock. I wouldn’t recommend an early Kia Carnival, they had engine troubles, the Tarago would seem your best, even though the car you buy will have a done a lot of kilometres. Toyotas are generally reliable over the long term, parts are readily available for them, and they’re easy to work on for the average mechanic.

The Corolla is a good choice; they are generally reliable and cheap to run. One word of warning, however, is that they used the Takata airbags, which are the subject of one of the biggest recalls in history. Should you buy a Corolla check to see if the airbag has been replaced. If it hasn't have it replaced, if it has check to see what the replacement airbag was as this might need replacing sometime in the future. I would recommend against buying European, cheap Euros tend to be expensive in the long run.

Both are perfect for what you want to do. The LandCruiser has a well-proven record, but it’s heavy and can be costly to run. The Defender, while also a proven off-roader, is more expensive the service and repair and there aren’t Land Rover dealers everywhere, like there are Toyota dealers.

Could be a problem with the glow plugs. If the glow plug light doesn’t light up when you turn the ignition on it could be a problem with the glow plugs or the control unit.

That’s the problem with VWs, you can get six good ones in a row, but the next one could be a lemon. Rather than a wagon you’re probably looking at an SUV. I would suggest a Kia Sorento, Subaru Outback, or Toyota RAV4.

It is hard for a dealer to replicate a problem if it doesn't happen with any regularity, so persist with the dealer, and if that doesn't result in your satisfaction report the problem directly to Toyota (ph 1800 869 682).