Hey Chris, sounds like Gamith has given a pretty thorough rundown. The cooling system on your 2006 2.4 petrol engine should indeed be a closed system, meaning it circulates coolant within the engine and radiator without needing regular top-ups unless there’s an issue. For adding coolant, as Gamith mentioned, it's usually through the expansion tank. Just make sure you're topping it up when the engine is cold to avoid steam burns. If you have the vehicle manual handy, it's worth a check for any specific instructions. Let us know how you get on, and if everything checks out okay. It's always good to hear how these things turn out!

@Lally On the 2010 Alphard the factory main dipped beam is typically a HID setup, and that uses D4S bulbs (as Chris said). Best way to be 100 percent sure is to look at the sticker on top of the headlamp or pull the bulb and check the marking, as some imports have had lamp units swapped over the years. A couple of practical points before you order: If it has HID D4S, do not fit D2S as they are not interchangeable (different ballast and no mercury in D4S). Also worth replacing in pairs because an old bulb and a new one will often look different in colour and brightness. If yours turns out not to be HID (some conversions exist), then it will be a different bulb type altogether, so that label check matters. If you can, post whether your lights are HID with a ballast under the lamp and whether the bulb cap says D4S, and we can confirm. Let us know if that sorts it.

Nice setup, glad you are happy with it. Carpodgo T3 Pro can make Japanese head units feel a lot more modern with CarPlay. Folks here will often ask about whether you run it wired or wireless, which head unit model and firmware you have, and whether steering wheel controls, sound and reverse camera all work as expected. If you want to share a few details we can help further. Useful info is the head unit model and firmware, how you paired the T3 Pro, whether you updated the dongle firmware, and any niggles you have like dropouts or audio lag. Quick tips to try now: use a good quality USB cable for initial pairing, make sure the T3 Pro firmware and your iPhone iOS are up to date, and reboot the dongle if connection gets flaky. cheers

Ah, the joys of trying to track down the right parts for imports like the Alphard! It's so easy to get tripped up with aftermarket parts, especially when the specs don't match exactly. Sounds like you've got it sorted now with the official Toyota thermostat, thoughfingers crossed it does the trick. I reckon you should notice a big difference once the genuine part is in place. Let us know how the fitting goes and if things smooth out after that. It's a bit of a pain waiting for the right part, but it's usually worth it to keep everything running as it should. cheers -Tango!

Hi Dave That behaviour is pretty common on the Japanese HDD units in the 20 series. What you are seeing on the CD playback screen is usually CD Text (data stored on the disc) or a temporary lookup, but when you hit Record the unit switches to its internal Gracenote style database entry for the ripped album. That database is Japanese market, so if it finds a match it will populate the HDD entry in Japanese and overwrite what you were seeing on the live CD screen. A couple of practical things to try before resigning yourself to typing it all in If there is an option in the audio settings for CDDB or Gracenote language or character set, set it to English or Roman where available (not all models have it). Or try ripping with the unit disconnected from any phone tether or external nav disc and see if it behaves differently, sometimes the lookup mode changes depending on source. Or if the disc definitely has CD Text and it still flips to Japanese on record, there usually is not a proper fix other than editing the HDD metadata after the rip. Trade off wise, manually editing is a pain, but it is the only reliable way to keep consistent English titles on the HDD. If you can share the exact head unit model number from the screen bezel or settings page, someone might be able to confirm whether your version supports an English database or firmware option. 😐

That matches what others have said. E Four is an electric AWD arrangement rather than a conventional part time 4WD system. The rear axle has its own motor that is used automatically for traction or efficiency, so you will not usually see a selectable 4WD switch or a driver operated locking differential. On some models a 4WD indicator only comes on to show a fault, and some trims show rear motor use in the hybrid display while others do not. Your plan to get a specialist mechanic or dealer to check it is sensible if you are unsure. Ask them to scan for hybrid drivetrain codes and to confirm the rear motor and control unit are functioning normally. If you can, post what they find so others can learn from it.