New Member - New Zeland

[FrancisT]

Hello everyone! Just dipped my toe into the pool of people movers and fell in!  Have had Toyotas for years: 4wd Caldinas - 2, 4wd Caribs - 2, 4wd Altezza - 1, Starlet - 1 and now moved into a "loser cruiser" - LC - Elsie.  So much fun! She's a 2004 1D2 (Colour) 2.4 full time 4wd @ 240 kms but well serviced.  Have 3 Grandies, all in car seats of some sort and they can't fit in the Caldina plus one parent and their stuff, hance the move up.  Has a few fiddly bits to sort - exterior door trim, sloppy seat belt, power door cables - these placed to price low (low enough to make the time to fix worth it) and I am very mechanical/technical so will enjoy - have hunted down spare parts - each task is about a day to sort.  As is usual I hunted down a Russian full service manual - thank you Google Translate! - this has been very helpful showing the numbers and exploded diagrams.

 

Great drive on the open road, fantastic visibility and comfort.  Great grip with the 4wd - gearbox ratios seem to suit the engine power curves on our roads and 2.4 has the power and revs to move it when you need to.  "Ample Carriage" (thank you Ralph Breaks The Internet) helps soak up the bumps - looking forward to towing our little caravan with it (1988 Zephyr Z350B) - has a tow-bar fitted already and that's worth over $500 itself

[MonsterS]

Nice and Welcome.