[Sankar]

I don't know how long since this has started but there is a trend amongst manufacturers in not providing printed "Owners Manual with Service Booklet" instead making it online only which is NOT downloadable for offline use. I just cannot understand the logic or the logic of the people who make such decisions? What one gets with the vehicle is a "User Guide" which is a thin booklet which will teach you how to access the online owners manual and has some other very basic things about the car. Its about as thick as a biweekly children's comic book.

Something as basic as the owners manual with the service information and schedules are now being made online only. I.e., the customer can only access it on a smartphone or on the computer after entering the vehicle VIN and mobile number for OTP etc. It is not available for download either, it always has to be accessed online. I am talking about Toyota here and don't know who all else follow this system.

To know the maintenance schedule for eg: Air filter clean/change interval, engine oil change interval etc and to find out even the model type specification details for eg: tyre size or engine oil quantity one has to go online to find out.

Online ONLY owners manual and service booklet is a wrong trend! A full printed owners manual is a basic requirement during the course of vehicle ownership. Why complicate it? Not everyone has access to or likes to use a smartphone or a computer to access an owners manual. Its OK when the online manual is in addition to printed full owners manual but NOT OK as the only option. I do like to read the manual, a printed one at that.

[HighRevving]

Originally Posted by Sankar

Not everyone has access to or likes to use a smartphone or a computer to access an owners manual.

Also, it is quite possible that someone is stuck in a remote location with no mobile network. A hard copy of user manual + downloadable PDF (easier to search) are absolute necessities.

Service booklet however, could be online and/or offline but not her having owners manual is a deal-breaker for me.

[RedTerrano]

Originally Posted by Sankar

I don't know how long since this has started but there is a trend amongst manufacturers in not providing printed "Owners Manual with Service Booklet" instead making it online

Perhaps they are trying to go green by saving paper?

... only which is NOT downloadable for offline use.

I got curious and googled around.
From my finding, all Maruti owner manuals are available for download here
https://www.marutisuzuki.com/service/car-care

And Nissan
https://www.nissan.in/all_about_ownership.html

Tata as well
https://cars.tatamotors.com/service/.../owners-manual

Ditto for M&M
https://auto.mahindra.com/service/owners-manual

[Sankar]

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

Perhaps they are trying to go green by saving paper?

Stopping car manufacturing is definitely green. Not sure about just stopping manual printing with the other business running.

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

I got curious and googled around.
From my finding, all Maruti owner manuals are available for download here
And Nissan
Tata as well
Ditto for M&M

Originally Posted by Sankar

I am talking about Toyota here and don't know who all else follow this system.

Hope Toyota does the same too.

[SR-71]

Originally Posted by Sankar

Stopping car manufacturing is definitely green. Not sure about just stopping manual printing with the other business running.

Respectfully disagree. Stopping car manufacturing all together is not a practical solution. However, avoiding printing of manual in this day and age is practical, reasonable and is indeed green. One can carry a PDF copy of the manual on their phone, tablet, laptop etc. Connectivity should not a problem at all as long as it's cached on the device. And if one still insists on going old school, they can always print it out. Out of the millions of cars sold, how many buyers really even really look at the manual? I don't remember looking any of them in the last 15 years, I don't even carry them for service. Everything is digitized.

[RedTerrano]

Originally Posted by Sankar

Hope Toyota does the same too.

As per their website, https://www.toyotabharat.com/toyota-connect/

Our list of features offered don't end here. We provide a myriad of other services that you can avail with Toyota Connect.

Vehicle finance and insurance related information
Service expense history and service cost calculator
Vehicle maintenance tips and user guides
Regular updates from Toyota
Dealer locator
Integrated owner's manual

Also from their FB page https://www.facebook.com/ToyotaIndia...7965309236612/

Have you tried their i-connect app?

[Sankar]

Originally Posted by SR-71

Respectfully disagree. Stopping car manufacturing all together is not a practical solution. However, stopping printing of manual on papers in this day and age is reasonable and is indeed green. One can carry a copy of the PDF on the phone, tablet, laptop etc. Connectivity should not a problem at all as long as it's cached on the device. And if one insists on still going old school and having a hard copy, they can always print it out.

Created this thread as there were no other options available to me to have a "downloaded" or "cached" copy of the manual available to me without network access and not requiring me to enter VIN and wait for OTP every time i wanted an owners manual

In this day and age of recycled paper user manual can be as green as anyone want it to be if it is to be done.

If the car parts and accessories can come in cardboard boxes and paper boxes recycled or otherwise then owners manual can definitely be printed. Not an excuse.

Out of the millions of cars sold, how many really even really look at the manual.

For sure you do not know the answer to the ^^ and neither do I. But I speak for myself and that is I do read the fine manual.

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

As per their website, https://www.toyotabharat.com/toyota-connect/

Also from their FB page https://www.facebook.com/ToyotaIndia...7965309236612/

Have you tried their i-connect app?

I have their i-connect app. I have tried it. I have tried the online version of the owners manual too.
They are not as half as good as an Owners Manual stored in the glove box in accessibility or ease of use.

[narayans80]

Oh man, don't get me started on this. I had a small section in my Alcazar ownership thread for this shameless cost cutting. Cost cutting on a printed manual for 20 lakh rupee car is just absolute puppy shame!

This is what I wrote on the first week of taking delivery:

Originally Posted by narayans80

Manual

You don't get the full manual book here. Only the service booklet and a small headunit troubleshooter. Weirdly you get the table of contents and QR code for the manual on the service booklet.

The manual is a total snooze fest with so many if equipped sections, including some options that are not sold in India at all (like the section on iMT transmission).

The entire point of the manual is that, it is useful to troubleshoot when you are caught out of the blue.

And I really don't really understand what is the point of adding trim options that are not even sold in the country.

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

Perhaps they are trying to go green by saving paper?

The amount of paper work for loan processing is far fatter than any car manual.

The PDFs are rarely mobile friendly. So many pages switch from portrait to landscape and vice versa. I needed a 24-inch monitor to properly read the tables. Eventually am going to print it out partly.

I have the manual in my cloud storage in case OEMs decide to cost cut for that measly 10 MB too.

[starter]

Totally agree Sankar. This seems to be a recent phenomenon.
My '21 June Crysta and & '21 September Fortuner came with proper owner manuals (booklets)
I would any day prefer to have a bound owners manual over the pdf version.

[SR-71]

Originally Posted by Sankar

No other options available to me to have a "downloaded" or "cached" copy of the manual available to me without network access and not requiring me to enter VIN and wait for OTP every time i wanted an owners manual

The thread title does not read its Toyota specific. You are quoting a problem of not being able to get an offline copy that is specific to Toyota and it should definitely be taken it up with them if they did not have the common sense to provide an offline copy. However, it's not true with every manufacture. I know Hyundai provides it. So does Kia, Tata, Mahindra, Honda, Skoda, etc. You can download a soft copy without going through any hoops. Please look up for yourself, I have shared the links.

https://www.hyundai.com/in/en/connec.../owners-manual
https://www.kia.com/in/service/custo...rs-manual.html
https://www.hondacarindia.com/owners...ersmanual.aspx
https://cars.tatamotors.com/service/.../owners-manual
https://auto.mahindra.com/service/owners-manual
https://www.skoda-auto.co.in/aid/owners-manuals

If you want to talk about the problem specific to Toyota, you should fix the thread to reflect so. As far as soft copy being a reasonable alternative to hard copy I do stand by my original response.

[Sankar]

Originally Posted by starter

Totally agree Sankar. This seems to be a recent phenomenon.
My '21 June Crysta and & '21 September Fortuner came with proper owner manuals (booklets)
I would any day prefer to have a bound owners manual over the pdf version.

Im not sure when the change happened maybe from 2022 onwards?
--

Originally Posted by narayans80

The amount of paper work for loan processing is far fatter than any car manual.

True. The manuals are getting thinner and thinner and would probably cease to exist. This thread is in vain. Cost optimisation can be attributed to going green and gain instant acceptance.
--

Originally Posted by SR-71

The thread title does not read its Toyota specific. You are quoting a problem of not being able to get an offline copy that is specific to Toyota and it should definitely be taken it up with them if they did not have the common sense to provide an offline copy.

Well, its like judging a book by its cover... the title is followed by the opening post which has the details.

But if you want to go by the thread title it says "New trend of not providing printed owners manual, is wrong!" It is not just Toyota, Hyundai also does that it seems as per the post above by narayans80. So its not Toyota specific.

Fortunately Hyundai provides a downloadable manual but the thread title is not: "New trend of not providing printed owners manual, is wrong! But downloadable manuals are OK!!"

I have already taken it up with TKM via email and I got a confirmation call shortly after that. I asked if there is a paid option for me to buy an Owners Manual. They said they will get back to me. But I don't expect anything to happen if they have indeed stopped printing manuals. Only after that this thread was posted.
--

The manual available in iconnect app and the web are both different in layout the latter mimics the pages one would find on a traditional owners manual but unfortunately not downloadable. The one in iconnect is a bit confusing at first and not as easy to read on mobile screen (which depends on screen). Its less strain for my eyes to read from a paper or page which has light falling on it than from a light emitting surface.

[Cresterk]

Originally Posted by Sankar

Something as basic as the owners manual with the service information and schedules are now being made online only. I.e., the customer can only access it on a smartphone or on the computer after entering the vehicle VIN and mobile number for OTP etc. It is not available for download either, it always has to be accessed online. I am talking about Toyota here and don't know who all else follow this system.

.

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

Perhaps they are trying to go green by saving paper?

Oh they would love you to think that it's just about going green and saving paper but this seems like an attempt to be able to change whatever information is in the owners manual whenever they feel like. For example, after a few years, if they feel like changing your oil type and interval to increase their profits? They can do it now. Maybe there is a shortage/price increase of a certain component, now you can just claim it just needs inspection/cleaning instead of replacement every service. You can't point to the owner's manual at the service center and claim this is what the manufacturer recommended when the manual itself can be modified anytime to suit their needs. Also good luck getting a warranty claim if they can just add conditions for abuse later on.

This would be the only reason they don't allow you to download the manual and keep it offline. Call me a sceptic but changing something simple to something obtuse and hard as possible is never done for the benefit of the customer. It would be completely fine if they just allowed anyone to download and keep the manual.

[narayans80]

Originally Posted by Cresterk

This would be the only reason they don't allow you to download the manual and keep it offline. Call me a sceptic but changing something simple to something obtuse and hard as possible is never done for the benefit of the customer. It would be completely fine if they just allowed anyone to download and keep the manual.

For now this sort of nonsense restriction does not exist. I have the Kia Carens manual offline, for comparison from time to time (I own the Hyundai counterpart). It was available public on the official site itself.

The in-production car manuals are available. Atleast in Hyundai-Kia cars. Whether it'll be available when it gets discontinued is another story.

[VPJ74]

While inconvenient I certainly do not think it is wrong. In fact it is a trend among a number of consumer products to be sold with an e-manual. It also allows the manufacturer to update information quickly and accurately.

While I would like to get a paper owners manual with the car, there are other higher priority issues I would like the dealer/OEM to take care of first.

[shancz]

It seems to be a part of the go green initiative and the manufacturers won't mind saving some amount in the process for something that not even 5% of their customers ever read.
Sounds like fair play? Not quite, IMO.

While it is valid for electronic gadgets but considering that vehicles are capable of going to places out of internet coverage and also quite capable of breaking themselves down there, it is a useful piece of kit.
So why not give it as an option to customers who need at a nominal charge say 200₹ ? But then what is 200₹ in a car costing at least 4 lakhs ? And if anyone wants to go through the "charge" route please include the service manual too.

Before anyone suggests an on board manual, do note that when stranded you won't find it very attractive to consume precious battery power while trying to troubleshoot on a 10 inch screen