Team-BHP - Toyota Innova Crysta : Official Review

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Quote:

Originally Posted by mohan41 (Post 4682397)

I believe only Z variant has ESP/Roll-over mitigation.
Owners of G/V variants: Have you felt anytime uncomfortable without ESP? This is one concern I have before going ahead with 2.8G.
Another question is how good is the braking ? I have not found any data comparing braking distance of Crysta vs other vehicles. TIA

Hello, my Crysta is 2.8 G purchased in the month of February 2019. I shall share my experience, my vehicle stands at 30,200kms.

Most of the time, the vehicle is driven by me. I am a sedate driver. I maintain speeds till 120 kmph. I felt uncomfortable for not having ESP while driving during rains. Now the questions come ESP and rains ?

While you are travelling on an unknown roads or ghats during rains with mud, definitely ESP will help by assessing your steering input and braking. I want to bring to your notice that ESP also has certain limitations, it doesn't mean that if you have ESP you can throw the car as you like.

Braking -- It depends on a lot of factors. As long as you are at sane speeds and following speed limits in India genuinely, it should never be a problem. Anticipate the hurdle and brake in advance. My opinion is to increase the wheel width which in turn increases the contact patch on road provides more friction and more braking as well. The braking distance also increases with load. More the load, more is the momentum so you need to plan accordingly.

My advice is if possible drive any of your friends Crysta in G or V variants and then do the same with Z variant. You will be able to decide by yourself. Test drive vehicles might not live upto your expectations as they are abused a lot.

I would like to add a point here.

My Crysta had 7.5 mm thickness left out of 9 mm, even after driving 30,000 kms in both the front brake pads.

Regards
Drpavan.

Hi all,

I have a 2.7G petrol automatic crysta which I have driven for approx 4000kms.
In my last highway trip of 440kms Delhi-Ambala-Delhi, I experienced a left pull on the steering while driving on a straight road,which was not noticeably inclined.

I have heard other crysta owners complaining about the same issue.
Request other crysta owners to comment if they also experienced the same and what was the reason and resolution.

Thanks.

Quote:

Originally Posted by caraholic (Post 4689800)

Caraholic,

Have you checked your tire pressure? Uneven tire pressure is usually the reason and if it's ~32 all around, I would look at alignment. Good Luck!

Quote:

Originally Posted by caraholic (Post 4689800)

I have a 2.7G petrol automatic crysta which I have driven for approx 4000kms.
In my last highway trip of 440kms Delhi-Ambala-Delhi, I experienced a left pull on the steering while driving on a straight road,which was not noticeably inclined.

In my case the steering really does not turn left, rather if i hold the steering straight the car goes to left. So if I have to keep the car straight i have to hold the steering slightly right turned. Also the problem is felt at speeds greater than 60-70 kmph. Like you i have also done 3500 km. I think it's alignment, tried to complain on a visit to workshop, they said it's normal since road is not ideal. Then i found it's more evident at higher speeds. So i plan to catch them again and create a scene at 5000 km service. This time i will shoot video and take them to the highway

Quote:

Originally Posted by JackSparrow (Post 4689842)

Caraholic,

Have you checked your tire pressure? Uneven tire pressure is usually the reason and if it's ~32 all around, I would look at alignment. Good Luck!

In my case correcting tyre pressure does not eliminate it.

My inputs on suspension on crysta. In real time car is very stable and planted even at speeds 180+ kmph. Doesnt depend on tire pressures at all. I have driven @ 32 to 36 psi on 4 tires , some times at uneven tire pressures . So we can safely eliminate every thing but the geometry or defective parts in the suspension of innova crysta. There is a possibility that car might pull to left or right sometimes due to uneven roads.

Quote:

Originally Posted by JackSparrow (Post 4689842)

Caraholic, Have you checked your tire pressure? Uneven tire pressure is usually the reason and if it's ~32 all around, I would look at alignment. Good Luck!

Quote:

Originally Posted by haisaikat (Post 4689856)

Yes, I got 35 psi nitrogen filled in all 4 tires before starting off.This left veering is felt in speeds above 60-65 kmph.Will be visiting the workshop this Sunday and get the alignment checked.

Quote:

Originally Posted by caraholic (Post 4690061)

I had got 35 psi filled in all 4 before starting off. I also faced the steering turning leftwards at speeds in excess of 60kmph.Visiting the workshop on Sunday.Will update.

Get your alignment checked. Crysta and the erstwhile Innova are sensitive and alignment would go for a toss easily. If you have driven through bad roads recently, I can quite surely say alignment is off. You can take it to a good alignment center and get rectified.

Quote:

Originally Posted by caraholic (Post 4690058)

alignment checked.

If it still doesn’t help, then share here. I was once fed up of doing alignment and balancing on my cars but the left pull didn’t go. Finally, one fine day, an experienced guy took it on his ego.
No machines, no computers - me, my car, mechanic and his tools; left the workshop and he showed his skill on the highway. I don’t know what magic the guy played when - he drove, made adjustments, drove again, made corrections and followed the cycle till he and I were satisfied. But till date, I haven't allowed anyone else to touch my vehicles - no more left pulls for me. Humans indeed can do what a computer can’t :)

Quote:

Originally Posted by caraholic (Post 4690058)

Yes, I got 35 psi nitrogen filled in all 4 tires before starting off.This left veering is felt in speeds above 60-65 kmph.Will be visiting the workshop this Sunday and get the alignment checked.

I visited the Galaxy Toyota service centre at Moti bagh, Delhi this Sunday.They checked the vehicle and a senior technician undertook a test drive while I sat beside him.He left the steering free many times during the drive and said that it if there was any left pulling it would have been impossible to leave steering for a few seconds.According to him, my experience must be due to slope in the road or maybe 35 psi tyre pressure.There is no fault in the vehicle according to him.
Will observe again on my next long drive coming up on 21st November.

Quote:

Originally Posted by caraholic (Post 4693098)

Sir,
I have experienced the same issue in my vehicle (2.8 Z) even after alignment (at Moti Nagar), also experienced tyre wear on front due to miss-alignment of the tyre, had switch the rear tyre with the fronts to compensate and get alignment done again(moti nagar).

But recently I have noticed the vehicle is again pulling towards the left, but i am not able to diagnose the root cause of the problem. Since the steering is hydraulic you can feel the pull on the steering wheel. My Innova is due for service next month and I am going to discuss it service representative in detail, will update on this thread.

There is a problem as I drive mostly on well paved roads and car shouldn't loose alignment every 3000 kilometres.

The left pulling is more exaggerated on vehicles with Hydraulic steering. I feel the same on my XUV5OO as well, and its mostly due to the roads.

A good check if to go to a lonely 2 lane road, drive one way and see if it pulls left. Come back on the wrong side and see if it pulls in same way to the right. If it does, then the alignment is fine. If the pull doesnt go to the right on the return, then there is an alignment issue.

Does anyone know how to remove front bumper indicator lights? Are there any screws? Do I need to remove bumper? I managed to break one and have got a replacement.

Quote:

Originally Posted by caraholic (Post 4693098)

This is exactly what happened in my case too when I visited the workshop with my problem. In my upcoming 5K servicing I am planning to insist them to take this to a highway and get the same tested.

Quote:

Originally Posted by vinayak648o (Post 4693423)

Quote:

Originally Posted by PrideRed (Post 4690201)

May I suggest something very weird? Are you using Eco mode driving a lot? If you turn off Eco by pressing it once while its ON (so it will be neutral / normal mode) then I am observing the alignment looks better. Wanted to validate if this just me hallucinating lol: or its a genuine observation.

Quote:

Originally Posted by krish3 (Post 4694088)

I had hydraulic steering in my Hyundai Getz and never did I face this problem and that too in a brand new car? Never. Good suggestion on the road test but city roads have mostly dividers, so only options are driving through centre of the roads where there is no divider like single lane highways.

Quote:

Originally Posted by haisaikat (Post 4696032)

Cannot be completely ruled out. Quoting from official review

Quote:

Engage PWR mode and you'll feel the throttle to be sharper. The engine is very, very responsive in this driving mode. Acceleration times also noticeably improve; you'll especially feel this in the 2.4 MT. Ironically, PWR mode actually increases the steering's assistance a wee bit. You won't notice this unless you pay attention, but the difference is there. It is unlike conventional sport / power modes that actually firm up the steering for high speed driving.Finally, yes, the air-con blower level comes back up (if you're switching from eco -> power).

That said if your alignment is off, changing modes wont help. Few other things:
1. Go to a reputed alignment center. I have found even Toyota wheel alignment is not upto the mark at times. They use basic Hunter equipment most of the time.
2. Check and maintain tire pressure.
3. Check for uneven tire wear.

I recently came across an old article on the Innova Crysta by a foreign media. They are couple of years old but makes for good reading.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Top Gear Malaysia

Driving fun in a Toyota Innova? Is such a thing possible?

by Andy Leuterio | May 20, 2017

There is exactly one glaring flaw in Toyota's bread-and-butter MPV, and it’s not the bland styling (which is perfectly fine for its segment). It’s not even the price anymore, which raised more than a few eyebrows last year when the new model breached the P1 million mark for all but the base variants. Were I in the market for an MPV, the one thing that would stop me from getting the Innova would be the manual transmission. I would skip right over that option no matter what promos the dealer may offer and just park my lazy butt in an automatic.

As any Metro Manilan is painfully aware, the average speed in the city is rarely ever more than 30kph. On a payday, it may actually be faster to jog to your destination depending on the distance. And it’s not even because I hate manuals, mind you. My daily driver is a stick shift. If I was buying a sports car, it would be manual or nothing.

The problem with the manual Innova is not so much that it’s a manual per se, but because the rest of the vehicle is so good that its basic five-speed (yes, five) transmission quickly reveals its shortcomings. It’s not the same unit as in the Hilux either. The clutch is heavy and takeup is abrupt like an older model truck’s, and the gearing is too short.

First gear winds up too quickly that you’ll be going into second just before you hit 10kph. The midrange gears are fine, but the fifth is still too short. The 2.8-liter engine is so gutsy—as in 169hp gutsy—that it’s practically straining at the leash at 115kph. At 100kph, the engine is ticking over a shade above 2,100rpm. At 120kph it’s turning over at 2,800rpm. Yet the engine can clearly push harder than that.

I’ll wager it’s good for at anywhere from 160-180kph. The transmission is practically screaming for a sixth cog to calm things down and improve fuel economy. Twice I gnashed the gears when muscle memory pulled the stick back into a non-existent sixth slot that was, of course, taken up by reverse. An overachieving engine and an overmatched transmission is not a good combination.

And that’s my one big beef about this MPV. Not the looks, which is still a bread loaf like before, except Mom has sliced away the borders. Certainly not the interior, which bid good riddance to the acre of cheap, hard plastic dashboard of the past for something more layered and more nuanced, with better textures and color matching. The instrument panel is handsome and quite sophisticated with its multi-info central display.

Toyota still can’t wean itself from its penchant for faux wood appliques, but I suppose it’s less pretentious than fake carbon fiber. The seats are much improved; nicely padded and supportive for long drives unlike the lumps of the old generation. The second row bench can be adjusted for seatback rake, and the 60:40 split/fold/tumble design frees up valuable cargo space for road trips.

Mismatched transmission aside, the Innova handles long roads like a champ. The ride is on the firm side, with steering that borders on mildly heavy rather than featherlight for added stability at high speed. Despite its body-on-frame design, the solid ride is free of the annoying judders and squeaking that plagues most non-monocoque automobiles, even for our 12,000+km test unit.

Toyota has actually made a rather fun-to-drive stealth ship in the Innova, giving it the underpinnings to match its power. If you like to drive briskly from time to time, this unassuming mom-mobile has a pleasant friskiness that belies its middle-of-the-road looks. It’s confident in the turns, feels planted at speed, and you get the sense you could drive barumbado and it would be none the worse for wear.

Over a week of short and long drives, hours in gridlock and on open roads, the Innova endeared itself to all its passengers. My wife and kids appreciated the comfort of the quality seats and powerful A/C, signaling their approval by falling asleep within 10 minutes practically every ride. The windshield has a nice, panoramic view marred just a bit by the thick A-pillars, and passengers appreciated the low window beltline.

The cargo area doesn’t have any fancy fold-into-the-floor seats, but the basic split-fold-tumble design works well enough. I was able to fit my TT bike, a cooler, and a weekend’s worth of luggage for a triathlon by just removing the front wheel and folding half of the rear seat.

As expected of a family vehicle moving up the totem pole, it’s quite loaded with standard equipment. There's a more than decent stereo, front and rear A/C, multiple power ports, ABS and airbags. Toyota didn’t forget to add a touch of whimsy in the accent lighting on the headliner, while adding functional touches like fold-down trays on the front seatbacks and fold-out cupholders on the dashboard.

The diesel Innova E is priced at P1.164 million for the stick shift, but unless you’re really scrimping or just plan to rent it out, the extra dough for the automatic will be worth it. An E with the automatic is priced at P1.244 million, but the premium is justified. It’s a thoroughly modern six-speed unit with sequential manual shifting, and based on my experience with similarly equipped Toyotas in the past, it will make the driving experience of an Innova even more enjoyable.

Src: https://www.topgear.com.ph/columns/a...a-a34-20170520