New Avalon

Sales are way down. Hopefully you got a good deal on it.

I believe we got a decent price. About 10-12% off MSRP. Sales may be down for an unexpected reason. It is said that Toyota, in trying to keep the Camry as the number one seller in the USA, has been making fewer Avalons and pushing them less.

Or, it may be that the higher price is causing a slump.

Seems to me that the difference between the current Camry and current Avalon is less than in the past. Maybe people look at the two cars and their prices and just go for the Camry. It might also be that some people go for the Lexus ES350 instead of the Avalon.

The Avalon is in a tough place marketing wise. Toyota has moved the V-6 Camry upscale. The Avalons are not particularly distinctive, so why an Avalon instead of a V-6 Camry? The high end Camry has more/better features than the low end Avalon for about the same price. The Avalon is only little larger. However in the front seat area, where you set when test driving the two cars, there is very little difference. I can see where if you do a comparison, you go for the high end Camry over the low end Avalon most of the time. And if you are going for the high end Avalon, why not just get a Lexus? The ES350 is slightly smaller than the Avalon (like the Camry), but it also cost less than the Avalon Limited but has the same or better equipment. The difference in size is trivial for most buyer, so it seems to me the Avalon is stuck between a rock and a hard place - the high end Camry and the ES350.

Ed

We had several motivating factors, Ed. The Lexus, I believe, was substantially more expensive.

We started looking at the Camry, but despite our interest, no dealership could get what we wanted. (We started back in February). Essentially, we wanted a Blizzard Pearl car with the navigation system and XM radio.

One dealership in California ordered 3-4 times but couldnt get one. No dealership here in Texas had one or was too eager to try to get one.

The second motivator was that I did not want the 6 speed tranny that now comes in the Camry.

We got the exact Avalon we wanted in just a few days, and it has the 5 speed transmission. It was only slightly more expensive than a Camry.

I think the new Avalon is based on the GS chassis, while the Lexus ES is basically a Camry. Either way the Avalon (previous and current generations) do seem to measure up to their counterparts (older Camry or newer Lexus GS) for some reason.

However, the price seems right. But I would be concerned about Avalon's quality.

Dont know, John... We have, from experience and reputation, believed that we are getting high quality.. We have a total warranty on everything for 6 years. With all the electronics on this car, I was a bit concerned.

At his point, the car is wonderful. I hope that this, my first experience with Toyota, will be a good one.

My 2001 Avalon was my forth and last Toyota. It was a rattle box. In particular, the bottom outside trim banged against the bottom of the windshield every winter except for the first one. Also there were various clicks and rattles under the crooked dashboard. The auto climate control system was a joke. The brake pedal would sometimes suddenly drop an inch or so as you slowed to a stop and the engine slowed down. That would wake you up every time. When you pressed the gas pedal the car would stretch and when you hit the brakes it would compress. A bunch of Avalons were recalled because the subframe which holds the engine had inadequate welds. I cannot imagine any being worse than mine but mine was not part of the recall. We traded it on a Honda Accord Hybrid. My wife wanted a Hybrid. It isn't perfect but the quality reminds me of my previous Toyotas.

Son and his wife own two Honda hybrids, the Accord and the Insight (sp?). They are very high on them.

We drove conventional Hondas when trying to arrive at a decision on what to buy, but did not like the ride characteristics. Too rough.

As we researched the possibilities, everything seemed to have some pros and cons. I hope this Avalon will be a wise choice.

The same here. I intend to purchase the Avalon Limited, probably after the next redesign. Purchased the 2007 Camry XLE in March 2006.

Thanks, WoodBee and Paul..

This is our first excursion into the Toyota line and reassurance is appreciated.

We researched a number of cars before buying, and with every brand and model there seems to be some supporters and some horror stories.

Best regards and thanks again.

I don't know anything about the latest Avalon but previous models were known as Toyota's Buick. They were designed in the US for the US market and were just not put together as well as other Toyotas. Hopefully things have changed

Scions are all built in Japan. They are a "Americanized" version of vehicles sold in other markets. The Scion "brand" is US only, but the cars aren't unique to the US.

Ed

My 2000 Avalon was put together well. I have been very happy with it. The only problem I had with it was an airbag sensor that was fixed under warrantee.

Yeah you're right. But in discussing cars, news of concern inevitably come into play. I'm sure many Avalons will be great, just all the negative news press on generations of Avalons that's absent say from the GS for instance makes people wonder why. :)