Please see my comments below. There is a great deal of misinformation in this post. Based on Phillip's commendation of this post, I suspect the SPIN is intentional?
Charlene Blake snipped-for-privacy@erols.com
Toyota Owners Unite for Resoluti> Jas> >>> I bought a '96 4 cyl which turned out to have a moderate build-up
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Yes, Toyota has some blame to accept. The problem is that it isn't willing to take any.
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And WHERE does this data come from? Will you please cite the source of the erroneous information? Are you really using that outdated figure that Toyota gave back in 2002??? Toyota said that it had only 3,200 Toyota owner complaints. Then.....suddenly that figure got translated into some statistical figure for the *actual incidence rate*. What kind of SPIN is that?!? The complaint figure has not been verified to begin with by anyone other than Toyota. The number of complaints formally written does not equal the incidence rate under ANY stretch of the imagination. As a matter of fact, one would have to EXTRAPOLATE from that figure to get the TRUE INCIDENCE RATE of the problem.
Let's not forget that Toyota went several YEARS without telling the truth about this problem. It allowed owner after owner to go away frustrated to seek help elsewhere. These numbers were NOT crunched, were they? The number of complaints was tabulated at 3,200 in 2002 BEFORE any articles were written and before any information was given out by Toyota itself! That number has been growing for the past three years!! The number of affected vehicles is 3.3 million (conservative as it doesn't include the Corolla which is also having the sludge problem.....not to mention the other models), so the case numbers far exceed any number given publicly by Toyota. Are we naive enough to think that Toyota doesn't know this?!?
Any were is the proof that the owners *couldn't show proof* of the oil changes? What kind of SPIN is this?!? This is not the case. Plenty of owners with oil change receipts were shown the door and said that their vehicle didn't qualify for the repairs. Indeed, owners say that they have been lied to by Toyota dealerships saying that the didn't have sludge when they DID!!
Lastly, what is this "warranty extension" information? Please cite the source of this information. The original warranty was denied in all the original cases of sludge. Are you saying that there is something written now that says that the warranties are extended? The so-called "Engine Oil Gelation Program" isn't a real warranty extension at all, is it? So why the SPIN here, too?
Generous? NOT WHEN YOU DISQUALIFY MORE CASES THAN YOU QUALIFY! Toyota owners are fed up with being denied coverage behind the scene. These owners have heard every excuse in the book and then some! Toyota is doing just as it pleases when no one is watching! And...by the way....exactly WHO is monitoring what Toyota is doing? Do you think the NHTSA is doing this? Is the EPA? Who is overseeing what Toyota does AFTER the initiation of these so-called generous and unprecedented programs?
I guess there are more tough questions for Toyota. Toyota doesn't want to answer them, though. It seems to prefer the SPIN on this issue!
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OK. Fine. Then, tell me what would cause the hot spots in an engine with premature oil breakdown? How about excessive fuel in the engine oil? How about dramatically-lowered TBN? Why would the viscosity be decreased within the 3,000 mile oil change interval? So what is up with that?
Are you saying that you can't have sludge with excessive heat? Will excessive heat over time lead to sludge? What if the oil is broken down prematurely time and time again? Are you going to see sludge then? Why are plenty of highway drivers getting sludge?
Let's explore this "oil breakdown" theory and Toyota sludge further. Your simple explanation is insufficient based on the reported Toyota owners cases.
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Are you saying that Toyota doesn't have a head gasket problem? Are you aware of the number of Toyota 4-Runners out there with repeat gasket problems? There is a so-called generous head gasket program for them. The problem is that if there is a repeat.....and rest assured that after 60,000 miles or so, there is.......these owners are left holding the bag! Toyota and head gasket problems go hand in hand, don't they?
By the way, are the Big Three vehicles also having an ENGINE OIL SLUDGE problem? If so, why aren't we hearing about it? Chrysler and VW have problems, we know. Hmmmm......I thought Toyota was better than these? What's wrong with this picture?
I am all for TRUTH and the SPIN I see surrounding the Toyota sludge problem is far too thick! I sense that the wool is being pulled over the buying public's eyes!
Charlene Blake snipped-for-privacy@erols.com
Toyota Owners Unite for Resolution