2012 Toyota Avalon-  The most surprising car ever

"Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To" (murdersofa) 06/30/2016 at 08:38 • Filed to: None

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I’ve never thought much of modern Toyota. They make the Camry, some vans, they made some cool stuff like the FJ and, earlier, the MR2, Supra, etc. but I mostly thought of them as a soulless appliance maker. Cheap, chintzy feeling plastic tombs where souls are condemned to be shuttled back and forth between work and home while sitting in passable seats listening to a middling sound system and the road noise comes through the kinda-not-really sound insulated cabin.

The Avalon is none of that.

I got in the Avalon expecting a Camry, and ended up with one of the most pleasantly confusing cars ever. It’s an enigma. The cheap hard plastics are omnipresent in the interior, yet feel very well put together and somehow manage to ooze quality. The whole car envelops you in a feeling that conveys “solid” very well. The seats are comfortable. The ride is quiet and very smooth, handling bumps and sharp turns alike with grace (though not necessarily performance). The engine is surprisingly torque to the point where, after a day of driving Chevy Cruzes around I completely roasted one of the front tires when leaving a stop light in the suburbs. The sound system was fairly excellent, with clear piercing treble and a conveyance of bass without shaking your seat (I personally prefer my seat getting shook but recognize that’s not everybody’s preference). What most stunned me was how big the car felt. For some reason I am incapable of thinking of Japanese cars as being Big. And I mean Big like a Cadillac DTS, Lincoln Continental, or Buick Park Avenue. Big Cars. The Avalon is Big. It feels Big. On its own it looks like any other sedan but park it next to another car and you realize how Big it is.

Very strange, I like it.

Would definitely daily.

shop-teacher > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 06/30/2016 at 08:47

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I am not surprised a bit that you like the Avalon. It’s basically a Toyota Buick.

That particular example has been in an accident.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > shop-teacher 06/30/2016 at 08:50

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Isn’t that paint matching lovely?

shop-teacher > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 06/30/2016 at 08:55

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Oh yeah, nice work boys!

TrannyAmmy > shop-teacher 06/30/2016 at 09:01

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No shite, just respray the whole car if you’re trying to fool someone.

Ash78, voting early and often > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 06/30/2016 at 09:24

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Even back to the Avalon’s early days, it was always considered to be the more rational alternative to the Lexus LS (they’re unrelated, as most of us know). Because most buyers wanting a lux cruiser didn’t really care about the drive wheels or other minor nits. I still like these and am surprised I rarely see them. Realtors seem to love them, they're like mini limos for taking your clients around, and with zero snobbery.

Stapleface > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 06/30/2016 at 10:05

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It's like its not even the same paint code. Whatever happened to blending panels? Kind of surprised your dealership took it in on the lot looking as bad as it does.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Stapleface 06/30/2016 at 11:14

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It’s going to the body shop tomorrow to get fixed.

Stapleface > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 06/30/2016 at 11:16

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Okay, that makes sense. Hopefully the body shop can at least do a better job than the last one did.

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > Stapleface 06/30/2016 at 14:41

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You’d be surprised. Our Honda Pilot in Nimbus grey hit a deer. They fixed the damage and painted the new parts in Sage green....

Nimbus Grey above

Sage green above

Yes, Honda colors don’t make much sense. But the paint codes weren’t even that close

NH662P (sage green) vs NH705M (Nimbus green)

Stapleface > JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! 06/30/2016 at 14:43

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Wow. That’s pretty bad. Although I have to say I think I prefer the sage green better.

JQJ213- Now With An Extra Cylinder! > Stapleface 06/30/2016 at 14:56

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In the sun, Nimbus looked a lot nicer IMO because the metallic in it made the car pop a lot more.

Sage green didn’t seem to have as much shine in it.

Frank Grimes > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 06/30/2016 at 20:15

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I wouldnt get that one its like 3 different colors

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Frank Grimes 06/30/2016 at 20:26

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It’s at the body shop right now getting the paint re-blended. For some reason that door was poorly repainted in the past.

Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 07/01/2016 at 19:02

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There’s an older Maxima I see in the parking garage at work with the same deal. Back door and quarter panel are a different color - silver must be a tough color to match.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom 07/01/2016 at 19:06

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Generally metallic colors are an enormous pain to match because not only does it have to be the same color code you have to approximate the same angle the factory sprayed it on in order to get the metal flakes to align similarly and catch the light the same. From certain angles this car looks perfectly fine but from others the misalignment of the metal flakes becomes obvious

Frank Grimes > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 07/01/2016 at 22:00

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yeah but its kind of the point of paying someone else to do something...so it can be done right and if a person isnt willing or able to match a metalic (yes its hard but thats why they invented spray out cards) then they shouldnt be painting cars.

dogisbadob > Frank Grimes 07/01/2016 at 22:02

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Honda is even worse at paint

dogisbadob > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 07/01/2016 at 22:02

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Too bad you can’t get a bench seat anymore :(

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > dogisbadob 07/01/2016 at 23:01

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Seriously. I wish I had the bench seat option in my Riviera.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > Frank Grimes 07/01/2016 at 23:02

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You get what you paid for, and they probably didn’t pay the premium that this sort of work requires.

dogisbadob > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 07/01/2016 at 23:02

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You could get it on the previous-gen Impala SS tho ;)

HFV has no HFV. But somehow has 2 motorcycles > Turbineguy: Nom de Zoom 07/01/2016 at 23:03

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When I was working as a salesmen an elderly couple had a WBody Impala that had an accidental two tone. The bottom 8 inches of the car from tee front to the rear fender was a totally different shade of brown. We asked them if the car had been in a accident or had any rust repair done, and they swore it hadn't. needless to say Rowe didn't offer top dollar on the trade.

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > dogisbadob 07/01/2016 at 23:04

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Yup. Is there any currently-produced car that has a front bench?

dogisbadob > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 07/01/2016 at 23:12

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unfortunately no

All the articles even came out and said the last year of that Impala was the last front bench seat. even the pickups don’t have them anymore either :(

GM said they discontinued it due to low sales (only about 3% of customers ordered it)

Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To > dogisbadob 07/01/2016 at 23:15

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Womp womp.

Frank Grimes > Jake - Has Bad Luck So You Don't Have To 07/02/2016 at 02:46

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Anyone who paints a car should be able and willing to do a proper paint match. Its not brain science.