Altis Glitch

[Bentwy]

Sure I do agree that the altis' assembly is NOT up to par to the idealised Jap quality, and YES workshop pple and owners alike DO KNOW that the build quality is not top notch. I am not by far a loyal toyota fan. But it is a not a matter of loyalty here. Just a matter of whether a car drives and serves well.

 

Do new thai made toyotas really break down on the roads? and no I've seen thai metal bash up nissans and hyundais in accidents, and anyway I think accident damage depends on many other factors. if bimmers should not be generalised as problematic just because they break down, should thai made cars be generalised to be problematic just because they are thai made? I DO have small problems with the altis, but not to the extent that I would say it's a good engine build around a piece of crap.

 

I think there are MANY teething problems to ANY car model. Volvo had recalls, Mitsubishi had MAJOR recalls, and chevrolet also has its fair share of problems. The real interesting thing is when the altis and vios has teething problems its attributed to it's "thai made" label, whilst for the mitsubishi fiasco it's errr... something else?

 

Anyway, I don't own the altis. I own a Hyundai, and if I had the means, I would own an AR. My bro owns a bimmer, and we're all very happy with our sets of wheels. I think the important thing is to enjoy your ride, because every car has its pros and cons. But I wouldn't be so quick to become a toyota basher just because its COMMON.

[Koolaba]

I reaffirm that my views are purely stating that the build quality of Thai-made Toyotas leaves much to be desired.

 

Anyway, hope that the Altis serves you and your family well.

[Astrid]

Am neither a Toyota or a Nissan owner, but I did recently help a friend to test drive and eventually select the Sunny over the Altis.

 

You need to compare the Altis against the current version of the Sunny (there is a significant step-change in Nissan quality after their JV with Renault). Its much more solidly built, inside and out.

 

Compare the dashboard, gear stick and switches - the Altis is more flimsy and should I say, rather "el-cheapo" looking.

 

The real test is on the exressway at high speeds (above 100 km/h). This is where the Sunny's heavier chassis shines over the Altis. It is far more stable. The Altis' electric power steering is just way too sensitive and its light body don't do much to help in its high-speed (in)stability.

 

Japan vs Thai, at the same price (?), I will choose the Jepun anytime ... all else being equal. Their level of QC is (still) just not the same. Jap has always been more superior. It may take the Thais a decade or more to catch up, perhaps. But by then, the very best of Japanese (e.g. Lexus / Accura) would have gained even more ground on building the best/reliable cars in the world.

[Nkteck]

I'm not sure if the pple here who are lambasting the altis are actual owners. My family does own one (and I'm its chief driver), and yes there are problems with its final touches, like a creaky suspension and a problematic alarm system (which is by a SINGAPORE company and assembled by SINGAPOREANS by the way). And sure I do blame it on the thais not assembling it properly all the time.

 

BUT to say the altis is not a corolla is very far fetched. The engine is 100% pedigree japan toyota. Ask anyone who has driven a nissan and an altis and ask him about a comparison. In terms of finesse (and to me power) the altis beats the nissan hands down. FC between the older CVTC nissan engine and the VVTi is also very apparent. Thailand (Bangkok) taxis are mostly altises, yes, but by far are the MOST COMFORTABLE taxis I've been in.

 

Anyway, its interesting to note that Bimmers are always the cars you see breaking down on the roads. So what do we blame here? Lousy German Engineering? It's funny when it comes to Conti cars it's "luck" and to Thai assembled cars it's "poor assembly". But so far I've not seen any Altis having real engine problems on the roads.

 

Just my two cents....

 

Hmmm.... u should check out the so call "engine is 100% pedigree japan toyota". The true fact is ALL the engine in Altis are casted and assemble in thai using Japanese technology.. Check out with Tan Chong SE ... press them hard enough and the truth will be out ..

 

No prune intent ...just stating the fact.

[Bentwy]

Tan Chong? Toyota? Nissan?

[Nkteck]

Oooh.. typepo error ..should be toyota SE

[David3305]

The Corolla Altis is a export model whilst the big eye Corolla(that BM fisrt bring in) is meant for Japan domestic market. Engine wise is sourced direct from Japan and so are the major components. Other minor items like hose, plastic mouldings are sourced locally in Thailand. Reason why most of the big Japanese makers are moving to Thailand is to take advantage of the lower operation cost and of course the ASEAN FTA, which means they save on tariff when exporting to ASEAN markets. The techology transfer is there and the supervisors are all from Japan. One reason the fit and finish quality is the quality control of the parts supplier. It is no fault of the Japanese engineers in Thailand. It is a trade off when you set up a plant in a foreign country and the local govt stipulates you need to use how many percentage of local contents. This in turn generates employment for the local industries.

 

Look at all the Thai made cars, Altis, Vios, Camry, City, Accord and you will surely find some faults with the fit and finishing but engine wise and realiabilty is on par with the Japanese counterparts.

 

I agreed fully that BM has one of the biggest profit margain per car sold and they are not passing all of it to its customer. Sometimes back there was a report in the paper on the various car makes and model, comparing the profit margain of all importer.

[Vit4wd]

hey man.. sort of workmanship probs la.

 

Had my 1.8 altis for a year plus now. so far i had to replace the driver's side window seal cos i could hear the wind at speeds of 80kph and above.

Had to fix my front passenger vanity mirror cover as it got loose after awhile..

 

Right now there's this buzzing sound coming from my airconditioner and it gets louder when i turn up the fan speed.However, i suspect its just a piece of dried leaf and nothing mechanical.

 

just my experiences =)

 

fuel consumption is great however..my 1.8L with a light foot and conservative driving gives me about 520km on a full tank. Works out to be about 11-12km/L

 

 

Exactly the same problem as G9 Corolla.

[Kasparov_1]

so the problems are not unique to thai assembled toyotas?.

 

I always thought toyota was a pretty good quality car.. now i realise its the same as its european counterparts.

 

Anyway, last week i sent in my 1.8 altis for servicing and had the car checked up at the same time, cos there was a strange squeaking sound whenever i cornered or u-turned.

 

Turns out that the drive train was damaged, so they changed the entire thing for me.. lucky that my car is still under warranty.. else i wouldnt know how much it'd cost me.The car is only 1 1/2 years old with about 30,000km. Drive train damaged?!

Edited October 1, 2005 by Kasparov_1

[Odyssey02]

what you mean by drive-train damaged. isn't that serious problem. they always claim Thai cars are up to jap standards but its really .

[Kasparov_1]

i donno. my dad sent in the car actually. and they told him that the drive train was damaged and that they changed it. dad didnt ask much cos he doesnt know much abt cars.

 

we switched to japanese makes last year.. hoping that we wouldnt need to spend so much $$ on maintenance and repairs compared to our previous cars.. but looks like we've bought junk again!.

[Odyssey02]

what car did you use to drive. actually you can't really call it junk because how the hell you know what will happen to you. all have to base on luck. haha.

[Kasparov_1]

okay la its not exactly junk. i mean, its a good car.. smooth and quiet and the air con rocks. haha. responsive too.

 

i used to drive a '97 523IA. family had it for 7 years and i drove it for about a year before selling it off. It had uneven cylinder wear and tear and that repair cost us $7000.The problems came back after 6-8months.We also had a '01 volvo v70.Sold it in its 3rd year because it had turbo problems and the engine just kept on dying( for an auto car, that's uber frustrating). Repairs and maintenance for both cars were a real waste of money. so in 2004 we sold both cars and bought a 1.8 altis and a 2.4 camry.

 

Experiencing problems too. but on a lesser scale la i must say. we just replaced the brake 'judder' ( i dono how u spell it ) on the camry abt a month ago cos the guys at BM said its busted. Minor glitches on the altis here and there as mentioned in my prev posts..

[Odyssey02]

is your camry the thai or jap one. my friend has the last batch of jap camry's and the quality of the fit and finish is top notch.

[Kasparov_1]

both my toyota's are thai assembled.. bought them in 2004 when the coe was still high. total paper loss for both cars are in excess of $20k.

[Hilander4650]

i always advice my friends not to buy korean or thai made jap cars becos it will nvr be the same...

there are plenty of jap made cars that is abt the same price as toyotas or slightly more expensive.

but its worth the money,

u pay peanuts u get monkeys..

toyota so wat?? some people can give me the u know i drive toyota look(as if made in japan)wat a joke...

somemore can tell me to change to altis..

the answer is never....firstly dun like the looks secondly thai made..

and thirdly its an apek car.

Edited October 1, 2005 by Hilander4650

[Bentwy]

I don't think anyone should buy a toyota just because of the brand name. It think they should buy a toyota if they are happy about the ride. But neither do I think the "made in thailand" thing should be over-emphasized. Every car, "jap", "korean", "german" etc, can have its problem. Most of the cars in Singapore are factory made. And just like any mass produced thing, luck plays a part.

 

I just don't understand why there are pple in this forum who want to make others unhappy with their rides by poking at them and saying "you bought the wrong car"! When in fact we could be okay with them.

 

I don't own an altis, but I'm happy with the way it rides. Who cares thai made or not? in the end it boils down to how much money and time you have to trouble with repairs. And it's not as though ANY car is REALLY COMPLETELY made in one country nowadays. Who's going to lambast Ford Philippines huh? Or Spanish BMW? Or that even until today "pure jap" Mitshubishi still has so many recalls - talking about the Grandis recall in the U.S. What's wrong with Korean? Saw a Matrix burst in flame recently sure. I also saw when I was young a very nice looking but totally on fire continental car. Blame who? Bad maintanance? Bad driver? Bad weather?

 

Sure some people buy cars for their looks or their ability to grunt on the road. Whatever makes you happy. Some people are happy in their toyotas. Period.

[Normal_aspirated]

Let's just say that the Altis is the cost cutting Thai version of the Japanese Corolla.

Altis is not sold in Japan.

Existing JDM G9 is still available. Since G10 corolla is still not out in Japan, and so Altis is also called a G9 & a 1/2.