When it comes to building cars, certain manufacturers have it easier than others. For example, If Ferrari wants to make a Supercar, it has to be stupendously quick, It has to handle with the agility of a flea but with the composure of a Cheetah on the hunt and it has to have a price tag so eye-watering that us mere mortals could only dream of owning one. On the other hand, If Dacia want to build a new & improved Sandero, They’ll take an already proven Renault Platform taken from the well-respected Clio so that It drives well, is good on fuel and ultimately has a good amount of space, fill it with a reasonable amount of equipment and then sell it for an extremely reasonable price that is affordable to the masses – A modern day people’s car if you like.
The modern day family car is a different kettle of fish though. As the name suggests, a Family car has to be capable of doing just that, hauling families around. In the modern day, it seems that every family car on the market is yet another bloated and cookie-cutter styled SUV that keeps taking up too much space in an ALDI car park. Also, with premium manufacturers like BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz, JLR & Lexus offering up their idea of a family car, It seems that the whole ethos of the Family car has been lost, at least in the UK at least. This was never the case during the ’90s and the early ’00’s.
In my personal opinion, the humble family car was at Its peak during these times. For a start, there was a plethora of different manufacturers building their own idea of a family car. These included Nissan, Vauxhall/Opel, Ford Europe, Toyota, Honda, Volkswagen, Renault, Citroen & Peugeot as well as a smattering of others. Some of the cars produced went down a lot better than most would anticipate and these included the Vauxhall Cavalier/Vectra, the Ford Mondeo, the Nissan Primera, the Renault Laguna, the Honda Accord and for this article, the Toyota Avensis.
Now whilst there were other types of family cars during this time, I’m going to focus on the midsize family cars that were once a staple of the UK roads. These cars weren’t just for personal use like many people from other countries would expect, in fact a large number of sales of these types of cars were bought by the fleet market and used by company reps that’d always be seen driving up and down the different UK Motorway networks. In some cases, some of these cars were also used as minicabs due to their robustness & impeccable build quality.
Now it was quite a rare sight for a particular car from this segment to be seen in all 3 of these environments, let alone be a popular choice in all of said environments but the humble Toyota Avensis was and to some still is the car that broke that mold so to speak. Now whilst it wasn’t the first car to be popular as a fleet car, a Minicab and as a personal vehicle, it was one of the most popular cars of the time so it was a given that they’d be bought and used for all different reasons, personal or not.
The MK1 Avensis ‘T220’ arrived at the tail end of 1997 and was the replacement for the groundbreaking Carina E. Just like the car it replaced, it was built superbly and could do mega miles without ever really going wrong. Add in the then all-new D4D 2.0 diesel engine and here was a car that could literally outlive everyone. Three body styles were available and these included the 5 door Hatchback/Liftback, the 4 door saloon and the 5 door estate. The estate in question was incredibly practical with an enormous boot space, a low loading lip, tons of little cubby holes dotted around the place and a good amount of leg & headroom for anyone on board. It was also priced well which meant that just like the Honda Accord of the time, it sold in huge numbers over here in the UK. As a bonus, the Avensis as a whole was actually built and assembled in the UK which was a good thing for the British economy.
The only real issue with the MK1 at the time was Its uninspiring drive. Reviews at the time actually called it boring which I do think is a bit unfair considering it was a normal humdrum family car but when you consider that Its biggest rival, the Accord, was similarly priced, just as well built, better looking and was known to be a better drive, I can see how the Avensis MK1 fell short compared with the competition. Alas, the MK1 soldiered on until 2003 when it was then replaced with what I believe to be the best generation of Avensis, the MK2 ‘T25’!
Now it can be said that I’m not a big Toyota fan and even I have to admit that the manufacturer doesn’t sit high on my list of favourites but I’d be lying to myself that when it comes to no-nonsense family cars like the RAV4, the Land Cruiser, the Hilux and the Avensis, Toyota really do know what they’re doing. We’ve had the opportunity over the years to own numerous different vehicles from all different manufacturers and even I have to concede that when it comes to some of their family cars, Toyota get things absolutely spot on.
Anyway, back to the subject at hand. The MK2 Avensis was released in 2003 to rave reviews from nearly every car journalist in the country. With a more European look now given to the Avensis both inside and out, the car now felt more like a Lexus than an Avensis which was well & truly needed, let’s be honest here. In comparison, whilst the original was built to a high standard that is typical of a Toyota, there was a lot to be desired when compared with the competition. for example, the interior of the original had that typical feel of a ’90s Japanese car, i.e everything was there and the build quality far trumped anything else in Its class but it was deemed to be dull and a bit naff compared to Its european counterparts. This was all changed with the introduction of the second incarnation. In my opinion, the Tourer variant is the most handsome out of the bunch with the hatchback/liftback coming in at a close second and the saloon coming in third but overall, the MK2 Avensis is a very conservative but handsome car. It doesn’t wow you but at the same time it doesn’t offend neither. Age has also played into the cars favour quite a bit as well because when you park this next to a newer car of a similar size that seems to have sharp angles absolutely everywhere and very odd features, the Avensis does away with all of that and It is so much better for it.
At release, the MK2 carried over a good few of the engines from the original. These included the 1.6 litre 3ZZ-FE, the 1.8 litre 1ZZ-FE, the 2.0 litre 1AZ-FSE and the really rather good 2.0 litre 1CD-FTV D4D diesel unit. In some markets, the 2.4 litre 2AZ-FSE from the Camry was an option in the new car as well. In fact, whilst on the subject of the larger Camry, when the Camry stopped getting exported to certain countries, with the UK being one, the Avensis became the largest Saloon being available in Western Europe. In the UK, the 1.6 litre was not available in the Avensis which made sense when compared to the then-new MK3 Mondeo & Vectra C shifting to 1.8 & 2.0 litre petrols, which started to become the norm for a majority of buyers. During Its life, two variants of the 2.2 litre D4D diesel engine were available, these were known as the 2AD-FTV and the 2AD-FHV and these are fantastic engines with good levels of refinement, economy and with the latter engine, a good dollop of performance too.
Trim levels in the UK consisted of T2, T3-S, T3-X, T4, T-Spirit, TR and the rather splendid T180. During Its life, there was also a special edition that was based upon the T2 that was called the Colour Collection. In Ireland, the trim levels consisted of Terra, Aura, Strata, Luna & Sol. In Japan, you could even get the Avensis with AWD but only on the base model 2.0 Xi. For us in the UK, the ‘T180’ was something special indeed. Fitted with the 2AD-FHV, the T180 put out, you guessed it, 180bhp which for the time was a good amount of power, especially considering the engine size and the fact that it was a Diesel. Here you had a model that could get 45+MPG, could do 600 miles to a tank of diesel as well as doing 0-60 in a very respectable 8.3 seconds. Add in the little trinkets the T180 was sporting like the 5 spoke alloy wheels, the leather wrapped steering wheel, the 6 speed manual gearbox, the leather seats and the slight sporty looks, this was an Avensis that meant business. We used to own a RAV4 ‘T180’ and that was an absolute blast to drive so I can just imagine what an Avensis T180 would be like.
In typical Toyota fashion, regardless of what trim level or what engine you went for, you were bound to get a car that can still hold a candle to modern day family car. an Avensis diesel can easily do 200k+ miles without really breaking a sweat. Now whilst it is true that a Vectra C or Mondeo MK3 can also do high miles before running into any real issues, after reaching the 200k+ mile mark, a good amount of them will need to be babied to make sure they can carry on piling on the miles whereas the Avensis just seems to take everything in Its stride. Before writing this article, I did a good bit of research on the Avensis to find out how they dealt with high miles and whilst accruing some information, I came across a comment on a thread that eluded to the fact that a 2008 Avensis D4D had done well over 600k miles and was still going strong on Its original engine and gearbox. That’s incredibly impressive when you consider that when new, the car wasn’t overly expensive compared to the higher end of the family car market.
Now sure, whilst It is true that a similarly aged VW/Audi Group car with a PD130 can easily do mega miles, a lot of examples have been ran so far into the ground that Its not even worth piling money into them. Add in the extra buying cost of the VW/Audi Group car in question and the costs to keep them going for the first few years and it made total sense why the Avensis was a runaway hit. These days in the UK, you can pick up a MK2 Avensis 2.0D for anywhere between £1000 for one that needs some work to £3000 for a perfect example which makes it the perfect everyday car. Add in that after 15 years since production stopped, pretty much every single part is still available to buy for an extremely reasonable price means that you could easily buy one regardless of mileage or condition and keep it going for at least 5 years – not bad going considering the economic climate we find ourselves in.
These cars were so revered for so many different reasons that for a long time these were the minicab of choice for a lot of cab firms all around the UK. Now whilst that might not sound exciting to a good amount of people, considering that minicab firms have to use cars that are spacious, reliable, inexpensive to buy & run as well as comfortable for both driver & passenger, it made perfect sense that for a very long time the Avensis was the car of choice. Fleet companies also never really had any qualms with the Avensis neither, now sure, it was never going to win any driving awards and whilst it could’ve easily be overlooked sitting in the company car park, the Toyota was always the dependable one that could always be relied on.
Recently we had to get rid of our 2008 RAV4 ‘T180’ that we had as a family hack due to the insane amounts of rust that was all over the floor & chassis. After searching high and low for well over a month for Its replacement, we decided to go for a last of the line Avensis ‘TR’ 2.0D Tourer and even though we’ve only had it for about a month, the Avensis is by far a better car than the RAV4. the Avensis in question has done 12,000 miles more than our old RAV4 but it feels a lot more solid in comparison. Whilst looking underneath it to check it over, there’s no serious rust to report about, there’s no major oil or fluid leaks and generally It’s in really good nick considering Its sitting on 173,000 miles. a quick MOT/Inspection check online shows that over Its 15 years on the roads, It has never really done a lot of miles each year. The check also shows that nothing major has ever really needed to be replaced over the years too. I always said that if it wasn’t for the rust issues with the RAV4, mechanically it could easily hit 200k miles without a problem. I’m now certain that the Avensis will easily hit that target and still climb without any issues whatsoever.
Only a day after taking ownership of the new daily, we decided to help neighbours move into the street. Me and my stepdad have never had experience of an Avensis before and at that point we didn’t know if we had made the correct decision in replacing the RAV4 for the new car but after putting the seats down and piling the car with furniture, numerous boxes, electrical goods, pots and plants and even a couple of small TV’s, both of us were really impressed with the 520+ litres of boot space. It didn’t even flinch or cause any issues driving up to the old address as well as driving back down again. The carrying capacity with the seats down was honestly Volvo like and for me, that’s the highest praise I can ever give a car. If we had used the RAV4 like we had originally planned to do, it wouldn’t of been able to fit as much stuff in even with the seats folded flat. Really good going considering the RAV4 was a good bit more expensive than the Avensis was when new and even now offer a premium over any Toyota hatch, saloon or estate regardless of model.
Now to anyone that has gotten this far into the article will probably be asking and saying “But Alex, if the car is so good, what’s the bad points of the car?!” and to those people I will have to concede that whilst overall the car is really good, just like any other car, the MK2 Avensis has got issues of Its own. For a start, this generation of Avensis came out when Toyota had real issues with corrosion, especially here in the UK. Now whilst the Avensis isn’t the only Toyota of the time to suffer from this, the Avensis does suffer the exact same fate as the rest where the body/chassis give out way before a majority of the drivetrain does. Strangely for a Toyota, the Avensis II does suffer from quite a few engie issues, especially in diesel form. These include Injector issues, EGR Issues, Flywheel/Clutch issues and the dreaded HGF failure. These issues are also found in the RAV4 of the same age and in other Toyota’s with the same engine that were sold at around the same time so this isn’t just an Avensis issue. By the time the MK3 came out in 2009, pretty much all of these mechanical issues had been put to bed and have since been sorted.
The biggest issue with the Avensis isn’t Its rust issues or even Its several engine issues, the cars biggest issue is Its dullness. Back when the Avensis II was released, the market for midsize family cars was extremely strong over here in the UK. In fact, It had been getting stronger & stronger since the ’80s & ’90s so obviously this accumulated in that market getting ever stronger during the early noughties all the way up to the mid-teens. Everyone at one point was making a five door liftback/4 door saloon/5 door estate version of the same model. Vauxhall & Ford had been at it for years, VW were also at it, as were Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Fiat, Renault, Citroen & Peugeot to name a few. During the Noughties though, there was a shift that shook up the market by quite a good bit and that was the implementation of premium manufactures getting involved. With that, every premium manufacturer you could think of had at least one family saloon/estate in their lineup that you could purchase. These included the BMW 3 Series which had been the Daddy for years, the Audi A4, the Jaguar X-Type, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, the SAAB 9-3, the Alfa Romeo 156, the Volvo S60/V70 and even the original Lexus IS.
And whilst the Avensis was a strong contender with all of the cars on offer, whether premium or not, the car was always seen as being extremely dull both in the way it drove and in some ways, the way it looked. The car was praised for Its impeccable build quality, Its 5-star safety rating which included a whopping 9 airbags- which was a big thing back in the day, as well as Its bulletproof reliability which is just so Toyota. It also had impressive fuel economy and carrying capabilities. Even though I’m not a Toyota person per say, I have to agree with all of those points – it truly is a really good family car that can pretty much do everything you ask of it but that’s just the point, you don’t get attached to it in the same way you would a Mondeo V6 or a Honda Accord 2.4 for example.
Now Toyota did do a lot of R&D to make sure the Avensis II drove as well as it could and one of the things they decided to do was to take the whole rear end & subframe of their 7th Gen Celica and bolt it straight up to the Avensis to aid rear end grip and handling. This made the Avensis sure footed and composed when out on the open road and it definitely made a difference over the MK1’s setup but unfortunately it wasn’t enough. The competition just had it beat in every single way drivability wise. Add in that with the other cars on offer at the time, you could get a spicy/sporty option which normally had either a high revving engine or a large but extremely smooth and powerful V6 under the bonnet and it was no surprise that the Avensis wasn’t going to quite live up to Its rivals.
In all fairness to the car, a lot of them were used in the Fleet market so a good majority of them were mainly seen plodding up and down numerous motorway networks up and down the country so it wasn’t as if the reps going to the business meetings could ever get the opportunity to throw their Avensis down some snakey twists & turns to see how it really drove on the limit. Private buyers didn’t really care too much about how it drove because they only really saw it for what it was, a 5 door family car that was able to be used every single day without fail during all conditions regardless of the weather, with the biggest run It would do would be a family holiday to the coast or to a caravan park and if not that, then it’d be used to go see long lost family. This left the multiple minicab companies around the UK that once swore by these cars and they didn’t really care about how it drove neither just as long as it was relatively comfy, practical, reliable, easy to run and good on fuel. Because the Avensis could easily cater to its needs by the people that brought them and drove them, it was no surprise that even with the strong competition, it became one of the best selling family cars of the Noughties.
So if your like us & you find yourself getting out of your bland & lackluster SUV and getting into a family hatch/estate car or even if you want an inexpensive but practical family car that can carry much more than you could ever imagine or expect, an Avensis is a very respectable choice for anyone in the market. With motoring events happening around the UK like ‘Festival of the Unexceptional’ that cater to your normal, underappreciated cars that are becoming rare for all different reasons, an early first or second year of production Avensis MK2 will fit the bill perfectly and will suit shows like that that are now popping up all over the country. It might not set your pants on fire but the Avensis is like that faithful old friend, a bit boring and not much to talk about but can be relied on during every situation.
Hope You Enjoy!
Alex Jebson
Forced Induction 