Hold Your Breath: GMI Drives the '05 Avalon

[Ghrankenstein]

2005 Toyota Avalon: The Unauthorized Story

by Ghrankenstein

Capsule- 2005 Toyota Avalon Limited

Strong Points: Impeccable powertrain. Unimaginable seats. Phenomenal Audio

Weak Points: Apathetic styling. Lethargic steering. Couch-potato handling. Unexpected ergonomics.

The Verdict: A passenger sedan so preoccupied with being good that it’s afraid to be great.

Introduction

The first 2005 Toyota Avalons are now arriving on dealership lots. So far, I've been surprised that the cash-in-fist are still lining up for the Tacomas, and not the Avalons, though I doubt they'll have the lot life that the handful of remaining '04’s have had.

My example is a gleaming black '05 Limited. We've all seen the pictures, and many of us have seen them in person, but auto show security staffs have some kind of prejudice against people with green heads, just because they eat velvet rope like some people bite their nails. This was my first chance to see one up close.

Styling

My impression of the Avalon from the outside was just that. The Avalon is styled to impress, not to enthuse. The downward sloping tail, horizontal creases, and thick A- and C-pillars are all designed to add enough visual length and mass to remind the viewer that this is no longer a warmed-over Camry. The Avalon is designed to make the customer see size and quality, something that I'll be griping about quite a bit in the future, since there's not even the slightest attempt at automotive beauty here.

From the front, the Avalon's hallmark is the large grille, which, again, is more about presence than passion. The three body-colored bars have chrome edges, and, for what it's worth, it will look just as good in five years as it does now. Overall, the Avalon is styled so that it looks more like a good car than a good-looking car. Songs will never be written about it, and posters of it will never adorn bedroom walls. Yes, it’s an Avalon, for crying out loud, but couldn’t they have done something to make it prettier?

Interior

This “rogue website” is about to hand Toyota a dose of reality that it won’t get anywhere else. Toyota is used to getting away with everything, and the details that are bound to be ignored by the rest of the “unbiased” media are going to show up here. There’s enough to say about the Avalon’s interior to debunk its image of untouchable perfection, and its cabin has many of the same flaws that get GM vehicles nit-picked into oblivion. There are plenty of good things to talk about too, and I'll also give you my take on those. Just remember what Ghrankenstein had to say when you read from the “legitimate” press, especially Edmunds and Consumer Reports, as they and coo and fawn over their new baby.

The seats in my $36,000 Avalon Limited were like some kind of dream; they’re almost cloudlike in their comfort. The perforated leather is soft to the point of creaminess, and yet clingy enough to make up for the seats’ relative lack of bolstering. With the tilt/telescoping steering wheel, and the Limited’s power seat cushion extender, I was able to find a near-perfect driving position in seconds. In my $36,000 car, though, I want my heated/cooled seats to have a steeper cushion-tilt adjustment, and I’d be willing to give up the cooling elements that probably impede that motion.

The view through the beautiful wood grain steering wheel is clear enough to be able to read the large, electro luminescent gauges. That’s what gauges are for, and I have no complaints. I assume the wood grain trim pieces are real, but I don’t care if they’re fake. Faux wood trim usually only gets complaints if it’s in GM vehicles, even though modern manufacturing processes make real and fake wood virtually indistinguishable. (see sidebar)

The dash is still low and expansive, but it doesn’t seem to add the sense of room that I felt in the ’04 Avalon, where all the gauges and readouts and such were faired in under a dash-width cowling. I could care less, though. This is an attractive, and highly functional, if uninspiring dash.

When I get to the “information center” and center stack controls is when things start bugging me. My opinions about Navigation Systems, and how I hate them, are certainly not universal, but GMI readers should already know my predisposition against them. One of our Avalons has the Nav (and a sticker price north of $38,000), but the one I drove didn’t. I’ll let the pro-Nav constituency determine its own opinion about the Avalon’s system, and how it’s positioned far enough away from the driver to necessitate a joystick instead of a touch-screen.

Whether the Avalon has a Nav system or not, my Limited had a large center-dash LCD display that shows information for both the dual-zone climate control and the radio. It’s no I-drive, but it wasn’t intuitive enough for me to jump right in and start using it. The steering wheel has controls for most of the HVAC and audio functions, but I had trouble switching into the right “mode” to work them when I wanted to. I’m fairly technologically inclined, and the fact that I couldn’t figure it all out in a five-minute window doesn’t bode well for the bluehairs that will soon be driving their new Avalons home. Another footnote is that the HVAC’s slick new touch-pad controls look great, but they're a long reach, and some of the controls on the driver’s side are obscured by the steering wheel.

My biggest gripe are the satin-silver doors that cover the head unit and cassette deck. I can’t stand them. The intent, of course, is to “clean up” the look of an indecipherable maze of audio controls in hopes that they’ll go away. The downside is that they not only make the audio controls harder to reach, but they add a decidedly fiddly step in accessing them. The option is either to leave them open and face a veritable bukkake of bad Feng Shui, or close them knowing that you’re just going to have to open them again at some point in the near future. Somebody’s going to have a wreck fussing over them, take my word on it.

The 12-speaker, 360 watt JBL “Synthesis” stereo is nothing short of incredible, and I don’t have to say anything else beyond the fact that my ancient Metal Church (The Human Factor) cassette hasn’t sounded so lifelike in years. When competitors start fielding stereo systems like this, it’s hard to declare anyone a winner but the customer.

I won’t ignore the Avalon’s numerous safety features completely, but simply listing them here doesn’t do much good. My one comment is that the Avalon’s standard lower-dash knee airbags have been the target of concern, for protecting the driver’s knees at the at the expense of causing more serious hip injuries. If Toyota can alleviate that concern, I’ll give them their due for adding yet another valuable safety feature.

I mentioned before that Avalon’s interior trim is not perfect, and here’s what you’ll probably read nowhere else: If you look for faults in the trim, you’ll find them, and a fortunate examination of a LaCrosse CXL this morning yielded better, if less ambitious, assembly than what I see in the Avalon.

AdmiralViscen, in one of the Buick LaCrosse threads, has already pointed out the most notable bogey: the noticeable gap between the dash and the front doors. Normally, I wouldn’t care a whole lot, but Toyota’s made a name for itself on fit, and the less-roguish press has jumped right on that bandwagon. It’s not the atrocity seen in base Cobalts, but you’ll see smaller gaps in the LaCrosse, the Corolla, and even the Aveo. Furthermore, in a $36,000 car, you expect your interior’s elements to fit as tightly and uniformly as possible. Just as you’ll see in Hondas if you look closely, the trim around the Avalon’s center stack varies in its degree of relief. It’s not much, but if you put the same scrutiny into a Buick LaCrosse or Chevy Malibu, you’d see less variation.

Toyota’s most arrogant move in the Avalon’s interior concerns the surrounds for the HVAC vents. Most manufacturers avoid this potential obstacle by using completely different materials for their HVAC vents, but Toyota uses the same materials, and attempts to mount them flush with the rest of the dash. This is an attempt to make a very bold statement of interior quality, but it's a failure. The seams around the HVAC vents are uneven, and because the texture grains don’t match exactly, the surrounds even come across as looking discolored and cheap.

When you have the chance, check one out and see what I mean. It’s subtle, but it’s there, and you can bet that if the 2006 Impala’s interior is done similarly, you’ll hear it trumpeted coast to coast.

To be continued...

[Swahili]

Great review Ghrank, you pretty much said it all. I personally think the looks of the Avalon come no where near close to any of its competition. I think the Impala looks so much better than the Avalon. However, bland looks haven't stopped Toyota in the past and it doesn't seem like they will here either. I take it though that the Lacrosse is better suited against the Avalon. Comparing the Lacrosse/Allure to the Avalon to me and I'd take the Buick in a heartbeat.

[Smilingoat]

Wow, great job. i took a look at the avalon at the auto show a few weeks back, i personally didnt like the styling inside OR out. but the quality, which to me matters most, was top notch. sounds like it backs up the quality, the car i sat it was not production, it was a show car, so i expect the fit and finish only got better. although it sounds like i could be wrong. anyway, great job, not only interesting, but very good to read, thanks Ghrank.

[jbartley]

i'm laughing so hard, i'm practically crying over the center stack button covers, seriously what were they thinking?

[Slack]

Originally Posted by Ghrankenstein

I won’t ignore the Avalon’s numerous safety features completely, but simply listing them here doesn’t do much good. My one comment is that the Avalon’s standard lower-dash knee airbags have been the target of concern, for protecting the driver’s knees at the at the expense of causing more serious hip injuries. If Toyota can alleviate that concern, I’ll give them their due for adding yet another valuable safety feature.

That's just what blue hairs need, help breaking their hips. This certainly sounds like a little rain on Toyota's parade.

[New_Mexico_Sunset_on_Rt66]

From what I read, a nice realistic review. I was getting ready to get out thw 'pixy dust', but a somewhat realistic review.

[Z28x]

I'd rather spend $36K on a nice CTS or '04 Lingenfelter GTO.

That Toyota is VERY bland, who is going to spend $36K on a FWD car??????

[pagemaster]

I sat in the Toyota Avalon at the Autoshow and didn't like it myself. It will sell and perform well but I just personally didn't like it. I like the Camry better or the previous generation Avalon.

[tgagneguam]

It's nice when a person can appreciate the finer points of a vehicle - and let's face it, the Avalon is quite nice, anyway you slice that pie - but it's refreshing to point out its weaknesses in a balanced manner, too. After all, Toyota is not infallible, And that's perfectly OK.

Thanks for the more balanced review.

[jro4566]

Great review Ghrank - definitely one of the best I've read, pro-writer or not. I also liked your verdict, which was written as if you worked at an automotive magazine.

I do agree with you on your points that the new Avalon is a good car, but not breathtaking. I do know however that I would get one over the "new" Lucerne.

[spudglo08]

I see toyotas hype dying down in a few years the way their adding products theyll have less R&D $ for each one hopefully.

[slvrlkdude]

Originally Posted by Swahili

Great review Ghrank, you pretty much said it all. I personally think the looks of the Avalon come no where near close to any of its competition. I think the Impala looks so much better than the Avalon. However, bland looks haven't stopped Toyota in the past and it doesn't seem like they will here either. I take it though that the Lacrosse is better suited against the Avalon. Comparing the Lacrosse/Allure to the Avalon to me and I'd take the Buick in a heartbeat.

I haven't driven the Avalon, but I've had a spin in the Lacrosse. I drove the lower-end model and I liked some features, but some features really bugged. The QuietTuning was awesome and believe it or not, this car handles oodles better than Pontiac's G6. The interior was crap. The upholstery was tacky, the dash was barren and the stereo was awful. I should have opted for the CXS, but I would figure a BUICK would have something more to offer on the inside. This lower-end model is ready for rental!

Do you have to get the top-of-the-line in a model category to get refinement?

[AdmiralViscen]

Hey, I got mentioned.

Good writeup.

[[Corporal Dan]]

I'm really bothered by the whole joystick control interface. While a ditizer won;t rast forever, i've used enough joystick-like interfaces to know they really don't hold up well. A few years down the line, the joystick will stop registering movement in one or more directions.... and Toyota will want a cool 500 bucks to replace the unit no doubt.

I seriously wonder at how anyone can call interiors like these 'good'



The switchgear in the new w-bodies looks tons better than this garbage.


I mean, is this really that much better than the G6's interior? Or the Cobalt's for that matter?

[Vintalage]

Originally Posted by [Corporal Dan]

I'm really bothered by the whole joystick control interface. While a ditizer won;t rast forever, i've used enough joystick-like interfaces to know they really don't hold up well. A few years down the line, the joystick will stop registering movement in one or more directions.... and Toyota will want a cool 500 bucks to replace the unit no doubt.

I seriously wonder at how anyone can call interiors like these 'good'



The switchgear in the new w-bodies looks tons better than this garbage.


I mean, is this really that much better than the G6's interior? Or the Cobalt's for that matter?

Yes. The Avalon's interior is good. I sat in the new '06 Avalon at the autoshow this past weekend. I've said this before. I could not believe I was sitting in a Toyota. It's like a Lexus inside. The interior has high quality materials. It's quite impressive in person. I recall another guy who couldn't believe that it was a Toyota. Even he said it's like a Lexus.