Repair or Replace Vehicle

**Snake1** · February 6th, 2013 05:49 AM

Im not sure if this is the right place to post this....

I currently have a second vehicle which I use for business and when there is a need to bring the whole family. Its a Toyota Town Ace Diesel A/T import (original RHD). It works... meaning its in running condition and it even has made a trip up to Baguio recently with 2 passengers.

It does have certain quirks / issues that are a bit of an irritant:

- engine is under a seat and an amount of heat seeps thru
- window/door/ side mirror controls are on the right passenger side
- side mirrors are optimized for RHD driving
- gear shift doesnt lock up in its respective selectors
- wippers are set for RHD (so when raining a large spot on the upper left of the windscreen .. my side is left un swept)
- torque is on the weak side (270,000+ on the odometer)

Other than that the kids love it and i think I can fix those quirks for a small fortune.

However, Ill have access to a small amount of money in the next couple of months and I'm thinking that instead of having these quirks fixed, I can just get a new van without the difficulties Im experiencing.

Im looking to get a Toyota Estima/ Lucida from Cagayan (and yes Im well aware of the pros and cons of this). Of course, If I opt to just do repairs/ enhancements on the Townace, I'll still have some left over money for some house improvments and SC stuff...hehehe

So is it worth it to keep the old vehicle or invest in a new (second hand) one?

Any opinions would be most welcome.....

**Manilablock** · February 6th, 2013 06:13 AM

Kung meron kang buyer sell mo na, safety ang priority mo and based sa description mo ung wiper pwede maging cause ng poor visibility in the rain

**ParticleX** · February 6th, 2013 06:14 AM

You're still going to have the replacement vehicle (incase you decided to change) repaired for the similar quirks you're experiencing now with your Town Ace. Weigh the costs, if you'll be buying another vehicle, might as well go for the local ones, gives peace of mind and you don't have to pay to correct those minor inconviniences.

- engine is under a seat and an amount of heat seeps thru
- window/door/ side mirror controls are on the right passenger side
- side mirrors are optimized for RHD driving
- gear shift doesnt lock up in its respective selectors
- wippers are set for RHD (so when raining a large spot on the upper left of the windscreen .. my side is left un swept)
- torque is on the weak side (270,000+ on the odometer)

1. Add/replace insulation in the engine well, also probably the rubber seals starts to become useless, replace them
2. I guess there is no fix for that, unless there is a local assembly which fits
3. Replace them with local counterparts
4. No idea on this
5. Could be retrofitted I guess, many JDM vehicles I saw natransfer na
6. Have you changed filters and fluids already? Delayed ba ang pag shift, if so then you may need to have your transmission overhauled.

Guesstimate cost is 40-60k with tranny overhaul already.

**1D4LV** · February 6th, 2013 10:08 AM

kung bibili ka ng bago, pagpagawa mo ulit.... and Cagayan unit yan.... converted RHD din.
if i were you, i'll have the current unit fixed and allocate excess funds for the home repairs.

**dct** · February 6th, 2013 11:12 AM

retain na lang. ganun din yun e. same repairs lang gagawin mo sa kukunin mong unit

**Retz** · February 6th, 2013 11:15 AM

Toyota Town Ace pa? I think you should sell it na.

**weisshorn** · February 6th, 2013 11:49 AM

Benta ang luma at palitan ng mas maayos ng used vehicle but should be local model for ease of maintenance. Used car kasi yan kaya kailangan madali maka kuha ng original spares..

**GTi** · February 7th, 2013 10:38 PM

Originally Posted by Snake1

Im not sure if this is the right place to post this....

I currently have a second vehicle which I use for business and when there is a need to bring the whole family. Its a Toyota Town Ace Diesel A/T import (original RHD). It works... meaning its in running condition and it even has made a trip up to Baguio recently with 2 passengers.

It does have certain quirks / issues that are a bit of an irritant:

- engine is under a seat and an amount of heat seeps thru
- window/door/ side mirror controls are on the right passenger side
- side mirrors are optimized for RHD driving
- gear shift doesnt lock up in its respective selectors
- wippers are set for RHD (so when raining a large spot on the upper left of the windscreen .. my side is left un swept)
- torque is on the weak side (270,000+ on the odometer)

Other than that the kids love it and i think I can fix those quirks for a small fortune.

However, Ill have access to a small amount of money in the next couple of months and I'm thinking that instead of having these quirks fixed, I can just get a new van without the difficulties Im experiencing.

Im looking to get a Toyota Estima/ Lucida from Cagayan (and yes Im well aware of the pros and cons of this). Of course, If I opt to just do repairs/ enhancements on the Townace, I'll still have some left over money for some house improvments and SC stuff...hehehe

So is it worth it to keep the old vehicle or invest in a new (second hand) one?

Any opinions would be most welcome.....

This means very little money was spent in the conversion process and so only the essentials (steering and dashboard) were done. You can always have the controls, wipers and mirrors replaced or simply moved. A quick look at the mirrors tell me that those from the Revo will fit.

Have you been changing your filters and fluids on time, including differential and ATF (most often neglected by many owners)? For the heat, I'd suggest you invest in a generous layer of heat insulation beneath the seats.
In the end dapat ganon ang maratingan mo. Toyota Townace MT - 04 | Cars for sale Makati | AyosDito.ph

The Townace uses the 2C-T engine if I'm not mistaken. The Tamaraw FX diesel uses the normally aspirated 2C. Which means significantly less power and notoriety for cracked cylinder heads.

If you find the car already undesirable, I suggest you get a Korean surplus. No need to spend on conversion. Or, if you really want Japan surplus, get a Delica. You get much more punch and excellent off road capabilities. Price is at 100+k so not very far apart. If you want better fuel efficiency, get the manual.

**Snake1** · February 8th, 2013 09:15 AM

Originally Posted by GTi

This means very little money was spent in the conversion process and so only the essentials (steering and dashboard) were done. You can always have the controls, wipers and mirrors replaced or simply moved. A quick look at the mirrors tell me that those from the Revo will fit.

Have you been changing your filters and fluids on time, including differential and ATF (most often neglected by many owners)? For the heat, I'd suggest you invest in a generous layer of heat insulation beneath the seats.
In the end dapat ganon ang maratingan mo. Toyota Townace MT - 04 | Cars for sale Makati | AyosDito.ph

The Townace uses the 2C-T engine if I'm not mistaken. The Tamaraw FX diesel uses the normally aspirated 2C. Which means significantly less power and notoriety for cracked cylinder heads.

If you find the car already undesirable, I suggest you get a Korean surplus. No need to spend on conversion. Or, if you really want Japan surplus, get a Delica. You get much more punch and excellent off road capabilities. Price is at 100+k so not very far apart. If you want better fuel efficiency, get the manual.

Very insightful comments and suggestions...

Im actually the second owner of the vehicle here in the Philippines so I had no control over the conversion process...

- I can live with the side mirrors already since I've put fisheye mirrors, the wipers... well its a nuissance when it rains....I guess in hindsight.. since it was my first JDm vehicle I should have paid more attention to those details

- I agree re the insulation under the seat and the area over the engine.. Im about to purchase enough insullation materal to put up a gazebo...hehehe...

- thanks for the link of the townace at ayos dito.. Its a nice model... heck if I had the cash available now.. Id purchase it in a heartbeat..hehehe... thats how much I enjoy the Town ace....If it wer not for the quirks I mentioned.. It is fun to drive and likeI said the kids love it...

- Yes, fluids are chnged ragularly (every 6 months) the most recent one was last december.... the engine is a normaly aspirated 2c engine.. so perhaps the torque is really a little on the weak side.. considering i baby it and rarely go over 2.2k RPM

- I've mentioned that the Delica was my first choice... but reconsidered when I compared its fuel consumtion and maintenance cost.. having said theat... I still drool when I see a nice clean Delica go by....

**GTi** · February 8th, 2013 07:21 PM

Originally Posted by Snake1

Very insightful comments and suggestions...

Im actually the second owner of the vehicle here in the Philippines so I had no control over the conversion process...

- I can live with the side mirrors already since I've put fisheye mirrors, the wipers... well its a nuissance when it rains....I guess in hindsight.. since it was my first JDm vehicle I should have paid more attention to those details

- I agree re the insulation under the seat and the area over the engine.. Im about to purchase enough insullation materal to put up a gazebo...hehehe...

- thanks for the link of the townace at ayos dito.. Its a nice model... heck if I had the cash available now.. Id purchase it in a heartbeat..hehehe... thats how much I enjoy the Town ace....If it wer not for the quirks I mentioned.. It is fun to drive and likeI said the kids love it...

- Yes, fluids are chnged ragularly (every 6 months) the most recent one was last december.... the engine is a normaly aspirated 2c engine.. so perhaps the torque is really a little on the weak side.. considering i baby it and rarely go over 2.2k RPM

- I've mentioned that the Delica was my first choice... but reconsidered when I compared its fuel consumtion and maintenance cost.. having said theat... I still drool when I see a nice clean Delica go by....

There are actually many nice-looking and cheap Townace's in Sulit and Ayosdito. If you are experiencing trouble with your unit, and you really like this car, you might as well go trade up before your car gets any worse.

Are you sure yours is a normally aspirated 2C, and with a matic tranny at that? All Townace's I've encountered so far are turbocharged, many of them 4x4 as well. Maybe you were experiencing lack of torque because the turbo hasn't kicked in yet? They usually do at around 2500rpm.

I'm curious, what gas mileage do you get? So much so that you would consider the Delica to have a voracious appetite?