Before you buy a used Toyota Avensis (II).

2003–2008 · Petrol / Diesel · 2 engines

Taken only from Testigo's sourced sheets. Use it to question the seller and on the test drive: it does not confirm that any particular car is affected.

M 93 · CC BY-SA 3.0 DE · Wikimedia Commons · Photo source

The essentials.

4 documented, sourced faults across its 2 engines.
3 of them depend on the equipment or the production date: ask what this car has.
7 official recalls on record: ask for the chassis number (VIN) and confirm they have been done.
According to the data we have, the engine with the fewest documented faults is the 1.6 / 1.8 / 2.0 / 2.4 VVT-i (Petrol).

Typical faults by engine

The period and mileage are those mentioned by each sheet's sources. They are not a maintenance interval and do not predict that any particular car will fail.

All versions

Sheets the catalogue links to all 2 of its engines.

Petrol oil consumption and 2.2 diesel head on the Avensis IIEngine
Period mentioned
2003–2009
Mileage mentioned
The sheet does not mention a mileage.
Applies if: Weak points of this model from inspections, breakdown statistics and recalls; anything specific to one engine is stated in the sheet.

1.6 / 1.8 / 2.0 / 2.4 VVT-i

Petrol

Oil consumption on the 1.8 VVT-i (1ZZ-FE)Engine
Period mentioned
Approx. 1998–2005
Mileage mentioned
The sheet does not mention a mileage.
Applies if: Only the 1.8 VVT-i (1ZZ-FE), mainly before the facelift; Toyota changed the pistons in July 2005.

2.0 / 2.2 D-4D

Diesel

Oil consumption and head gasket on the 2.0 and 2.2 D-4DEngine
Period mentioned
2005–2009
Mileage mentioned
What the sheet says: Carbon on the pistons causing oil consumption and head-gasket failures. Toyota had out-of-warranty support guidelines for engines built in 2005–2009 (up to 7 years and 180,000 km), now expired.
Injectors, dual-mass flywheel, turbo and EGR on the first 2.0 D-4D (1CD-FTV)Injection / turbo
Period mentioned
Approx. 1999–2006
Mileage mentioned
The sheet does not mention a mileage.
Applies if: Only the 116 hp 2.0 D-4D built until 2006 (1CD-FTV).

Which engine has the fewest documented faults?

Documented faults and recalls by engine for the Toyota Avensis (II)
Engine	Documented faults	Recalls
1.6 / 1.8 / 2.0 / 2.4 VVT-iPetrolFewest documented	22 with conditions	7
2.0 / 2.2 D-4DDiesel	32 with conditions	7

According to the data we have, the engine with the fewest documented faults is the 1.6 / 1.8 / 2.0 / 2.4 VVT-i (Petrol).

By fuel type, the one with the fewest documented faults is: Petrol.

We only count the sourced sheets we have. An engine with fewer is not guaranteed to be more reliable: it may have been studied less or sold in smaller numbers.

Official recalls: ask before you pay

A recall existing does not mean this car is affected or that it is still outstanding: it depends on the chassis number, the market and the production date.

Ask the seller for the chassis number (VIN): it has 17 characters, appears in the car's documents and can usually also be seen at the base of the windscreen.
Ask an official Toyota dealer, or the brand's official website if it lets you check by chassis number, whether each recall has been done or is still outstanding for that VIN.
Manufacturer recalls are normally carried out free of charge by the official service network. If one is outstanding, ask for it to be done before you close the sale.

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