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What to do in the event of an accident? |
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1) At the scene of the accident
- Keep calm and refrain from discussion with the other driver involved.
- Call the police immediately so that they can take down all the necessary details.
- If someone has been injured, call an ambulance.
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2) Collect relevant details about the accident
- Information on the withness(es)
- Information on the other driver(s)
- If possible, make a rough sketch of the accident scene and a note of the accident details. A photograph would also be helpful.
- In case any towing service is required, please call Crown Motors' 24-hour Free Towing Service at 2811 0228 or, if possible, drive your car to the nearest Toyota / Lexus Service Centre.
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3) After the accident
- Notify the Toyota / Lexus Insurance Section (24-hour hotline: 2968 3222) or your insurance company about the accident as soon as possible.
- Complete the accident form provided by the insurance company and ensure that it is signed by you and, if different, the person driving your car at the time of the accident as well.
- Even if there has been no personal injury, you are recommended to report the accident to the police within 24 hours.
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4) Repairing your car
- Please have your car towed to one of our Toyota / Lexus Service Centres or drive the car to the nearest Toyota Service Centre.
- We will prepare a detailed estimate of the costs, which must be submitted to and approved by the Toyota Insurance Section or your insurance company prior to the commencement of repair work.
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Q1)
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What kind of maintenance does a battery need? The amount of battery electrolyte decreases due to the repeated discharging and recharging of electricity during use of the vehicle. When the decrease of the battery electrolyte has advanced, and if the battery is continuously used in the condition in which the amount of the battery electrilyte is below the LOWER level, this causes the decline of battery performance and shortens battery life.
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Q2) |
Why does shortage of battery electrolyte decrease battery performance and shorten battery life? When the amount of battery electrolyte has decreased and the plates are exposed above the surface of the battery electrolyte, the exposed parts can't do any chemical reaction, and this decreases battery performance. When the battery is continuously used in this condition without refilling the electrolyte, the sulfation phenomenon occurs, drastically shortening battery life.
Sulfation phenomenon
This phenomenon damages the plates so they are no longer chemically reactive. When the sulfation phenomenon has occured, the battery won't recover to its original state even if the battery electrolyte is refilled.
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Q3) |
When the battery electrolyte is low, what should be used to refill the battery? Battery electrolyte is dilute sulfuric acid (mixture of sulfuric acid and distilled water). Only the water in the battery electrolyte is lost, by electrolysis and natural evaporation of water. Therefore, distilled water should be used to replenish the battery electrolyte. If water containing impurities, such as tap water or well water, is continuously used to refill the battery, impurities accumulate,shortening battery life.
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Q4) |
What shortens battery life? 1. Heavy discharging and recharging of the battery, for example,heavy discharge and recharging of battery
1. |
Heavy discharging and recharging of the battery, for example,heavy discharge and recharging of battery |
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Vehicle is run only at night. (Electrical load is large.) |
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Vehicle is stopped for long periods of time with the engine idling. (Amount of electricity generated is small.) |
1.3 |
Engine is started many times a day. (Electrical load is large.) |
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Battery temperature is high, for example, method of battery use which increases battery temperature |
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Driving on roads where there are traffic jams for long periods of timeShortage of battery electrolyte |
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Q1)
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Why is a period of time designated for each oil change in addition to the designation of oil changes according to travel distance? Engine oil gradually oxidizes and deteriorates even when the vehicle has not traveled far. Particularly in the case of short-trip running in which the engine is stopped before the engine oil has warmed up, the moisture mixed into the engine oil can't evaporate, and the various additives in the oil are consumed faster, shortening the life of the oil. Therefore, oil changes are also specified by periods of time.
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Q2) |
What is the mechanism of engine oil consumption? Engine oil decreases even when there is no defect such as oil leakages, etc. This is because part of the engine oil lubricating the pistons, intake valves, exhaust valves and turbocharger, enters the combustion chambers and is consumed by combustion or evaporation. |
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Q3) |
What will happen when new engine oil is used to replenish (top-up) the existing engine oil? Metal particles from engine wear, as well carbon and dirt such as sludge accumulate in the engine oil (deteriorated oil) after the time specified for the oil change has passed. Also, the additives are consumed, so the engine oil can't provide satisfactory performance, and deteriorated oil has a bad effect on the engine. |
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Q1)
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Why do cracks occur in belts? A belt repeatedly receives bending force and elongation force each time it rotates, belt fatigue occurs, the belt is hardened by heat, and belt flexibility declines.
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Q2) |
At what stage of cracking should a belt be replaced? Fine cracks cause almost no decrease of belt strength. When cracks have developed in a belt, we can say that it is better to advise the customer to do early replacement of the belt in order to use the vehicle safely. |
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Q3) |
How long does a belt last? A belt will last for about 60,000 - 100,000 km of driving distance in ordinary use, but belt life varies greatly according to the degree of belt tension and the vehicle usage environment condition. (The influence of heat is particularly great.) When oil has adhered to a belt, the rubber is eroded by the oil, drastically shortening belt life. |
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Q1)
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What is the wear limit of a tire? TIRE TREAD WEAR INDICATORS:
Tire tread wear indicators are patterned ridges 1.6mm (0.0630 in.) to 1.8mm (0.0709 in.) higher than the rest of the tread surface, and are molded into the tread at four to six points along the circumference of the tire.
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Q2) |
Why is it dangerous when the tire tread is worn out?
Tire tread grooves have the following 4 roles.
- Increasing braking force and driving force of the tire
- Improvement of controllability and stability
- Increasing heat radiation effect of the tire
- Increasing draining effect
When a vehicle with tires with worn-out tread runs at high speed on a road surface with standing water, the draining power of the tires becomes worse and the phenomenon of hydroplaning can easily occur. Hydroplaning is the phenomenon in which water gets between the tires and the road surface, the tires float up off the road's surface and the steering and braking no longer work. This phenomenon occurs due to the relationships between the conditions of tire wear, tire air pressure, water depth and vehicle speed.
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Reference
Hydroplaning phenomenon
Experiment with different depths of tire grooves
(grounding section of tire photographed through glass plate)
(Speed: 80km/h, water depth: 5mm)
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Q3) |
What kinds of abnormal tire wear occur and what causes them? The following are general forms of irregular tire wear. |
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Q4) |
Why is tire rotation necessary? When a vehicle is being loaded, being driven, and is turning, the forces applied on the front tires and rear tires are different, so the wear of front tires and rear tires each advances in a unique way. Therefore, for tire durability, it is important to do the tire rotation at appropriate times. The front load is particularly great in FF vehicle, and the burdens of driving force, turning force and braking force, applied on the front tires are large.
Tire rotation timing
FF, full-time 4WD, 1 box vehicles every ............... 5,000 km
FR, part-time 4WD, (except for 1 box vehicles) every ... 10,000 km
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Q5) |
Why does air pressure need to be adjusted? Tire air pressure gradually becomes lower even when the tire has no particular defect. Insufficient air pressure in the tire increases the deformation and bending of the tire tread section, makes the tire tread wear faster, and causes abnormal wear of tire tread; this decreases the vehicle's turning performance, braking performance and driving performance. |
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Why does the amount fo coolant decrease? Coolant gradually decreases due to its natural evaporation from the reservoir tank. Generally, the coolant in the reservoir tank will not all evaporate naturally in a short period of time. Therefore, when the coolant that has been poured to the FULL line has suddenly decreased, the possibility that some trouble has occured should be considered.
Amount of coolant decrease by natural evaporation: about 0.3l/year
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Q2) |
Why does the LLC need to be changed? The main component of LLC, ethylene glycol, is gradually oxidized by the heat of the engine and by contact with the air inside the reservoir tank as the service period passes, and becomes more strongly corrosive. Therefore, it is necessary to periodically replace the used LLC with new LLC at fixed time intervals.
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What is the cause of the deterioration of wiper blades?
A wiper blade deteriorates due to the following causes, and can no longer ensure good visibility.
- The edge surface becomes worn and rounded by the working of the wiper.
- It is important to avoid the intrusion of dirt and fine sand particles between the wiper blade and the window glass surface, and the wiper blade is damaged by the dirt and fine sand particles, leaving streaks of unwiped water on the window glass.
- When a wiper blade has been used for a long period of time, the blade rubber hardens, its flexibility declines, and defective wiping occurs due to the poor contact of the wiper blade with window glass and due to shuddering vibration of the wiper blade.
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Q2) |
How long does a wiper blade last? It is difficult to specify the timing for replacing wiper blades. Replacement of wiper blades can be done relatively cheaply, it is recommend to replace the wiper blades once a year at the time of the periodic inspection. One Point Advice
The way to make wiper blades last longer is to operate the wipers only after using washer fluid to wash off the sand and dust adhering to the window glass surface, even when rain has started to fall. |
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Q3) |
Why does the shuddering vibration of wipers occur?
Wiper shuddering means that the wiper is vibrating due to changes of friction between the wiper blade and the glass surface. This is generally likely to occur just before the window glass has dried during a drizzle or after rainfall has stopped.
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How long are the lives of brake pads and linings?
The expected life of brake pads and linings is usually 20,000 - 50,000 km or more, but this varies greatly depending on how the brakes are used, so there are no exact guidelines.
Reference
Differences in wear of brake pads and linings
- When brakes are used frequently, they wear out quickly.
- When the speed of the vehicle just before applying the brakes is higher, and the cargo and the number of passengers are greater, the brake pads and linings wear out faster.
- When the brakes are applied suddenly, brake pads and linings wear faster.
Front brake pads wear faster than rear brakes linings or pads.
- A/T vehicles brake pads or linings wear faster than for M/T vehicles brake pads or linings.
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Q2) |
Caution when refilling brake fluid: Basically, the brake fluid designated for each vehicle must be used for refilling. When you refill using a brake fluid other that the designated type, there is a possibility that braking performance could be decreased, and can no longer ensure good braking performance. |
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Q3) |
Why is maintenance (replacement) needed?
Due to the characteristics of its components, brake fluid absorbs moisture easily. It is in contact with air in the reservoir tank section, because air access occurs through the air hole of the reservoir tank cap in each brake operation, and it absorbs moisture from the air. Therefore the amount of water contained in the brake fluid increases as time passes, and its boiling point becomes lower, so the phenomenon of vapor lock can easily occur. Reference
- Brake fluid performance requirements
- Must have high boiling point.
- Must not corrode rubber or metals.
- Must have appropriate viscosity, and the change of viscosity by temperature must be small.
- Must have good lubricity.
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Q1)
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What are the advantages of 4-Wheel Drive?
Run-through performance on roads covered with packed snow and on frozen roads The driving force applied to each tire of a 4WD vehicle is about half that per tire for a 2WD vehicle. Each tire has surplus gripping power, and the 4WD vehicle shows excellent run-through performance and climbing performance on slippery road surfaces.
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Q2) |
What are the matters that require special attention when using a 4WD vehicle? Do not over-estimate a 4WD vehicles ability. Even a 4WD vehicle is not an all-purpose vehicle. When you drive a 4WD vehicle on rough roads or/and snowy roads, carefully operate the accelerator, steering and brakes as you would drive an ordinary vehicle, without trusting the 4WD too much. Concentrate on driving safely. A 4WD vehicle is not exclusively designed for off-road running, rally running and in-water running; avoid these types of driving situations whenever possible.
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When your vehicle is being towed.
When your vehicle is out of order, and you ask someone to tow it, confirm the towing method shown in the manual, before doing the towing. In particular, when the front wheels or rear wheels are placed on a dolly and the vehicle is towed, if the wheels placed on the truck cannot rotate, this may cause seizure of the drive unit, or the vehicle could bounce off the dolly.
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Do not forget to inspect each section after rough road running.
After rough road running, carefully inspect each section while confirming each item to be inspected as shown in the manual, such as checking for spot damage and checking the under-chassis.
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Don't forget to check the tires.
Driving force is applied to all 4 tires of a 4WD vehicle; therefore, tire condition greatly affects performance. Inspect the air pressure of each tire and rotate the tires periodically, according to the manual.
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Use the same size and same brand of tires on all wheels.
When you replace the tires and disk wheels, all tires and disk wheels installed on all 4 wheels must be the designated size, the same size and the same brand. |
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