Toyota Blade V6.

[2jayzgte]

Hey guys been awhile just wondering if anyone here has had experience with this car before basically from what I'm seeing a Corolla with an Aurion motor in it.Front wheel drive.

Any Pro's n Cons would be nice to no.

Pricing for an 08-09 it looks like anywhere between $15-$18 K sounds a bit on the rich side to me but I guess that's me could be well wrong.

[Dell'Orto]

Bit of discussion here viewtopic.php?f=2&t=90848. Cool cars, I like them. Not as much interior room as the BK MPS though!

[Bling]

When I was looking 2+ years ago, you could get them in that price range too, though they were 2007/8 cars. 15k was 150km on the clock, 18k was going to be ~70-80km on the clock. I guess prices on the masters hasn't dropped as much as the normal blades.

/you should buy one

[2jayzgte]

My partner test drove one the other week it was in Lower Hutt and is a 2008 with about 30+ k on the clock.

I see Wholesale cars direct have 2 silver ones for sale with 45-50 K on the clock for 17 & 18 K.

All 3 are 08's and I'm trying to figure out why the wholesale direct cars are more expensive.

I think I need to test drive them to see which one to get.

[Kiwi-Corolla]

My Dad has had one for almost a year, and prior to that had the regular 2.4L version of the Blade for just over a year. Needless to say, the V6 is a massive improvement in power but gets the same sort of fuel mileage, so it's a win-win situation.

It's important to know though that there are two versions of the V6 - The Master and the Master G. The Master G gets radar cruise control + dual electric half leather & suede seats. Both versions are around about the same price point so if you find a Master G it's definitely a better option.

Another thing worth mentioning is the VVTi oil line on the RH side of the engine nearest the firewall (by the brake fluid reservoir). Early versions (pre-2009) had a rubber hose in the middle of the metal pipe which are VERY prone to developing a pinhole leak and squirting your oil out in no time. This was a problem with all cars with the 2GR-FE from 2006 to late 2008, and is something that happened to my Aurion.

So when looking at different Blades make sure that the oil line is a solid metal line, with no rubber in between. You can easily see this by looking down by the brake fluid reservoir and if you see metal to rubber, it's the early design and it WILL rupture. Not a case of if, but when. If you want some pics of the pipe and where to look just let me know.

They're great cars and are insanely fast. Definitely a good choice, and one that won't disappoint.

[2jayzgte]

My Dad has had one for almost a year, and prior to that had the regular 2.4L version of the Blade for just over a year. Needless to say, the V6 is a massive improvement in power but gets the same sort of fuel mileage, so it's a win-win situation.

It's important to know though that there are two versions of the V6 - The Master and the Master G. The Master G gets radar cruise control + dual electric half leather & suede seats. Both versions are around about the same price point so if you find a Master G it's definitely a better option.

Another thing worth mentioning is the VVTi oil line on the RH side of the engine nearest the firewall (by the brake fluid reservoir). Early versions (pre-2009) had a rubber hose in the middle of the metal pipe which are VERY prone to developing a pinhole leak and squirting your oil out in no time. This was a problem with all cars with the 2GR-FE from 2006 to late 2008, and is something that happened to my Aurion.

So when looking at different Blades make sure that the oil line is a solid metal line, with no rubber in between. You can easily see this by looking down by the brake fluid reservoir and if you see metal to rubber, it's the early design and it WILL rupture. Not a case of if, but when. If you want some pics of the pipe and where to look just let me know.

They're great cars and are insanely fast. Definitely a good choice, and one that won't disappoint.

Thanks for the post man there's some good info here and the things and differences to look for are great to know.

Speed wise it will be nowhere near as quick as what I have now so that's not really that important to me.

The pic of that hose would be much appreciated.

[Dell'Orto]

All 3 are 08's and I'm trying to figure out why the wholesale direct cars are more expensive.

They don't cheap out on entry compliance stuff. Some yards will use the cheapest brake pads, skim the rotors (whether they're above minimum or not!) budget oil and filter, and chuck chinese tyres on them. These guys only use premium stuff, and will even replace pads if they're at 3mm (entry requirement is 2).
Plus they tend to pick nicer cars from Japan as well. If I were to buy from a yard, I'd probably go there.
Source: I supply parts for the compliance centre that does their work

[GDII]

Wholesale Cars Direct sell so many cars. 50% (well maybe not that many) of cars around Wellington have a www.wcd.co.nz sticker on their window or number plate surround. Good to here they sell safe cars.

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Thanks for the post man there's some good info here and the things and differences to look for are great to know.

Speed wise it will be nowhere near as quick as what I have now so that's not really that important to me.

The pic of that hose would be much appreciated.

No problem! Here's some pics of the factory rubber hose and it's location. It goes metal-rubber-metal, whereas the revised/latest pipe is all metal. Toyota did bring out another pipe before the metal version however, which supposedly has better rubber than the original (although still known to leak after a while) and this is marked with a yellow stripe. To be safe, don't settle for anything other than the full metal line, or if you really have to then factor in about $200-300 for parts and labour and get it swapped out ASAP.

[Alex B]

I've read online they are a bit front heavy so don't handle as well as other hot hatches, but haven't driven one to test.

[KwS]

i test drove one a while back, and i dont know if its an isolated case or normal for all of them, but it had the worst auto trans i have driven in a long time. Slow to change, lazy, unresponsive and the tiptronic mode might as well have not even existed it was that bad. A real letdown considering it was a very nice car and a great engine.

[2jayzgte]

Jesus TRD even do suspension for this car and there's one for sale an 07 in Tauranga.

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Jesus TRD even do suspension for this car and there's one for sale an 07 in Tauranga.

Yep, the one my Dad has is kitted out with TRD Sportivo suspension and TRD front & rear swaybars.

[Kiwi-Corolla]

Pics of his one for reference. Has the optional Tom's front and rear lip.

[KinLoud]

Suspension - upgrade it
Big power with soft suspension - not as much joy as you might hope
Great in a straight line if you can put up with the nose rising 10cm when you get on the gas

[BlakeNZ]

i read a review, and they said it wasn't as fast as it should be, simply because of copious wheel spin!
But how cool is it to put a 3.5 litre motor in a little hatch? (Very!)

[RS13]

Not really that little.. weighs near on 1500kg supposedly, which would also hold it back quite a bit I'd imagine.

[Al]

I might have to go and drive one now to replace the RX8. It will use less fuel and go faster.

I hope the auto box isn't that bad.

[Bling]

Not sure it would worry about the weight? All that torque
The 2.4L doesn't hang around (for what it is) and probably weights the same.

[Al]

I wonder if it's the same 6 speed auto that's in the IS250