Toyota ups Avalon’s appeal

Flagship sedan offers comfort and value with luxury touches

With the 2005 Avalon, the third generation of this sedan to carry the nameplate, Toyota is confident it has a full-size family sedan with the goods to satisfy a very loyal owner group, many of who have owned an Avalon or are looking to move up to toplevel status from the mid-range Camry’s ranks.

This time, Toyota wisely decided to split the buyer choices into sport Touring and luxury XLS variants to cover both sides of the market.

The $41,800 Avalon Touring is the dynamic version of the pair, making the most of a cohesive charcoal interior with metallicstyle trim, a tweaked suspension system that’s 30 per cent stiffer than that on the XLS, unique dark gray- tone 17- inch alloy wheels, High- Intensity Discharge headlights and a discreet lip spoiler on the rear decklid.

The more sybaritic XLS model, bearing a $39,900 sticker price, takes a more sophisticated route for buyers who want all the power and luxury that comes with the Avalon’s upper crust role, but without the Touring’s edgier attitude. The XLS offers woodgrain interior trim, an integrated garage door opener, and electrochromatic interior and side mirrors.

If you want more, the XLS also offers a couple of extra option packages. A Premium package adds traction control, directional stability control, wood and leather trim for the steering wheel and shift- lever knob and a 12- speaker, 360- watt JBL Synthesis audio system ( a 9- speaker, 160- watt AM/FM stereo with 6- disc CD player and cassette is standard on the XLS and Touring). The Premium Navigation package is equipped with a fourth- generation DVD nav system with voice recognition for easier operation — it combines a toggle control with user friendly buttons to call up and change settings as needed. Opting for the Premium package adds $3,575 to the base model’s $39,990 price, while adding the Navigation package to the

equipment list means you’ll have to find an extra $3,350 over the XLS Premium’s $43,475 price tag.

The number crunchers at the company say these prices put the new Avalon about $6,000 below the model it replaces, and that doesn’t take into account some $1,900 in upgraded standard equipment for the new- generation sedan.

But, in an odd mix of priorities, the traction and stability control systems you can get with the soft- shoe XLS are not a part of the Touring’s wish list … at any price. You’d think drivers of the latter might take advantage of its sportier nature to take it closer to the car’s dynamic limits, where the electronic intervention would be of more use.

That quibble aside, the new Avalon provides more interior and cargo room than before. It

has grown in length by 135

mm and overall width is up by

30 mm. All of this on a

wheelbase that’s 100 mm

longer compared with the

previous Avalon.

Externally, a sleek new grille accented with chrome horizontal bars and new character lines help give the Avalon a sharper profile to augment its enhanced stance. Fog lamps are housed in a new lower intake valance.

An all- new interior looks every inch an upscale player. New amenities include a sliding armrest and a tilt- telescopic steering column for optimum driver comfort. Rear passengers also benefit from a flat floor that provides additional leg room, especially for the middle seat rider. Also, the rear seats now recline up to 10 degrees for even more comfort.

Both the Touring and XLS get the same engine, a destroked 3.5- litre version of the 4.0- litre V6 found in Toyota’s new Tacoma pickup truck. Mated to a 5-speed manumatic transmission, Toyota claims class leading power ( 280 hp @ 6,200 rpm) and torque ( 260 lb- ft @ 4,700 revs) from this four-cam, 32-valve, variable valve timing unit.

We spent the bulk of our time in a Touring model, noting that it cornered noticeably flatter than the XLS in both closedcourse slalom runs and openroad motoring. The V6 also felt very strong mid-range and proved quiet and refined even in hard use.

The new Avalon has a lot to offer: more power, more performance, more room, more comfort, and more safety. It’s a combination of content and value that should make it a lot more appealing than its predecessor. Editorial prepared by the Editors of Carguide magazine 447 Speers Rd., Suite 4, Oakville, ON L6K 3S7 Tel.: (905) 842-6591 Fax: (905) 842-4432 autozone@formulapublications.com