Another day, another Toyota Innova that’s clocked 1 million kilometres. This vehicle is from Kannur, Kerala. This Innova belongs to the commercial segment and has thus run a lot of kilometres. In a video shared by Walk With Neff, the owner shares his experience of owning the MPV so far. The video details the various issues, concerns and expenses he had to face during his time with the Innova.
Sathar, the vehicle’s owner, says that he’s had a comfortable, pleasant ownership so far. He runs a Travel and cab business in Kerala and owns two other vehicles- a Force Traveller and a Toyota Etios as well. He maintains all his vehicles well and the Innova is quite vocal about it. Despite having run 1 million ( 10 lakh) kilometres, it looks good and clean- both on the outside and inside the cabin.
In the video, he talks about the maintenance and service routines. He used to stick to showroom services until 7 lakh km, after which he shifted to a local workshop run by an ex-Toyota technician. He has, however, been particular about using only genuine Toyota parts. Shifting the fitting and labour to the local workshop has brought about sizeable savings in service costs. This Innova gets its services done every 10,000 km.
Certified and qualified OEM technicians starting independent garages and delivering OEM-level fitting and labour qualities is a growing trend today. In a way, it provides more value to end customers- especially to those who are extremely cost-sensitive.
Sathar says that the brake pads usually last up to 1 lakh km with his driving style. Tyre life usually lasts 70,000-80,000 km and he prefers to run on Yokohama rubber. Each tyre costs around Rs 6,500. The timing belt has a price of Rs 3,500. Fitting it in the local garage has helped in keeping costs under check. The clutch life, the man says has been around 2.5 lakh km.
The only instance when the vehicle gave him a headache was when it used to stall after getting heated. The diagnosis by a nearby dealer cited the issue to be with the fuel pump. He replaced it with a used unit but the issue persisted. Upon further examination by his trusted local garage, it was found to be a faulty wiring kit. (He had a pair of additional lamps installed on the vehicle). The replacement cost 20,000 but got the fault sorted.
It is common for vehicles to develop short circuits or related electrical failure if the wiring is tampered with while installing lights, audio systems or other electronics. These days, however, most components feature plug-to-play designs and are safer and easier to use.
This owner, like many others, has fallen head over heels for Toyota vehicles, and says that his next vehicle would most likely be an Innova Crysta. So ladies and gentlemen, here’s another happy customer who’s in love with the reliability offered by Toyota engines. Previously, we saw another Innova from Tamil Nadu which has also done 1 million km. Anaamalais Toyota, a dealership in Tamil Nadu shared a picture of this vehicle which gathered many eyeballs back then.
Why Do Toyota Engines Last So Long?
The Innova is powered by Toyota’s 2.5L D4D turbo-diesel engine, which’s been designed just right to last long and function well. The brand has got its basics right with the design of this oil burner. It feels like a hybrid between being old-school/basic and advanced. It is built from cast iron and has Aluminium pistons and heads. Keeping it large and heavy, Toyota has worked towards achieving optimal engine life.
The D4D engine is capable of producing high torque at low rpms. It used to make 100 PS and 200 Nm, back in its day. These could feel less compared to 2.5L standards. This is because the manufacturer prioritized engine life and reliability.
