Here’s another easy fix that I picked up reading through the Toyota Nation Forum: a fix for the whistling mirror problem. The 2013 Avalon has an issue that was fixed in later models. Air passing over the side mirror will generate a whistling noise at speed. Applying these sticky rubber bumpers along the bottom of…
I’d been comparing the features and functions of various dash cams, and finally settled on the Vantrue E2. It’s got GPS, Wifi, Voice Control and if you hard-wire it, a motion detecting parking mode too. It will detect collisions, and comes with a little remote button you can use to capture snapshots. There is a…
As low morning temperatures started entering the forecast, I decided to add remote start to the Avalon. It’s so decadent to settle into a snugly warm car in the early morning. I’m truly enjoying it, and glad that I did. I had been looking into it for a while. There are a few remote start…
Another helpful tip I picked up from John Lawrence was the addition of this motion-sensing battery powered LED console light. I found the smallest one I could find. I think this company used to make a smaller one, but no matter. It mounts quite nicely to the side of the console box, and doesn’t get…
Quick and easy upgrade: add a K&N Engine Air Filter. K&N Engine Air Filt Long lasting, washable. Improved my gas mileage a little bit too.
I replaced the dim vanity mirror light bulbs with brighter white LED bulbs. If you do this, I recommend that you use a plastic pry tool to remove the old bulbs because if you use a little metal screwdriver as I did, and if you touch the metal contacts with it as I did, you’re…
One of the most disappointing and commonly-encountered issues with the Avalon is failure of the rear window shade motor. Mine worked for only a couple weeks before it failed, getting stuck halfway up. Like so many others, the motor had succumbed to frailty, age and poor design. The underlying problem is reported to be a…
If you’ve gone through the very easy trunk light mod then you’ll be itching to do something with that second LED strip that came in the package. The answer is simple. Give yourself some under-hood lighting in case you ever have a need to admire your Avalon’s engine after dark. This one is more challenging,…
This mod is quick, inexpensive and easy, and it makes a world of difference. I didn’t capture a decent ‘before’ photo of the murky trunk, but the stock light was a feeble little yellowish bulb that didn’t really illuminate the Avalon’s expansive trunk with any effectiveness. I found a write-up of this mod on the…
My wife kindly honored my request for a photo in the style of the meme ‘Women Laughing Alone With Salad‘. So naturally, I set it as my head unit’s startup screen. Here’s how to do it. Get yourself a USB thumb drive, and create two folders in the root: StartupImage and DisplayOffImage. Spelling and case…