2004 TOYOTA AVALON service

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NOTICE
Do not perform any of the following
changes without consulting your
Toyota dealer. Such changes can
interfere with proper operation of the
SRS side airbag system in some
cases.
Installation of electronic devices
such as a mobile twoway radio,
cassette tape player or compact
disc player
 Modification of the suspension sys-
tem
 Modification of the side structure of
the passenger compartment
 Repairs made on or near the con-
sole or front seat
This indicator comes on when the igni-
tion key is turned to the “ON” position.
It goes off after about 6 seconds. This
means the SRS side airbags are operat-
ing properly.
This warning light system monitors the
airbag sensor assembly, front airbag sen-
sors, side airbag sensors, driver ’s seat
position sensor, driver ’s seat belt buckle
switch, front seat belt pretensioner assem-
blies, inflators, warning light, interconnect-
ing wiring and power sources. (For details,
see “Service reminder indicators and
warning buzzers” in Section 16.) If either of the following conditions occurs,
this indicates a malfunction of the airbags
or seat belt pretensioners. Contact your
Toyota dealer as soon as possible.
The light does not come on when the
ignition key is turned to the “ON” posi-
tion or remains on for more than 6
seconds or flashes.
The light comes on or starts flashing
while driving.

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OPERATION OF INSTRUMENTS AND
CONTROLS
Gauges, Meters and Service reminder indicators
Fuel gauge11 7
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Engine coolant temperature gauge 11 7
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Tachometer 11 8
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Odometer and two trip meters 11 8
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Service reminder indicators and warning buzzers 120
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SECTION 1 6

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If the indicator or buzzer comes on...Do this.
(a)orIf parking brake is off, stop immediately and contact Toyota dealer.
(b)
(indicator and buzzer)
Fasten driver ’s seat belt.
(c)Fasten front outside passenger ’s seat belt.
(d)Stop and check.
(e)Stop and check.
(f)Take vehicle to Toyota dealer.
(g)Fill up tank.
Service reminder indicators and warning buzzers

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(d) Discharge Warning Light
This light warns that the battery is being
discharged.
If it comes on while you are driving, there
is a problem somewhere in the charging
system.
The engine ignition will continue to oper-
ate, however, until the battery is dis-
charged. Turn off the air conditioning,
blower, radio, etc., and drive directly to
the nearest Toyota dealer or repair shop.
NOTICE
Do not continue driving if the engine
drive belt is broken or loose.
(e) Low Engine Oil Pressure WarningLight
This light warns that the engine oil pres-
sure is too low.
If it flickers or stays on while you are
driving, pull off the road to a safe place
and stop the engine immediately. Call a
Toyota dealer or qualified repair shop for
assistance. The light may occasionally flicker when
the engine is idling or it may come on
briefly after a hard stop. There is no
cause for concern if it then goes out when
the engine is accelerated slightly.
The light may come on when the oil level
is extremely low. It is not designed to
indicate low oil level, and the oil level
must be checked using the level dipstick.
NOTICE
Do not drive the vehicle with the
warning light on—even for one block.
It may ruin the engine.
(f) Malfunction Indicator Lamp
This lamp comes on when the ignition
key is turned to the “ON” position and
goes off after the engine starts. This
means that the warning light system is
operating properly.
If the lamp remains on, or the lamp
comes on while driving, first check the
followings.
Empty fuel tank
If the fuel tank is empty, refuel immedi-
ately.
Loose fuel tank cap
If the fuel tank cap is loose, securely
tighten it.
These cases are temporary malfunctions.
The malfunction indicator lamp will go off
after taking several driving trips.
If the lamp does not go off even after
several trips, contact your Toyota dealer
as soon as possible.
If the fuel tank is not empty or the fuel
tank cap is not loose...
There is a problem somewhere in the
engine, emission control system, auto-
matic transmission electrical system or
warning light system itself.
Contact your Toyota dealer as soon as
possible to service the vehicle.
Emissions Inspection and Maintenance
(I/M) programs
Your vehicle may not pass a state
emission inspection if the malfunction
indicator lamp remains on. Contact your
Toyota dealer to check your vehicle’s
emission control system and OBD
(OnBoard Diagnostics) system before
taking your vehicle for the inspection.
For details, see “Emissions Inspection and
Maintenance (I/M) programs” in Section 6.

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(g) Low Fuel Level Warning Light
This light comes on when the fuel level
in the tank becomes nearly empty. Fill up
the tank as soon as possible.
On inclines or curves, due to the move-
ment of fuel in the tank, the low fuel level
warning light may come on earlier than
usual.
(h) “ABS” Warning Light
The light comes on when the ignition key
is turned to the “ON” position. If the anti
lock brake system and the brake assist
system work properly, the light turns off
after a few seconds. Thereafter, if the
system malfunctions, the light comes on
again.
When the “ABS” warning light is on (and
the brake system warning light is off), the
antilock brake system, the brake assist
system, the traction control system and
the vehicle stability control system do not
operate, but the brake system still oper-
ates conventionally.
When the “ABS” warning light is on (and
the brake system warning light is off), the
antilock brake system does not operate
so that the wheels could lock up during
a sudden braking or braking on slippery
road surfaces.If either of the following conditions oc-
curs, this indicates a malfunction some-
where in the components monitored by
the warning light system. Contact your
Toyota dealer as soon as possible to
service the vehicle.
The light does not come on when the
ignition key is turned to the “ON” posi-
tion, or remains on.
The light comes on while you are driv-
ing.
A warning light turning on briefly during
operation does not indicate a problem.
CAUTION
If the “ABS” warning light remains on
together with the brake system warn-
ing light, immediately stop your ve-
hicle at a safe place and contact your
Toyota dealer.
In this case, not only the antilock
brake system will fail but also the
vehicle will become extremely unsta-
ble during braking.
(i) Open Door Warning Light
This light remains on until all the doors
are completely closed.
(j) Rear Light Failure Warning Light
If this light comes on when the headlight
switch is turned on, it indicates that one
or more of the tail lights are burned out.
If it comes on when the brake pedal is
depressed, one or more stop lights are
burned out.
Have defective bulbs replaced as soon as
possible.
(k) SRS Warning Light
This light will come on when the igni-
tion key is turned to the “ON” position.
After about 6 seconds, the light will go
off. This means the system of the air-
bags and front seat belt pretensioners
are operating properly.
This warning light system monitors the
airbag sensor assembly, front airbag sen-
sors, side airbag sensors, driver ’s seat
position sensor, driver ’s seat belt buckle
switch, front seat belt pretensioner assem-
blies, inflators, warning light, interconnect-
ing wiring and power sources.

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If either of the following conditions occurs,
this indicates a malfunction somewhere in
the parts monitored by the warning light
system. Contact your Toyota dealer as
soon as possible to service the vehicle.
The light does not come on when the
ignition key is turned to the “ON” posi-
tion or remains on for more than 6
seconds or flashes.
The light comes on or starts flashing
while driving.
(l) “VSC” Warning Light
The light warns that there is a problem
somewhere in the vehicle stability control
system or traction control system.
The light will come on when the ignition
key is turned to “ON”, and will go off after
about a few seconds.
If the light comes on while driving, the
vehicle stability control system and trac-
tion control system do not work. However,
as conventional braking operates when ap-
plied, there is no problem to continue your
driving. In the following cases, contact your Toyota
dealer:
The light does not come on after the
ignition is turned to on.
The light is left on after the ignition is
turned to on.
The light comes on while driving.
The “TRAC OFF” indicator light will come
on when the “VSC” warning light comes
on even if the “TR
AC OFF” switch is not
pushed.
(m) Low Windshield Washer Fluid Level Warning Light
The light warns that the windshield washer
fluid level is too low. Add washer fluid at
your earliest opportunity. (For instructions,
see “Adding washer fluid” in Section 73.)
(n) Key Reminder Buzzer
This buzzer reminds you to remove the
key when you open the driver ’s door with
the ignition key in the “ACC” or “LOCK”
position. CHECKING SERVICE REMINDER
INDICATORS (except the low fuel level
warning light and low windshield
washer fluid level warning light)
1. Apply the parking brake.
2. Open one of the doors. The open door warning light should
come on.
3. Close the door. The open door warning light should go
off.
4. Turn the ignition key to “ON”, but do not start the engine.
All the service reminder indicators ex-
cept the open door warning light should
come on. The “ABS” and “VSC” warn-
ing lights, “TRAC OFF” and slip indica-
tor lights go off after a few seconds.
The SRS warning light goes off after
about 6 seconds.
If any service reminder indicator or warn-
ing buzzer does not function as described
above, have it checked by your Toyota
dealer as soon as possible.

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If no messages have been stored, or if
there are no more messages to be re-
called, “NO MSG STORED” will appear on
the display, and the message display will
be canceled. The display then returns to
show the program service name. The
message display will be canceled if you
activate any function that affects the dis-
play.
Message display can be canceled by
pressing any of the following buttons:
“AM”, “FM”, “CD”, “TAPE”, “LOAD”,
“SEEK”, “TUNE”, any preset, “SCAN”, any
audio control, “RDS”, “SRCH” or “ TYPES>”. If the current station is not a
traffic program and traffic announcements
is off, pushing “TRAF” will cancel the dis-
play. The message will be canceled after
the entire message has been displayed.
PROG (Program)
The “
” button switches the side of
the cassette being played. The display in-
dicates which side is currently selected
(“ ” indicates top side, “ ” indicates bot-
tom side).
Autoreverse feature: After the cassette
reaches the end of a tape, it automatically
reverses and begins to play the other
side. This feature works both in play and
fastforward mode. (Program Types)
This button is operational only in RDS
mode.
This button is used for program type
(PTY) search of RDS stations. 32 program
types are available as listed here.
By pushing this button, RDS turns on in
FM mode and “RDS” will be displayed. If
the program type search is not already
performed, the radio will start a program
type search (see “SRCH” for details). If a
program type search has already been
performed, the last active program type
will be tuned.
If you are already in FM type mode and
a program type is not already being dis-
played, pushing this button will recall the
display for the current program type.
After a program type is being displayed,
subsequent pushes of this button within 3
seconds will toggle through the available
program types. Pushing the right or left
arrows repeatedly will increment or decre-
ment the display through the available pro-
gram types in alphabetical order.
Program Type List
The following program type names are
available. After a program type search,
the radio will display one of the following
program types for 3 seconds, then the
program type name for 3 seconds (if
available). After that, it will display the
first 8 characters of the program service
name of the current station.
Program types included are
Adlt Hit (Adult Hits)
Alert! (Emergency message)
Classicl (Classical)
Cls Rock (Classic Rock)
College
Country
Inform (Information)
Jazz
Language
News
Nostalga (Nostalgia)
Oldies
Persnlty (Personality)
Public
R & B (Rhythm and Blues)
Rel Musc (Religious Music)

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In addition, the feature may not work well
with some spoken word, live, or classical
recordings.
SRCH (Search)
This feature is available only in RDS
mode.
This button allows you to search all avail-
able RDS stations out of the entire FM
band and sort them by program type (see
“” for details on program
types).
By pushing this button, RDS is turned on
if it was off (“RDS” will display). The radio
is switched to FM type mode. During the
program type search, “SEARCHING....” will
show on the display. Also at this time,
“FM” and “TYPE” will appear on the dis-
play to indicate that the preset buttons are
for program type.
After searching for all available RDS sta-
tions, the radio will activate the previously
used program type. If the previously used
program type is not available, or if the
radio has not yet performed a program
type search, the radio will activate the
first available program type, in alphabeti-
cal order, that has stations in memory.
The radio will preset the stations of the
current program type into the preset but-
tons. If more than 6 stations of a program type
are found, the radio will create a second
bank of presets, such as “Rock 1” and
“Rock 2”. These are accessible through
the “” button. If more than
12 stations are found, the radio will load
the 12 strongest stations signal of the
program type into the presets.
After the search is complete, the radio will
display the number of RDS stations found
for 3 seconds: for example, “Found 19
RDS.” The radio will then display the se-
lected program type for 3 seconds: for
example, “ROCK”. After the program type
has been displayed for 3 seconds, the
radio will display the program type name
for 3 seconds. After that, the radio will
display the program service name.
Day mode (headlights off): The radio will
only display the number of presets that
have a frequency for the selected program
type. For example, if program type Rock
is selected, and there are three rock sta-
tions, only preset numbers 1, 2 and 3 will
be displayed. The remaining preset num-
bers will not be displayed and the remain-
ing preset button(s) will have no function.
Night mode (headlights on): In addition to
the display described for day mode, the
radio will illuminate the jewels of the pre-
sets that have stations available. The re-
maining preset button(s) will have no func-
tion.
A type search in progress can be can-
celed by pushing the following buttons:
“SEEK”, “TUNE”, “SCAN”, “AM”, “FM”, any
preset button, “CD” (if CD mode is avail-
able), “TAPE” (if tape mode is available),
“RDS”, “SRCH”, “”,
“TRAF” or “LOAD”. If any of these buttons
is pressed, the search will be canceled
and the appropriate function started. In-
serting a tape will also cancel the search.
If no RDS stations are found, “FOUND 0
RDS” will display and the radio will return
to the previous FM mode and frequency.
ST (Stereo reception) display
Your radio automatically changes to stereo
reception when a stereo broadcast is re-
ceived. “ST” appears on the display. If the
signal becomes weak, the radio reduces
the amount of channel separation to prev-
ent the weak signal from creating noise.
If the signal becomes extremely weak, the
radio switches from stereo to mono recep-
tion.