2005 TOYOTA AVALON steering

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2005 AVALON from Jan. ’05 Prod. (OM41408U)
Toyota strongly recommends that all
infants and children be placed in
the rear seat of the vehicle and be
properly restrained.
Do not hold a child on your lap or
in your arms. Use a child restraint
system in the rear seat. For instruc-
tions concerning the installation of
a child restraint system, see “Child
restraint” on page 98 in this Sec-
tion.
Do not put anything or any part of
your body on or in front of the
dashboard, lower portion of driver ’s
side instrument panel, steering
wheel pad that houses the front air-
bag system or in the areas where
the SRS knee airbag will inflate.
They might restrict inflation or
cause death or serious injury as
they are projected rearward by the
force of the deploying airbags. Like-
wise, the driver and front passenger
should not hold objects in their
arms or on their knees.
If the vinyl cover is put on the area
where the SRS knee airbag will
deploy, be sure to remove it.
Do not modify or remove any wir-
ing. Do not modify, remove, strike
or open any components, such as
the steering wheel pad, steering
wheel, column cover, dashboard
near the front passenger airbag,
front passenger airbag cover, front
passenger airbag, driver knee air-
bag or airbag sensor assembly. Do-
ing so may prevent the front airbag
system from activating correctly,
cause sudden activation of the sys-
tem or disable the system, which
could result in death or serious in-
jury.
Failure to follow these instructions
can result in death or serious injury.
Consult your Toyota dealer about any
repair and modification.
If you wish to modify your vehicle for
a person with a physical disability,
consult your Toyota dealer. It may
dangerously interfere with the SRS
side airbags and curtain shield air-
bags operation.

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2005 AVALON from Jan. ’05 Prod. (OM41408U)
Do not attach any heavy, sharp or
hard objects such as keys or acces-
sories to the ignition switch. The
objects may restrict the SRS knee
airbag inflation or be thrust into the
driver’s seat area by the force of
the deploying airbag, thus causing
a danger.
NOTICE
Do not perform any of the following
changes without consulting your
Toyota dealer. Such changes can
interfere with proper operation of the
SRS front 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 front end struc-
ture
 Attachment of a grille guard (bull
bar, kangaroo bar, etc.), snowplow,
winches or any other equipment to
the front end
 Repairs made on or near the front
fenders, front end structure, con-
sole, steering column, steering
wheel, lower portion of driver’s side
instrument panel or dashboard near
the front passenger airbag
This indicator comes on when the igni-
tion switch is set at ON. It goes off
after about 6 seconds. This means the
SRS front airbags are operating proper-
ly.

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2005 AVALON from Jan. ’05 Prod. (OM41408U)
This warning light system monitors the
airbag sensor assembly, front airbag sen-
sors, side and curtain shield airbag sen-
sors, curtain shield airbag sensors, driv-
er ’s seat position sensor, driver ’s seat belt
buckle switch, front passenger occupant
classification system, “AIRBAG ON” indi-
cator light, “AIRBAG OFF” indicator light,
front passenger ’s seat belt buckle switch,
seat belt pretensioner assemblies, inflat-
ors, interconnecting wiring and power
sources. (For details, see “Service remind-
er indicators and warning buzzers” on
page 145 in Section 1−6.)
If any 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 switch is set at ON or remains
on for more than 6 seconds.
The light comes on while driving.
The SRS warning light and “AIRBAG OFF”
indicator light will come on if there is a
malfunction in the front passenger occu-
pant classification system.
In the following cases, contact your Toyota
dealer as soon as possible:
The SRS front airbags have been in-
flated.
The front of the vehicle (shaded in the
illustration) was involved in an accident
that was not severe enough to cause
the SRS front airbags to inflate.
The pad section of the steering wheel,
lower portion of instrument panel or
front passenger airbag cover (shaded
in the illustration) is scratched,
cracked, or otherwise damaged.
NOTICE
Do not disconnect the battery cables
before contacting your Toyota dealer.

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2005 AVALON from Jan. ’05 Prod. (OM41408U)
OPERATION OF INSTRUMENTS AND
CONTROLS
Steering wheel and Mirrors
Tilt and telescopic steering wheel11 8
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Outside rear view mirrors 11 9
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Anti −glare inside rear view mirror 120
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Auto anti −glare inside rear view mirror 121
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Sun visors 122
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SECTION 1 4

’05 AVALON_U (L/O 0501)
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2005 AVALON from Jan. ’05 Prod. (OM41408U)
TILT STEERING WHEEL
To change the steering wheel angle,
hold the steering wheel, push down the
tilt lock release lever, tilt the steering
wheel to the desired angle and release
the lever.
When the steering wheel is in a low posi-
tion, it will spring up as you release the
lock release lever.TELESCOPIC STEERING WHEEL
To change the steering wheel column
length, hold the steering wheel, push
down the telescopic lock release lever,
push or pull the steering wheel to the
desired length and return the lever to
its original position.
CAUTION
Do not adjust the steering wheel
while the vehicle is moving. Doing
so may cause the driver to mishan-
dle the vehicle and an accident may
occur resulting in death or serious
injuries.
After adjusting the steering wheel,
try moving it up and down or for-
ward and rearward to make sure it
is locked in position.
Tilt and telescopic steering
wheel

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2005 AVALON from Jan. ’05 Prod. (OM41408U)
“START”—Starter motor on. The key
will return to the “ON” position when
released.
For starting tips, see page 287 in Section
3.
“ON”—Engine on and all accessories
on.
This is the normal driving position.
“ACC”—Accessories such as the radio
operate, but the engine is off.
If you leave the key at the “ACC” or
“LOCK” position and open the driver’s
door, a buzzer will remind you to remove
the key.“LOCK”—Engine is off and the steering
wheel is locked. The key can be re-
moved only at this position.
The selector lever must be put in the “P”
position before turning the key from “ACC”
to the “LOCK” position.
Once you remove the key, the engine im-
mobilizer system is automatically set. (See
“Engine immobilizer system” on page 16
in Section 1−
2.)
When starting the engine, the key may
seem stuck at the “LOCK” position. To
free it, first be sure the key is pushed all
the way in, and then rock the steering
wheel slightly while turning the key gently.
Approximately five hours after the engine
is turned off, you may hear sound coming
from underneath the luggage compartment
for several minutes. This is normal opera-
tion and does not indicate a malfunction.
(See “Leak detection pump” on page viii.)
It is not a malfunction if the needle on all
meters and gauges move slightly when the
key is turned to the “ACC”, “ON” or
“START” position.
NOTICE
Do not leave the key at the “ON” if
the engine is not running. The battery
will discharge and the ignition could
be damaged.
Ignition switch
(with key cylindertype
ignition switch)

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In the following cases, contact your Toyota
dealer:
The warning light does not come on
after the ignition switch is set at ON.
The warning light remains on after the
ignition switch is set at ON.
The warning light comes on while driv-
ing.The vehicle stability control system
helps provide integrated control of the
systems such as antilock brake sys-
tem, traction control, engine control,
etc. This system automatically controls
the brakes and engine to help prevent
the vehicle from skidding when corner-
ing on a slippery road surface or oper-
ating steering wheel abruptly.
This system will activate when your ve-
hicle speed reaches or exceeds 15 km/h
(9 mph), and will deactivate when the ve-
hicle speed reduces to below 15 km/h (9
mph).
You may hear a sound in the engine
compartment for a few seconds when the
engine is started or just after the vehicle
begins to move. This means that the sys-
tem is in the self
−check mode but does
not indicate a malfunction.
CAUTION
Do not rely excessively on the ve-
hicle stability control system. Even
if the vehicle stability control sys-
tem is operating, you must always
drive carefully and attentively to
avoid serious injury. Reckless driv-
ing will result in an unexpected ac-
cident. If the slip indicator light
flashes and an alarm sounds, spe-
cial care should be taken while
driving.
Only use tires of specified size. The
size, manufacture, brand and tread
pattern for all 4 tires should be the
same. If you use the tires other
than specified, different type or
size, the vehicle stability control
system may not function correctly.
When replacing the tires or wheels,
contact your Toyota dealer. (See
“Checking and replacing tires” on
page 356 in Section 72.)
In situations where the road surface
is covered with ice or snow, your
vehicle should be fitted with snow
tires or tire chains.
Vehicle stability control
system

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Steering wheel
Instrument cluster
1. Cruise control switch
2. Distance switch
3. “CRUISE” indicator light
4. “NORM.” indicator light (conventional cruise control mode
indicator light)
5. Display
6. Master warning light
7. “READY” indicator light (ready mode indicator light)
Vehicletovehicle distance control mode
Conventional (fixed speed) cruise control
mode
—Dynamic laser cruise control
modes