Enhancement of Product Appeal
Enhancement of Product AppealBumper
^ The construction of the front bumper has been changed from the previous two-piece construction (consisting of front bumper and front valance panel) to the three-piece construction (consisting of front bumper, front bumper cover, and front valance panel). Furthermore, the front bumper cover and the front valance panel are made of highly recyclable TSOP (The Super Olefin Polymer).
^ A plastic step has been added to the center of the rear bumper to improve its ease of use and looks. The plastic step is made of highly recyclable TSOP (The Super Olefin Polymer).
^ The shape of the reinforcement in the front and rear bumper has been changed to enable the bumpers to protrude further in order to reduce the damage to the body during a minor collision.
^ A towing hitch ball for the rear bumper has been made available as an option on all models.
Deck
To improve its ease of use, the deck has been provided with partition s1ots.
Twin Access Door
1. General
The access cab model has adopted double-opening type twin-access doors to provide a large opening dimension. As a result, the in-and-out access to the rear seat has been improved, enabling the rear seat occupants to enter and exit easily from either the driver's or the passenger's side.
2. Construction and Operation
General
The access door contains upper and lower locks, inside and outside handles, an access door lock remote control assembly, etc.
3. Access Door Lock Remote Control Assembly
A cancel mechanism is provided to prevent the access door from opening if the inside handle or the outside handle of the access door is operated when the front door is closed.
When the front door is closed, the front door keeps the cancel lever and the door lock outside locking lever (A) pressed. Therefore, the door lock locking bush (B) that is engaged in the groove of (A) slides, causing the door lock open outside lever (C) to become disengaged. As a result, when the front door is closed, the door lock open lever (D) will not move even if the inside handle or the outside handle of the access door is operated. Thus, because the upper and lower locks cannot be disengaged, the access door will not open.
Seat Belt
1. General
^ The driver seat is provided with a 3-point ELR (Emergency Locking Retractor), an electrical sensing type seat belt pretensioner and a seat belt force limiter.
^ The front right passenger seat is provided with a 3-point ELR, ALR (Auto Locking Retractor), an electrical sensing type seat belt pretensioner and a seat belt force limiter.
^ The front and rear center seats are provided with a 2-point NR (Non-Retractor) seat belt.
^ The rear outer seats are provided with a 3-point ELR and ALR seat belt.
^ The access cab model has newly adopted a suspending type adjustable cantrail.
^ A tether anchor bracket for the CRS (Child Restraint System) has been provided.
2. Pretensioner and Force Limiter
^ In accordance with the ignition signal from the airbag sensor assembly, the seat belt pretensioner activates simultaneously with the deployment of the SRS airbags for the driver and front right passenger.
^ In the beginning of a collision, the seat belt pretensioner instantly pulls up the seat belt thus providing the excellent belt's effectiveness in restraining the occupant.
When the impact of a collision causes the tension of the seat belt applied to the occupant to reach a predetermined level, the force limiter restrains the tension, thus controlling the force applied to the occupant's chest area.
The basic construction and operation are the same as in the '99 Sienna.
3. Adjustable Cantrail
It is constructed as an adjustable anchor that has a lock pin on the movable side and a lock hole on the fixed side. To adjust it downward, pull the lock knob to disengage the lock. To adjust it upward, slide the cantrail body itself upward, without operating the lock knob.
4. CRS Tether Anchor Bracket
A tether anchor bracket for the CRS is provided as standard equipment on all models.
Hood Stay
The hood stay has been changed from the previous support rod to the damper type to reduce the amount of operating effort required in opening the hood.
Tailgate
To accommodate a retrofit canopy, a key cylinder has been provided on all models. The tailgate straps have been changed from the previous sheet metal type to the wire type to improve their appearance.