Problems with 2005 Toyota Avalon VISIBILITY

The right side view mirror is fogging up. i contacted toyota (case no. [xxx]) after taking the car to a dealer who said the entire unit had to be replaced at a cost of $680, stating this is a safety issue that should not have happened since the mirror had not been damaged. their position was that nothing could be done by toyota. information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6). *tr

Tl* the contact owns a 2005 toyota avalon. the contact stated that while driving 5 mph, he noticed that the passenger side view mirror was fogged internally. the contact was unable to remove the fog from the mirror. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer and they were unable to diagnose the failure. the contact was informed that the only way to remedy the failure would be to replace the mirror. the manufacturer was notified and offered no assistance. the failure mileage was 90,000. updated 05/24/12 *bf

Tl*the contact owns a 2005 toyota avalon. the contact stated that the vehicle was leaking oil. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer seven times where the oil tube, hose, filter housing, studs and drain plug casket were replaced. however, the failure continued. the failure mileage was 30,214 and the current mileage was 56,289. updated 01/12/11*lj the dealer replaced, the drain plugs, gaskets, crank seal, valve covers and oil pan. the moonroof did not operate properly and there was a problem with the battery not charging. updated 04/15/11 the consumer stated the upper and lower oil pans were replaced. updated 07/19/11/ *jb

Note: i had to classify this vehicle as a camry because a selection for a 2005 avalon was not available - recently we had our first major snow storm. i was driving on the highway and within minutes my windshield wipers began to freeze up and sharply limited my visibility. i checked with the dealer service dept only to discover that toyota does not manufacture a winter (booted) wiper blade for this vehicle. i searched the internet (trico, anco, etc. websites) but could find no aftermarket winter blades for this model avalon. toyota had redesigned the wiper arm and blades to accept only the expensive ($56 a set) toyota manufactured wiper blades. i sent an email to toyota and they responded by telling me to check with my dealers service dept. naturally the dealer could not do anything to resolve the problem because toyota does not manufacture any equipment solutions for them to apply. i am very disappointed with toyota's response as i consider this a serious safety issue. i'm fortunate that i didn't drive off the road and into a ditch. the next time i have to drive in a snow storm you can be certain that i won't be driving the avalon. *jb