Toyota Camry 2006 and earlier

jbollt

Yes! Do you have a few minutes to post those instructions here? This is exactly the kind of instructions I am in search of.. I have found numerous similar instructions for other makes (honda as example) on the web, but can't seem to find it for the Canmry. I would think the Lexus ES might be the same as Camry, as they are very similar cars? Certainlky worth a try. Anybody have these instructions. Thanks!

dog2wolf

Any folks out there from Boston? I am looking for a good dealership - any recommendations?

vcheng

2000 Toyota Camry XLE V6

30K summary

Miles Covered: 29,927
Running Cost : $3,062.24
Running Cost per mile: 10.23 cents

Gas consumed: 1274.64 Gallons
Cost of Gas: $2,052.37
Average Economy: 23.5 MPG
Best: 30.2 MPG
Worst: 16.8 MPG

Maintenance Cost: $720.98
Maintenance Cost per mile: 2.4 cents

Gas Cost: $2052.37
Gas Cost per mile: 6.85 cents

Miscellaneous costs: 0.98 cents per mile

(Still working on Total Cost of Ownership with depreciation and insurance)

walterchan

I just purchased my new 2002 Toyota Camry LE V4 and suddenly realized that it was manufactured in USA. I heard that Made in USA Camrys have slightly more problems than Made in Japan Camrys. Is it true. If so, what kind of problems? Let me know that Made in USA Camrys are slightly better than Made in Japan Camrys.

andrelaplume

I always found it interesting that the Camry's as a whole, many of which are made in the USA have a better reputation than domestics made here or abroad...I don't think it's the guys building the things but the overall design....

andrelaplume

I am trying to determine if a 2002 Camry LE with a 4 cylinder engine, keyless entry and floormats going for $18.9K +tax and tags is a good deal for the NorthEast. I really don't think the $377 advertising fee is something I should be paying or fully paying. I thought it customary to pay 1%? The dealer says Toyota charges them this much.

All you Camry buyers out there...WHAT ARE YOU PAYING FOR THE TDA / ADVERTISING FEE?

hawks1

Sounds as if you got a fantastic deal on your purchase. Did it include Pkg 2 (power driver seat, keyless entry, & JBL radio) and ABS? Also, is it a 4-spd auto? I was quoted $20,439 as the absolute lowest price on the exact same car here in Iowa. I've never heard of an advertising fee in this part of the country. There is a $485 charge for delivery; this is the only charge added to the base price & options. Of course tax, title, and license are additional costs. Sounds like the "advertising fee" is a dealer gimmick to me to put an extra $377 in their pockets.

sam_beaver

Has anyone asked a dealer to install a remote autostarter in an XLE (or any model with the transponder in the key)? Is it possible to install one without using one of the keys? My dealer said he had to use one of the keys as part of installing the unit. I thought there were ways of bypassing the transponder-lock entirely.

If you did get the kind of remote autostart that uses a key, does it have any trouble starting in freezing conditions?

andrelaplume

The $18900 was for a 2002 Camry 4cylinder automatic. The ONLY options were: (KE) Keyless entry system and a floor mat / cargo net set - which I really did not want but they said they all came with it. The $377 is included in the 18,900. They claim they sold the car 'at invoice' but I think the advertising is really their profit. I know with some automakers the advertising is in the invoice and the dealer pays it to the manufacturer. Other times it is tacked on for suckers. I am just trying to find out if I was a sucker!

Anyone else who purchased a Camry recently...did you pay $377 or so for advertising...if not how much over invoice did you pay? THANKS ALL!

herbiedog

I just purchased an XLE on Monday with cloth seats. Before I bought the car I took it on a test drive for about 25 miles and didn't have any problem with the seats. Now That I have the car for 5 days and drove it about 200 miles the seats are a major problem. My butt cheeks actually are sore and my back hurts. I have power seats but cannot find a comfortable position. The discomfort is so bad that I know I could never take it on any long trip of 100 miles or longer. I will be contacting the salesman on Monday to see if I have any options available. My question to all of you is have you also had problems with the cloth seats. If so, what have you done about it? I am considering trying to see if somehow we can work out a deal and upgrade me to leather seats rather than the cloth. Are the cloth seats comfortable as they should be or not much better than the cloth. I have never had any problems with cloth seats in all my years of buying cars, that's about 12 cars. As of now I am extremely disappointed with the Camry seats. My butt and back will attest to this. I would appreciate any comments you have on this issue. Thanks

ftx42

My 02 camry had an intermittent rattle since day one. I thought it came from the dash. Dealer fixed it at first oil change. The fix was to reposition the catylatic converter HEAT SHIELD.
The technician said that some of the Tacomas have the same problem.
Hope this helps anyone with the same problem.

jerryh6

I just want to comment on Camry seats. I test drove the LE and XLE and it seems to me that the cloth seats were uncomfortable even on the short test drive. The Leather seemed better. As a point of interest I own a '92 LE (94,000) and '92 XLE (137,000). Both cars have cloth seats which are very comfortable. Back in '92, the XLE seats were of better quality than the LE's. In the 2002 models, seats in both seem to be equally poor. This is the main reason that I have not bought a new Camry since'92. I LIKE the new cars ; I HATE the seats ! I love the '92 XLE seats and wish that I could get them in a new car...... Am I the only one who noticed this ?

w2323

Any problems with engine sludge with a 2001 Camry 4 cylinder with automatic? I bought a used one with 13k miles on it.

What would be the signs to look for?

As soon as I got it I had oil changed. I dont know if theres a way to check the maintence records on it. I think I can check what Toyota maintence has been done with the VIN.

Thanks for any help,
Scott

cliffy1

The last time I answered this question for you, you either missed it, ignored it or you didn't believe me and are still looking for a reason to be mad about your decision. The fee is real.

Allow me to give you a little history lesson about Toyota advertising fees. Back in the dark ages of 1994, before most consumers knew what an Internet was, we had an advertising fee. It was double its current level. If a customer asked to see an invoice, we whipped it out and the customer could see a $700 advertising fee (oops, that assumes you went to a dealership in 1994 that would allow a mere mortal to view an invoice). At that time, we received half that money back each month. It was a hidden holdback.

Then, somebody decided to sue the dealerships under a class action suit. There were two main parts to the settlement. First, coupons valued at $150 were given to all purchasers of those cars. Many sold them to the law firm that handled the case and up until a year ago, you could buy these $150 coupons for $50 right here on Edmunds. The second part was that the advertising fee was reduced to its current level and we don't get reimbursed for it.

As I told you before, if the TOTAL invoice was $18900 and you paid $18900, you paid invoice. You didn't pay dealer cost. To figure dealer cost, take the invoice, subtract the holdback and add in all variable expenses such as your salesman's commissions, taxes, floorplan interest and the rest.

jj35

Your Camry is one of the model years covered under Toyota's special policy for oil gel/sludge (covers the 4-cyl. and v-6 engines in the Camry, Solara, Celica, Highlander, Avalon, Sienna, Lexus RX-300 and Lexus ES-300).

The signs of sludge in my Sienna were smoke in the exhaust and high consumption of oil. Not to alarm, but there was a recent post on the RX300 board of an owner who had no signs, but was worried because the vehicle was almost out of warranty, so they had the dealer pull the valve cover and they found sludge. It is with the dealer now being repaired and he is going to report back Wed. about what was done to repair it, engine damage, etc. I have heard of others with no signs until their engine seized and others who have said that their check engine oil light came on briefly. My light came on briefly about 1,000 miles before my sludge but I had the oil changed immediately with no problems noted.

george00

george00

Sorry about that - the title just got posted with nothing attached.
Anyway, I have a 2002 Camry LE4 and had an experience just like yours. In fact, it was OK for around 500 miles, then my back started to hurt, and nothing I could do to the power seat positions made any real difference. So I tried sheepskin covers: they helped a bit but not nearly enough. Then I took it to an auto upholsterer and made an interesting discovery: the seatback feels like there's an iron bar behind the seam for the excellent reason that there's an iron bar behind the seam. I had the bar removed, and then also had removed iron bars which go down each side of the seatback. That means that there's nothing to which to attach the hog rings which hold the seat fabric to the seat foam insert, but with the sheepskin covers over the fabric, that's not a problem. The main thing is, the seat is much more comfortable this way - not perfect, but much much better. I think the remaining problem is that the fabric's too tight, so that it prevents my back from being fully cushioned against the foam. If that doesn't wear in over time, as it seems to be doing, I'll have to have a patch of fabric added so as to loosen the fabric over the seat, but that will ruin the seat fabric, which I hope not to have to do. Otherwise, the car's been wonderful - I drove a hundred miles yesterday at speeds up to 75 mph (the maximum speed limit on our highways) and the tachometer never approached 3000! It was so quiet, if I didn't have a tach, I wouldn't have known the engine was running. It's a wonderful car, and it would be a terrible shame if you, or I, had to get rid of it because the seat is too uncomfortable. By the way, if you try this kind of solution, and you mess up the seat insert, you can buy a new one from Toyota for $108.

andrelaplume

Well I feel better if Every Camry owner out their paid this $377 fee. My friend bought a Nissan and last minute a similar fee showed up. They refused to pay and started to walk out and it was waived. This tells me that either Nissan does not charge the dealer directly like Toyota so there is some room to play, or they made up the difference somewhere else in the transaction.

So, if the dealer does not see any of this fee as profit I guess they were just happy with the h old back they got. What a complicated world buying a new car is...perhaps I should stick with used Toyotas.....then again I'd be worrying if that used engine was sludged up!

Thanks!

andrelaplume

I noticed in my wife's 96 RAV the seats become somewhat uncomfotable after sittng there and hour or so....you actually feel releived to get out! All things being equal, and since most of the time we'll be in and out of the car in less than an hour, I am hoping the pluses outweight the minus' on this new Camry.

Two things though....

1) Is there a saftey issue in having those bars removed, ie if someone is sitting behind you and you are forced to slam on the brakes, is there any danger of the seat back failing? Did Toyota perform the surgery.

2) If you are looking for 'fabric' to loosten up your cloth seats, I have noticed leather seat sets up fo auction on Ebay. Well the folks who buy those leather sets for there 2002 Camry's sell their just removed cloth sets on Ebay as well. I have seen sets go for as low as $20 for 5 seats. Take a look on active or completed items buy doing a "2002 Camry" search. Here is an example:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/ebayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1816918819&r=0&t=0

Good Luck!

zielinw

Cliffy,

That must be a Toyota policy, because it was not a fee for my Lexus. Now I understand that all advertising and other overhead items are built into the cost of the vehicle, but it was not broken out on the sales invoice.

bigzheng17

ok i have a 91 camry. according to edmunds.com and my exparience, it is a front wheel drive. but there is still this hump between the back seat and front seat like those found in rear wheel drive cars. so my question is, what is it for? does it actually have a purpose, or toyota just think it's cool to put a hump there?

210delray

It's used to house the exhaust pipe, to help protect it from the road. Another purpose is to strengthen the floor pan.

But the current Honda Civic does away with the hump - the rear floor is flat.

alpha01

Ok so all throughout the Engine Sludge debacle, I have advised my parents (correctly) that the 2002 LE I4 that they just purchased was unaffected by the problem. Understandably, they had concerns about the frequency at which the oil and other servicings should occur. According to the service manual that accompanys the owners manual, the intervals are 5,000 (for heavy use) and an even longer interval (for moderate use... I cannot recall off hand if the higher interval is 7500 or 10K miles). Seeing as how they typically maintain their cars well, using dealer service to avoid any warranty-voiding issues, I recommended that every 5K should be sufficient. But now that I have come home for the weekend from college, I decided to check the oil in the car (which now has about 3800 miles on it) and it seems downright FILTHY. Should I tell them to take it in for servicing at the 3750 mi intervals as per the Toyota dealer service department brochure given to my mother? (I feel they just saw she is middleaged woman and want her money as often as possible from the way my mother described how the service tech spoke to her.. she was in with my dad's leased 02 Corolla at the time). Thanks for you suggestions in advance.
~alpha
PS-otherwise, my parents love the car, they feel its a big improvement over the previous gen. though it takes a drive to get used to the non-linear build of stopping ability of the brakes.. there's not much in the first half inch of travel, then its seems they are a bit more firm and stop progressively.

fradog69

I'm new to this board (perhaps this has been discussed), but my wife's '99 Camry brake light bulb seems to burn out frequently - at least three times since purchase. Has anyone else had this problem? Thanks.

cliffy1

I believe you are correct about the Lexus ad fees. The reason Toyota is broken out like that is because each region operates its own advertising association. Some regions feel they need more money than others. It is likely that Lexus just has one nationwide advertising plan and therefore, no need to charge higher fees in some areas.

cduong

My two reading lights of '87 Camry are out. Can anyone tell me how to get to them for replacement. Thanks

8u6hfd

Does your 87 Camry have a sunroof?

The center one, you remove the len by prying it off carefully.

RonaH

Is there a difference in the feel and steering on the 2002 Camry SE and LE, 4 cylinder? Am considering one for a new driver. I drove the LE and am considering driving the SE to see if it offers any more feedback from the road. The steering on the LE didn't offer any feedback from the road. Also, aren't eh brakes on the SE all disc as opposed to disc and drum on the LE?

cliffy1

The SE does have a more firm feel to it. It has a suspension strut tower brace which makes for less roll in a corner.

hawks1

The LE I4's have discs & drums. All SE's and all XLE's (4's or V6's) have 4-wheel discs.

john339

Alpha01 - regarding your parents 2002 and the appearance of the oil after 3800 miles.

The 2002 4 cylinder engine was apparently redesigned. Based on the information we recently learned from the oil expert, I think the most appropriate question to ask is:

Does the 2002 4 cylinder Camry engine still have the meshed-gears driving the cams?

I don't have the answer to that question, but if it still has those meshed gears, you might want to consider even more frequent changes.

this is a photo of similar gears on the V6:

http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/sludgedmeashgear.jpg

210delray

I find it hard to believe that Toyota is the only major player to drive one camshaft by using gears from the other camshaft in their DOHC (double overhead cam) engines. Lots of engines are DOHC. Surely, Toyota isn't alone.

Also, oil that's dark doesn't necessarily mean that it's time to change it.

john339

Most DOHC engines I am familiar with use either a timing belt or a chain.

I'm sure the meshed gear design would be okay if the engine used sludge-resistant oil and had higher than normal oil capacity to counter the higher rate of oil degradation. That combined with a realistic oil change interval.

8u6hfd

The RAV4 motor was introduced to the US before the Camry motor, despite the lower series number (it's been available in Japan).

Camry i4: 1AZ-FE (2.4L)
RAV4 i4: 2AZ-FE (2.0L)
Same family of engine design, different displacement.

azstan

Would appreciate if someone could tell me how
to change/remove the burned-out reading light bulb in my '92 Camry.

This is an XLE with a moonroof (I think all XLE this year had moonroofs). The reading light
is just above the windshield and light switch is next to the moonroof switch.

By the way...this is a 4 cylinder and still going strong after 203,000 miles.

Thanks in advance.

cliffy1

If you are in doubt, have your dealer change it at your next oil change. It will take them 5 minutes.

alpha01

I think we are going to stick to the 5000 mile intervals, after looking again at the oil (maybe it was just a lack of light... toward late evening when I checked first time) and learning more about the RAV derived engine design, and its clean repair record.
Happy Motoring!
~alpha01
PS- RonaH: the ONLY Camry to use rear drums is the LE 4clyinder- all SEs, XLEs, and LE V6s have all disc.

john339

Alpha01, regarding the use of gears, this cut-and-paste from the oil expert on the sludge board addresses why it is a bigger factor on the Sienna and Camry engines. He has assessed many sludged engines at Toyota dealers and has noted that Toyota trucks have a higher oil capacity and therefore longer duration before the oil breaks down.
=======
"Thats a good point and even in other engines you have cams and distributor gears and oil pump gears.

Where the problem is, When you "add" more gearing than usual, such in toyota's case where they have in addition to what others have, they have bigger teeth on thier gears, meaning more surface area to rip the vi's on. They have a set in the 4cly but 2 sets in the v6, they have two sets of cams, and in some models they also have a set of gears on the bottom side of the engine to "balance" the engine for a smoother idle.

Now reduce the oil capacity, add more heat to the mix since in vans the engines can't get near the air flow across it as in conventional vehicles, use a standard grade mineral base oil, which in 96 they had reduced the antiwear additive which is used heavily in gearing for better protection when the oil is sheared it helps reduce the friction thus less heat.

Alot of small factors adds up to a big problem."

regards,
bob "
===========

alpha01

But the engine in the 2002 does not have a reduced oil capacity, since it is a basically a relative of the RAV engine, and sludge apparently hasn't been an issue for that family of engines. I appreciate the info, as I have stayed clear of the sludge board, for fear that it would suck me in and take up even more of my time than these boards already do- I have 18 Credits, grades to keep up, a social life, org obligations...and when it comes to cars and these boards... NO SELF CONTROL.
~alpha

john339

From what I understand from Cliffy and the article below, the I4 engine in the Camry was completely redesigned for 2002, the V6 was not. The VVTi may replace those meshed gears in the sludge-prone engines. The RAV4 engine changed in 2001, same displacement, but it added VVTi and dropped the timing belt for a more durable timing chain.

For the 2002 Camry - "An all-new twin-cam 16-valve 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine with variable valve timing (VVT-i) is now the base engine" "The four-cam 3.0-liter V6 continues"

http://www.corolland.com/camry/camry-2002.html

210delray

The 2001 and earlier Camry's 4-cylinder and V6 engines both use timing belts to drive the camshafts. In the 4-cylinder (and I assume in the V6), gears are used to link the intake camshaft to the exhaust camshaft. Again, I find it hard to believe that other makers' DOHC engines don't use the same arrangement. Also, lots of 4 cylinder engines have balance shafts, like the 4-cylinder Camry engine. So I'm skeptical about this "meshing gears" theory leading to sludge.

john339

sorry for another cut and paste but I think Bob the oil expert's post can answer that question better than I can. Your very question came up earlier. I was skeptacle at first too, it took about a week of Bobs posts and checking the American Petroleum Institute resources before it all started to make sense:

======
"Thats just the point that most don't understand... with the added gears and cams, you are putting more demand on a standard motor oil which in fact you would not use in say a rearend, a motorcylce or even a gearbox such as what you had been working with. The ep levels are way too low and causes premature oil failure. I've even seen where someone put in the wrong fluid in a dodge truck trannie and it too sludged up and locked it.

now in this picture, you are only seeing one side of the v6 engine, consider the fact there is another side with the same exact gears meshing and cams squeezing + heat,combustion by products, then pcv getting clogged due to this, which will start putting in more demand on the oil. nothing more than a full circle problem.


http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/sludgedmeashgear.jpg
===============

210delray

...surely aren't unique in this regard. It's not like Toyota is the only one with DOHC engines, and everybody else still uses pushrods. Balance shafts are commonplace as well.

8u6hfd

Put a certain amount of shear stress on the oil. Thus the oil needs to have the proper shear properties. The oil can break down due to shear. This is common with all engines, not just with the cam gears, but at the pistons, etc.

the VVT-i mechanism is hydraulically operated also, as well as electronically. So it is important to keep the oil clean, and changed often for the reliability of the VVT-i mechanism (dirty VVT-i oil strainer is the most common problem).

railroad17

Talk about the legendary Toyota Service....NOT!!! I have been requesting Toyota Canada for an english owner's manual for a 1997 Camry for the last three months and so far I have receive about 7 promises that it is arriving in a few days. I made the first request January 14 and we're now in April and I still don't have any manual.

If they cannot even handle a simple request like that I hope in hell that I don't get the sludge problem in my car since I don't know how they can ever deal with it.

jj35

Found this link under the only remaining engine sludge discussion (under News and Views). Press release today.

http://pressroom.toyota.com/photo_library/display_release.html?id=20020403

raybear

It's still the customer's fault!

zielinw

Very Good Cliffy,

Toyota came up with the right answer!! At least in my opinion. This takes the burden off of the owner, and makes the warranty valid again. Eight years and unlimited mileage is more than fair.

This is a clipping of Toyota's new policy..
"To make sure that customers have absolute confidence in their vehicles, this program will cover repair costs and incidental expenses for which a customer has paid or could incur as a result of damage due to oil gelling for a period of eight years from the date of first sale or lease without a mileage limitation."

alpha01

May still technically blame the customer, but this policy is more than generous and should put Camry owners (as well as Sienna, Solara, Celica, RX, Avalon, and ES owners...) somewhat at ease. 8 years and unlimited milage coverage providing reasonable proof of proper maintainence. Very smart for PR.
~alpha

john339

JJ, as one of the original sludge victims, I guess this can be considered quite a victory for you, even though it was a long fought 'battle'.

Congratulations!