Here's my Daily Driver!

[kesando]

After My Geo Prizm was totaled by some silly kids in a stolen van, In a pinch I found this car, A Maroon/Red 1990 Camry DX

The way it looked when I got it two months ago with 106,000 miles. It had "OK" service records, but it was a two owner car (mother gave car to daughter) with clean carfax besides a fenderbender on the driver side rear when it was one year old. New Tires, timing belt done at 90k miles. Car runs very strong and quiet. Price paid $2300 (I know, I know)


Things done so far:
*New alternator, front brake pads, radiator, Fan speed resistor pack, reattached rear defroster window wire.
*New wheel covers, wash, claybar and detail (could use paint job though)
Clean Interior, Clean Engine

How it looks now...












To Do list: (small problems)
Dome light doesn't work
"Pwr" light doesn't work
Speedo needle waivers a bit up to 30 mph
Bushings a little noisy while parking but quiet while driving
Loose chrome trim under back window by trunk
Fix small crease in driver side front fender

Overall I'm very happy with the car so far with the extra features compared to my 90 Prizm base. I have always liked older Toyotas!

BTW my other car is a 98 Accord Sedan V6 AKA garage queen

More to come ...

[bkbajan]

nice!!!! i love it man,keep it clean dude

[PtBaller]

nice got any pics of your accord?

[kesando]

None recent will try to take some when I get a chance to clean it up. Daily Driving it got it very dirty while the Geo was being replaced

[kesando]

Originally Posted by bkbajan

nice!!!! i love it man,keep it clean dude

Thankyou

[joeykrim]

Originally Posted by kesando

To Do list: (small problems)
Dome light doesn't work
"Pwr" light doesn't work
Speedo needle waivers a bit up to 30 mph
Bushings a little noisy while parking but quiet while driving
Loose chrome trim under back window by trunk
Fix small crease in driver side front fender

i just moved into manhattan. thats some nice green grass you got! where in nyc are you?

my car also has the loose chrome trim under the back window and the dome light doent work....also two small problems id like to fix!

the car looks great!

[kesando]

Originally Posted by joeykrim

i just moved into manhattan. thats some nice green grass you got! where in nyc are you?

my car also has the loose chrome trim under the back window and the dome light doent work....also two small problems id like to fix!

the car looks great!

Well actually thats my old neighboorhood where I grew up. I still Visit over there alot and park my Accord there. Other times I work on my cars with my godfather who's house the pics were taken at. Saint Albans BTW. Now I live in Queens Village

[JMSports]

I wish my DX had fold down rear seats. My 'N' light and my 'PWR' light in the dash both dont work, and the 'Norm' Light decides to work every couple weeks.

[HomeGrown]

Nice! Now get to work on that paint, and see how much of the original factory luster you can restore. My car looked ok paint-wise when I got it, but I've waxed it, no joke, probably about 20 times in the past 2.5 years I've owned it. I just finished going over it with polishing compound & a power buffer, then a coat of wax & power buffed again. Although I've waxed it numerous times in the past, the polishing compound REALLY cleaned up the paint, and I could definately tell a difference. This is the best it's looked since I've owned it.

[kesando]

I'll see what more I can do Homegrown. I know the paint won't look nearly as good as yours .


Had to replace my flexpipe the other day as it went suddenly while pulling out of BJ's parking lot. That was a long drive home!
Even though the car ran good when I got it it may have developed a small exaust leak over time. Now it is almost silent while driving! Opened it up from a roll to 80mph after flex pipe replacement and it pulled suprisingly well for a 2.0 liter motor !

At 107k miles this car runs beautifully (no valve chatter, exaust noises, etc) and I'm very happy with it despite recent repairs.

[kesando]

Here's my emissions results:

[HomeGrown]

Don't sell yourself short kesando! Some rubbing compound, decent wax, and a $25 buffer from Wal-Mart can make a world of difference!

Good job on the flex pipe, I had to replace that same piece on my '90 wagon. Another somewhat common failure item on these cars is the pressure-side power steering hose. Did that replacement also on the wagon and on my '89 I had breifly.

I'm wondering how ivanhoe (another member here) got away with gutting his cat, as he's also from NY (don't know if he's from NYC though). That's a worthwhile freebie mod that's messy, but not too terribly difficult and worthwhile, as long as you can pass inspection. Did that on my wagon and on the '91.

[nuron]

Originally Posted by HomeGrown

Another somewhat common failure item on these cars is the pressure-side power steering hose. Did that replacement also on the wagon and on my '89 I had breifly.

HG, is this the common cause of the leaking PS that most Camrys have? If it is, then I probably have it. I don't know if it's the pump or the hose though...How difficult is it to replace this hard line? Space looks like around that area...

[HomeGrown]

Hey nuron! Glad to see you out of hiding again.
Yep, that's the most common cause of the PS leak. The part is around $40 @ Autozone. Both times I've replaced it, I removed the hood which made it a LOT easier, but it's still a bear. I used a long 1/2" drive extension with a universal joint and socket. I've heard of some people using a dremel to cut something, but I'm not sure what.
I personally never saw the necessity of cutting anything. Both times the hoses were removed fully intact.
My 90 wagon had 370k miles and my '89 had 180k. Both times the fittings came off with no issue. There's a couple good threads about this repair.