Looking to buy a 1993 Camry LE - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

goog1986 · 10-01-2007, 10:20 AM

Hi,

I'm new here but I don't own a Camry (for now). I'm looking to buy a 1993 Camry LE from my neighbor and I need your advice before buying it. The car has 250 000 kilos, automatic transmission and A/C. The car come with 4 winter tires and 4 summer tires, it has been rustproofed since 1993, the timing belt is brand new, as well as the exhaust line, muffler, brakes and A/C. The oil has been changed every 3000km. The guy is asking 3500$. Is it a good deal? what are the parts that have the tendency to break at this mileage? what should I look for during an eventual road test?
Tell me what you think.

BlueFusion6851 · 10-01-2007, 11:17 AM

Look for worm suspension parts, cooling system (water pump, coolant flushes, radiator) transmission shifting hard or slipping, what else..... C/V joints, tie rod ends, etc. Make sure that nothing is going to break as you first drive this down the road.

Ask him for the receipts from all the servicing he'd had done as the owner and verify that he is telling you the truth.

As for what I think about it... Sounds like a good deal. Welcome to TN!

Heat · 10-01-2007, 02:06 PM

The struts most likely are due to be replaced and that will be roughly an $800 job.

The price is too high. That car, where I live (Illinois), would be worth about US$2,000 to US$2,300 (US$ and Canadian$ are about the same now).

wiccanferret · 10-01-2007, 03:41 PM

Price sounds way too high. I wouldn't pay more than $1500-$2000 for it. Toyota or not, maintained or not, it's still a 15 year old car.

Heat · 10-02-2007, 12:01 AM

Here is what www.edmunds.com is saying the car is worth in my area (central Illinois):

(US$)

Trade-in: $900
Private Party Sale: $1500 (price by a private person)
Dealer Retail: $2500 (price on a car lot)

Don't get me wrong, it's a good car and should last you a while, but he's asking way too much.

louie1086 · 10-02-2007, 09:25 AM

yea, 3500 is way too much.

Stuff u should look for are suspension problems (does anything have to be repalced, how are the struts/shocks), tire and brake issues, engine/tranny issues.

If u've been driving and have a good instinct, take the car for a test drive and see if u notice anything out of the ordinary. a good way to test the suspension in the rear is to press down on the bumper and see how much it bounces back up; see if it feels real soft or stiff.

otherwise, ask family member to drive it for you and see what they think.

wiccanferret · 10-02-2007, 10:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by louie1086

yea, 3500 is way too much.

Stuff u should look for are suspension problems (does anything have to be repalced, how are the struts/shocks), tire and brake issues, engine/tranny issues.

LOL...stuff you look for is..um...pretty much everything.

This is how I test a car...

Test drive first. At a dead stop on concrete jerk the steering wheel back and forth and listen for clunking of any kind. If you feel/hear anything, there's a problem with the steering rack or the suspension. Pass.

Make sure the car responds to reverse quickly if it's an auto. Force it to downshift at least three seperate times and pass if it doesn't feel crisp and precise. If it's a stick, put it in fifth at about 30 and floor it to see if it slips or just goes really slow. If it slips, pass. If you have problems getting into any gear, pass.

Check oil. If it's gritty and junky under the cap then the oil changes haven't been frequent enough. This is not a deal breaker as most old cars are like this. If the oil is uber clean but junky under the cap I'll usually pass because that means someone is hiding something. If it's slightly dirty but no bubbles and smells like oil then it's good.

Trans fluid. Check that it's full and doesn't smell burnt.

Green marks mean there's coolant leaking somewhere. Corrosion on anything plastic near the radiator without green marks means that the green marks have been cleaned off...pass unless they can tell you what happened with the cooling system.

Push on each corner of the car. Put some weight into it and get it going. If you just can't get it moving then the suspension is in good shape. If you get it going but it stops moving within a few bounces after you let off then it will need struts at some point. Most older cars are like this. If you get it going and it seems to want to keep going then it needs struts now but the springs are in good shape. Figure the price of replacing struts into the deal. If it's extremely easy to get going and doesn't bounce much then the struts AND springs are screwed in which case pass for sure because that means it was driven for a while with bad struts which is really, REALLY bad for the suspension.

Sniperdude · 10-02-2007, 10:53 AM

1,500 to 2000. Damn right in Illinois, they won't go for any more than that.

Unless it's perfect.

Bear95 · 10-02-2007, 11:30 AM

I think that it depends if it has had the shit run out of it. I payed over book value for mine, but a little old lady owned mine and I knew it had been loved and well cared for. Too bad she had to die before her son would sell it to me.
B95

tooyoungtoodie · 10-02-2007, 12:32 PM

you might can get a deal for $1,000 maybe less if there are minor problems to it.

Bear95 · 10-02-2007, 02:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by goog1986

Hi,

I'm new here but I don't own a Camry (for now). I'm looking to buy a 1993 Camry LE from my neighbor and I need your advice before buying it. The car has 250 000 kilos, automatic transmission and A/C. The car come with 4 winter tires and 4 summer tires, it has been rustproofed since 1993, the timing belt is brand new, as well as the exhaust line, muffler, brakes and A/C. The oil has been changed every 3000km. The guy is asking 3500$. Is it a good deal? what are the parts that have the tendency to break at this mileage? what should I look for during an eventual road test?
Tell me what you think.

Could someone tell me how many miles 250,000 kilos are and how to convert?
Thank You,
Bear

wiccanferret · 10-02-2007, 03:00 PM

About 155k miles.

You can google measurements like that...

eg: 250km = ? miles

Heat · 10-02-2007, 03:13 PM

Or just remember that a 10K run is 6.2 miles, thus 1K = 0.62 miles.

Or 250,000 kilometers x (0.62 miles / kilometer) = 155,000 miles

At least the conversion between Canadian dollars and US dollars is easy (they are virtually equal in value now).

Bear95 · 10-02-2007, 06:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Heat

Or just remember that a 10K run is 6.2 miles, thus 1K = 0.62 miles.

Or 250,000 kilometers x (0.62 miles / kilometer) = 155,000 miles

At least the conversion between Canadian dollars and US dollars is easy (they are virtually equal in value now).

Thank you for the good info

Bear95