96 camry le known issues, op - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

jrobicheau123 · 03-10-2009, 07:11 AM

Hey guys, new to the forum, just bought a 1996 Toyota Camry LE and was just wondering on your opinions if the vehicle i bought was worth it. Please?!!!

96 camry le 204k miles, no dents dings, interior is fine. I have only had the car for a week so i do not know if there are any issues at this point but it does get it to and from work, about 30 miles. The only reported issue before the vehicle was bought, i was told when the vehicle gets warmer, it seems to cut off/boggle down, i am not sure but havent seen it yet. Mechanic stated distributor was bad and needed to be replaced. Car does not smoke, smell, very small vibration, sounds like its coming just from the motor noise and the miles. Otherwise this vehicle is from what i see in working condition so far. You guys know of any known issues or anything for this year? How long you think itll last with 200k miles. I do not know what the previous owner had done but it came from a 18 year old girl and her parents wanted to sell the car. I picked up the car for 1200 as is. gold, 4 door auto 4cyl. 204k miles on motor and tranny.

finfinder · 03-10-2009, 03:16 PM

Welcome,

With 204k I'd first check for oil leaks. Oil pump seal, cam seal, crank seal, distributor O ring. The 4 cyl if famous for leaks with that high mileage. If it's not leaking then those have probably been fixed. Next I'd pull the EGR valve off and clean it. It's probably got good carbon buildup with that mileage. Next I'd pull the plugs and check those. If the plug wires are still original the I'd change those too. I'd also Seafoam the engine. You'll find videos on youtube.com to show you how to do it.

Camrys will last as long as you take care of them. It's a tough car. Mine has 240k and runs fine. I've read that others have 300k plus.

When was the last timing belt change ?

jrobicheau123 · 03-10-2009, 03:36 PM

i do not know if the timing belt has been changed. There is no oil leaks currently, motor is strong. Everything i see as far as transmission wise is ok, nothing feels bad about that. Just worried motor wise and mileage if that is worth 1200. Drove it yesterday for about 20 mintues but did not take it on the highway.

finfinder · 03-10-2009, 06:11 PM

If the motor runs strong and the tranny ain't slippin and the body is in good shape.. yell yeah its worth $1200. You do need some repair history, particularly the timing belt, it that breaks then you go nowhere. Expect to fix a few things but overall it ain't a bad deal. The good news is that salvage yards and Ebay are full of used parts for your car.

jrobicheau123 · 03-11-2009, 10:39 AM

well already my mechanic said the distributor is bad and that is what is causing when the cars warm, that is whats cutting off the motor. Im going to take it for a highway test today, see how it feels on the road for at least 15 mintues since it will be a daily driver for work only. Mechanic states it has had only 1 owner on the vehicle.

Used car buying = sketchy!!!!

***projektvertx*** · 03-11-2009, 03:49 PM

My 2 cents worth... I love the gen 3/3.5 camry. I own a '95 1MZ-FE(V6), the only problem I ran into other than normal scheduled maintenance and 1 O2 sensor going bad is the window motors/regulators. I had 2 of them go bad on me. Luckily, the sunroof motor never went out thought

Piece of advice, the people on ToyotaNation are extremely useful and are a very good reference for almost anything

I think you will love this car, congrats!!!

finfinder · 03-11-2009, 04:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrobicheau123

well already my mechanic said the distributor is bad and that is what is causing when the cars warm, that is whats cutting off the motor. Im going to take it for a highway test today, see how it feels on the road for at least 15 mintues since it will be a daily driver for work only. Mechanic states it has had only 1 owner on the vehicle.

Used car buying = sketchy!!!!

Used car buying is sketchy if you buy something that's not worth fixing in the first place. I'd never buy an american made car with 200k on it. NEVER.
But a toyota. Yep. That's why their resale value is so high. They just don't break down as often. Toyota's reputation for reliability was made during the 80's and 90's when american car companies were making junk.

My 96 2.2 still has all the original parts except for maintenance items. Starter, distributor, alternator etc. I've never had an american made car get past 140k. My camry has 240k and still runs just fine. Fix it and keep it !

jrobicheau123 · 03-12-2009, 11:57 AM

its wierd though, 3/4 itll work fine but when this does happen, the car is already warm and just suddenly cuts off the motor. I let it sit for 5 mintues, it starts right back up like normal. No funny noises before it shuts off, no funny noises when its starting back up. You guys got any clues?

***96paseo*** · 03-12-2009, 02:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jrobicheau123

its wierd though, 3/4 itll work fine but when this does happen, the car is already warm and just suddenly cuts off the motor. I let it sit for 5 mintues, it starts right back up like normal. No funny noises before it shuts off, no funny noises when its starting back up. You guys got any clues?

Sounds like the ignition coil may be failing once the car gets warmed up. I've heard about this problem on the forums before. Not a common problem though. Are the distributor cap and rotor new?

Manny1337 · 03-12-2009, 03:35 PM

my moms 94 Pontiac Bonneville was up too 270k before it shit the bed, only American car ive seen do such a thing haha

jrobicheau123 · 03-12-2009, 11:29 PM

well if i went with new distributor, ide prolly get new cap and rotor. This is what my mechanic has spoken of.

jrobicheau123 · 03-26-2009, 08:19 AM

last night, i drove it to my buds house totally fine. Nothing wrong with it on the way there but after 2-3 hours hanging out, we tried to go for a drive.

At first it started, let it run for about 5 minutes. then the motor all of a suddendly just stopped working.
Took about 2 secs of turn over before it started up.The car ran for about 1 minute and cut off again.
Took 3-4 seconds of attempting to start up and drove it after that for about an hour. There are no check engine or abnormal lights also.
The issue happened again the same night, say about 3 hours later that night, but did not start on its first try. I took the key out of ignition and retried, it started fine. When running and coming to a complete stop down the road, the motor stopped again. Did not start right up, took 2 seconds while i was at a light and drove it home, which is about 15 minutes away. This morning has been fine so far.

I also noticed also that the engine did not all of sudden cut off but the RMPS decreased lower and lower quickly then the motor shut off.

You guys got any clues? Please help!!! I don't want to get screwed by any mechanic lol

Anyone by any chance know any good repair shops in Harrisburg, PA?

Simpler=Better · 03-26-2009, 12:07 PM

Does the engine stay alive if you feather the throttle?

jrobicheau123 · 03-26-2009, 01:13 PM

yes it does stay alive. I just got some sea foam spray, sprayed it bit into the throttle body and IAC, did some when cold and warm also. I am not 100% this is going to fix but hope someone can help me

jrobicheau123 · 03-26-2009, 01:15 PM

the distributor and cap and rotor has been replaced also