repairs on new 94' camry - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

felpz123 · 06-10-2009, 06:45 PM

bought it last Wednesday, had a mechanic look at it and all the mechanical crap runs great, but i need a lot of cosmetic work done on it.

this is my first car and first time going to a junkyard, and as i have no idea how much its going to be, i would like some advice.

here are some pictures

http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/3234/0000081.jpg back the taillights seem ok, but the middle part has a crack in it
http://img23.imageshack.us/img23/6135/0000082j.jpg front 2 headlights need to go
http://img188.imageshack.us/img188/2145/0000083.jpg broken door handle, the lock is also screwed up.
http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/2562/0000084.jpg wanting to get the speaker cover replaced to match passenger side(drivers side door was salvaged from a junk yard)
http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/9789/0000085.jpg this just hangs open..
http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/7114/0000086.jpg cigarette lighter
http://img195.imageshack.us/img195/8245/0000087.jpg this is loose(i.e. not bolted down in any way), ugly, and the bottom of the console is open for some reason

so i was just wanting to get an idea of what it would cost to grab all of this off of a salvage yard

also my back right tire is bigger than the other 3.. dont know if you can tell what size they are from the picture, but i was wanting to get the back two to match and use the old tire as a spare.

http://img193.imageshack.us/img193/9514/0000088.jpg
http://img188.imageshack.us/img188/346/0000089.jpg

last, i obviously know the car needs a paint job, but i cant afford it right now. i was wondering if i sanded it myself, and took it to macco or similiar to prime it, would the primer stay good and knock off the price of the complete paint job when i do get the money?

thanks

***eyeball96*** · 06-10-2009, 07:13 PM

Welcome to TN....You can find just about everything you need on Ebay., for cheap!

felpz123 · 06-10-2009, 07:18 PM

im open for anything man

***projektvertx*** · 06-10-2009, 08:04 PM

to TN!! Hope you find this resource usefull... I always do!! Most of the stuff you mentionned can be bought cheap of ebay, no need to go to the salvage yard. The only reason I go to the salvage yard is if I want to learn how the part is taken off before I touch my own vehicle. I would recommend a u pick salvage yard...

Piece of advice, priming and painting a car is not as easy as you might believe, it actually requires a lot of prep work, and odds are, it won't look good. I would recommend saving up the money and getting a proper paint job.

felpz123 · 06-10-2009, 08:14 PM

naw, im talkin about sanding it myself(friends have the know how i think), and getting it primed for cheap. then later on this summer painting it for real.

carsrus · 06-10-2009, 08:28 PM

I wouldent go the whole paintjob route, Itll cost you at least a grand for a good paint job.

Clay bar it really good, and wax the living shit out of it a buncha times with a good wax and see where you are.

Youd be surprised at the realtively low cost and ghetto fixes there are for paint. For example my friend uses tire gel to make his black hood not look faded (believe me I thought it was stupid until I saw it work).

I wouldent get it primed and wait for a paintjob, the primer will just get contaminated and destroyed pretty quickly.

felpz123 · 06-10-2009, 08:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by carsrus

I wouldent get it primed and wait for a paintjob, the primer will just get contaminated and destroyed pretty quickly.

ok, thats what i was wanting to know, thanks.

but you did see how screwed and uneven my shit is right? if i could get the paint lookin good that would be amazing, because i do love the color.

if you could give me some ideas of what i could do that'd be great, because if it really is 1k+ then i def. cant afford it for a long ass time(min. wage job, and making payments on the camry for the next 4 months).

carsrus · 06-10-2009, 09:04 PM

ok man, this is a list of stuff you can get at walmart.

step one
wash car really good

step two
Clay bar kit - should be under 15$

step 3
after clay baring it according to the instructions, get a good paste/liquid wax and apply it with a clean applicator or cloth, dont go to thick or itll be hard to take off after it dries
use a clean soft towel and rub the wax off after it dries to a hard white (10 min or so)

Wax it a buncha times and itll look as good as it gets.
Dont spray paint it or anything else, cuz itll jsut turn out like crap.
You can probably buff out those headlights too ( search around for how to do it)

felpz123 · 06-10-2009, 09:27 PM

could you give me an idea of how it will look? or what it does?

thanks for the advice

carsrus · 06-10-2009, 09:53 PM

Washing it - self explantory
clay baring it is a mild abrasive way to remove the impurities from the paint
waxing it is pretty self explanatory also....

the whole process it gonna cost you under 20 bucks
i mean you pretty much just cleaning it and polishing it up, something that car hasn't gotten for like 10 years

felpz123 · 06-10-2009, 10:11 PM

oh, i thought it was going to help with the peeling clearcoat.

i dont see the point in washing+waxing it in its current state

Camry LE 94 · 06-11-2009, 09:20 AM

like everyone else said... you can find just about anything you need on eBay. you can buy new headlights or you can buy a headlight restorer kit from Auto Zone/Advanced Auto etc. It's up to you. And to get exact prices, youll have to call your local junkyard, or just get them off eBay.

felpz123 · 06-11-2009, 12:49 PM

ok, i went on ebay and the only part i saw worth buying was the cigarette lighter for $22 shipped... no thanks

guess ill be doing plan a

could anyone answer my tire question? or at least tell me how to find the size?

ok, another question. i have been reading up and asking friends about when to use overdrive, and i get a different answer from pretty much everybody. some say turn it off in the city, others keep it on all the time except going up a hill. maybe it depends on the vehicle? what do you guys do?

***eyeball96*** · 06-11-2009, 04:35 PM

Quote:

ok, i went on ebay and the only part i saw worth buying was the cigarette lighter for $22 shipped... no thanks

You haven't searched ebay much have you...yesterday there's 67 pages of gen 3/3.5 items!??

Quote:

could anyone answer my tire question? or at least tell me how to find the size?

OEM Tire specs are inside your glove box door!

when to use overdrive?

I leave mine on all the time.
When passing on a two lane road it may be wise to flip it off to drop the car into third gear quicker or maybe if your towing something it would be useful.
It just keeps the transmission in 3rd gear.

felpz123 · 06-11-2009, 04:46 PM

it doesnt change the shift points? seems like it does, i havent tested it though.

how do i search ebay effectively? i just typed in 94 camry "item needed" lol