Gonna get a third gen.

[det5lonewolf]

Hey all,
Tired of not having a/c and riding around in my bumpy ass tacoma, so I'm thinking third gen Camry. Looking to spend $2000. \Or shoud I spend more to get something newer? Looking for a V6 automatic. I've read to check for sludge, and to check the shocks/springs. What's the most miles that it should have? What else should I check for? Is there any other make of car out there that has the same reliability to price ratio? TIA TN!

[LynchburgCSI]

The gen 3 is often referred to as the best engineered Camry built to date. Definitely get a V6 if you can find one... if gas isn't a huge issue. I like to stay away from 200k miles or higher cars if they have a shady maintaince history. They can WILL last longer than that... if properly maintained. Check out the brouchures on toyotareference.com for some more info about the trimlines and options for each year.

Price may be tricky. Finding something in MINT condition for under $2000 will be hard. But if you can do some maintaince, then you can have one heck of a nice Camry.

[zythr]

If you can, try for a 96. That seems to be the best year for this Generation, though it may be more than $2000.

[THEARCHITEK]

well mine has 290k and still going dats by doing a hell good job on maintenance, as long as is well maintain i would say is a hell of a car, the v6 if u dont mind the lack of space by servicing ur car den go for the v6, if u looking for more space easier to work with go for the 4cyl, any of them are excellent cars

[bigbird]

Any v6 from 92-01 is gonna be reliable, some may argue one way or the other but the fact is they are ALL reliable, gen4 has some little issues here and there but so does the gen3. find one with low miles (sub 150K, yes, we consider 150 low mileage ). I cant sepak personally of the 3vz (92-93) but it has no more issues then the 1mz (94-01). check all fluids, especually the tranny fluid, this will likely have issues before the engine will. other then that you just have to find out as much as you can about teh car's history and condition.

now personally i like the look of the gen3 better, however, i perfer the interior of the gen4 (not for its looks). for your budget however, you can likely get a gen3 with lower miles and in better condition then the gen4.

others cars like the camry are the solara (camry coupe), es300 and avalon.