5th & 6th Generation (2002-2006 & 2007-2011)Toyota Camry Discussion for years: 2002-2006 & 2007-2011
Topics of discussion range from fuel economy, safety, modifications, performance all involving America's favorite family car, the Toyota Camry.
i have a camry le 2007. does anyone else notice how soft the brakes are? is this normal? also, i notice the plastic dash and steering wheel parts don't line up well in many places. is this a lack of quality because it's a north american build? or is it just my car. for example the dash piece above the two heater vents, center dash, seems to be an 1/8th of an inch higher than the vents. I can push it down in place but then it just comes back up. also the air bag seems off center on the steering wheel(big gap on one side and no gap on the other).
Yes, I can comment on the brakes. They do NOT stop very well for being a 4 wheel disc setup. I was really expecting more from the brakes. I am not sure if stainless steel brake lines, or better pads might help? But in the end these are brand new cars and shouldn't need such modifications.
Just out of curiousity, is this the first time you drive a car that has a 4 wheel disc setup? I was used to driving my corolla and neon and when we first bought our Santa Fe in 2004, the brakes felt too soft (4 wheel disc setup). I then got the tC and it was the same thing. Eventually I got used to it and the manager in one of the service departments explained to me how the brakes work. he said when you press on the brakes, it'll send the brake fluid through one disc and then to another and another and another. So it feels different. was he bsing me? I don't know. but i do know going from one car to the next, the brakes did feel different. But I will say that the 04 Santa Fe, 07 Santa Fe, Scion tC and the 07 Camry all have the same feel to the brakes. well to me at least.
Yes, I can comment on the brakes. They do NOT stop very well for being a 4 wheel disc setup. I was really expecting more from the brakes. I am not sure if stainless steel brake lines, or better pads might help? But in the end these are brand new cars and shouldn't need such modifications.
You do not stop very well as in? do you feel the car just keeps going? or are you used to slamming on ur brakes and the car stops? cause the Camry has ABS so the car will not come to a complete hault. It'll gradually slow down, if I'm not mistaken.
I'll make afew comment (i have a 2007 camry se v6)
1. The breaks seem good to me. However, I am not an expert. I came from a 2000 grand am GT where the rotor got warped and caused the breaks to act for crap. But right now if I hit the breaks...I come to a STOP and fast. The ABS does a nice job too.
2. The interior for me "seemed" to be good but then the leather let loose on driver door arm rest and there is nwo a plastic creakign type sound behind the driver side seat.
__________________ 2007 Camry SEV6, | Magnetic Gray Metallic| Dark Charcoal Interior | Tilt/Sliding Moonroof | VSC & TRAC | 6 Disc CD Changer | Bluetooth |
Yes, I can comment on the brakes. They do NOT stop very well for being a 4 wheel disc setup. I was really expecting more from the brakes. I am not sure if stainless steel brake lines, or better pads might help? But in the end these are brand new cars and shouldn't need such modifications.
Just to let you know, most automotive magazines are testing stopping distance from 60 - 0 mph to be about 120 ft. Not Porsche distance, but places the 07 Camry among the segment leaders. As for feel... it's a Camry, they wanted it on the softer side.
it just seems when i'm coming to a gradual stop i really have to push the brakes down all the way at the last second. almost like the brake fluid is low. before i bought my camry le i test drove the hybrid and the brakes were completely opposite. very sensitive actually. my other car is a 95 dodge stealth base model but has abs and 4 wheel disc braks. seems like a big difference. also for only being a difference of 10 hp my base stealth seems to have way more power. maybe i just need the tsb for poor shifting performed.
You can't realy compare one cars HP to another. Alot of factors contribute to how it will perform. The transmission is the main factor. It not only changes shifting but determines the torque appied to the wheels. A better comparison is the torque at rated rpms. Did you notice the nice take off of the hybrid? This is not due to the HP rating of the vehicle. It is the fact that electric motors nearly 100 percent of torque at take off. Gas motors require the motor and transmission to reach optimal speeds to aquire the full torque. A interesting article was posted on a Honda hybrid race car developed two years ago. The performance was so superior to any current race car that it was banned from NASCAR and Formula One.
The breaks do have a softer feel to them. I am inclined to believe it is more the perception of four wheel disk brakes. My last four cars( 1998 Honda accord coupe, 2003 Olds alero, 2004 Corolla, and 2007 Camry) have all had a softer feel. I can't say that it seems that the car won't stop, but that it feels like your just not breaking in comparison to the distance. My accord was the first for wheel disk and ABS system. The first time I felt a pulse from the ABS I swore I hurt something. The other thing I noticed was that brand new vehicles will feel more solid in the braking. After about a thousand miles they tend to break in. The camry felt very tight at first. Just like the 2006 accord I test drove.
I have mixed feelings on the interior. I like the fact that it has been changed to a rubber compound. The same seems to be used in mos vehicles for 2006 and 2007. It gives a nice soft feel. I use to like the vinyl dash unti I had two cars peel up after two years. The plastic dash just looks and feels cheap. No way around that one. The issue I dislike is how the rubber won't seat down to a perfect finish like stated above. I am interested in seeing how other companies compare with the rubber finish.
I am the kind of individual that detests squeaks or noise in a car. To date, the accord has been my best vehicle in this area. Every ford or GM car I owned squeaked after three months of owning it. I would spend hours removing panels and placing silicone between pieces to quiet it. My accord never had a sigle squeak. Even after removing the dash for a new Head Unit. I have found three issues with the camry to date. One squeak in the A pillar, one squeak in the dash, and the console door does not always close and latch. This is annoying, but I do have to say that I am pleased with Toyotas service. New cars will be expected to have issues. The camry has been out for a little over six months and they have addressed all issues I had. The shifting performance, the squeaks, and now even the console door. I do not expect my car to be perfect. Just that Toyota continues to try and make it perfect.
i have a camry le 2007. does anyone else notice how soft the brakes are? is this normal? also, i notice the plastic dash and steering wheel parts don't line up well in many places. is this a lack of quality because it's a north american build? or is it just my car. for example the dash piece above the two heater vents, center dash, seems to be an 1/8th of an inch higher than the vents. I can push it down in place but then it just comes back up. also the air bag seems off center on the steering wheel(big gap on one side and no gap on the other).
Fit and finish is not what I expected. I have the same issues with my Camry SE. I was wondering too if this anomaly is unique to US built models only or prevalent throughout the 07 Camry line-up.
Last edited by angstlhovn; 10-19-2006 at 07:48 PM.
Fit and finish is not what I expected. I have the same issues with my Camry SE. I was wondering too if this anomaly is unique to US built models only or prevalent throughout the 07 Camry line-up.
have you tried going to the dealership and asking the service guys to 'straighten' interior trim pieces out for you?
My brakes stop ok for me. As far as the quality control, it's a Toyota. If I wanted perfection, I would have bought Lexus, Infinity or BMW. Anyway, I'm happy with my 07 Camry. There are areas where quality control slipped, but I wouldn't attribute it to being US built.
Fit and finish is not what I expected. I have the same issues with my Camry SE. I was wondering too if this anomaly is unique to US built models only or prevalent throughout the 07 Camry line-up.
Made in Kentucky. No Problems.
__________________
2007 Camry SE Titanium Metallic V6: Muth signal mirrors, 18" TSW Mondello wheels, Crimestopper alarm/remote starter.
I notice my hood doesn't have an equal gap on both sides... But the hell if I'm going to let the dealer fart around with that, I only noticed it upon real close inspection.
Wait till you get some stone chips or other wear, the car will look like chit to you but nobody else will notice.
Anyway... On the brakes, they're vaccuum assist and they work very well! The pedel is soft so that you modulate braking easier, but slam the pedel sometime, you'll think you had binders from a Mack truck installed! I had this feature on my Sequoia, and narrowly averting a disaster with about 25% pad life remaining, the 6000lb truck would stop as quickly as when the brakes were new.
Now then, the brake fluid going to the calipers is proportioned from the master cylinder, the fluid does not begin at one caliper and then go round-robin, if it did the car would swerve all over the place... There is a distribution of braking, the front brankes do most of the work... There is no adjustment to the braking system, it works or it doesn't. There can however be a need to have the fluid bled, that may rsolve your mushy feeling or maybe you've glazed the pads on initial brake break-in?
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