Buying my first Toyota (Camry)

[rrs26ja]

Hello All,

I am in the middle of purchasing my first Toyota. Its a 2002 Camry LE. 4 cyl, ABS brakes, power windows/seat/door locks. The car is very very clean 26,672 miles, looks like it came out of the show room. What should I be looking for on this car? What are some of the issues you Camry owners have had? Is there ay special maintenance I need to have down around this time/miles?

The price is $10,500. This is about $1500 to $2000 higher than NADA or Kelly Blue Book but lower than most I have seen at dealers, or cars.com, or autotrader.com

Thanks in advance for your help and suggestions:

Ron

[DSMer]

Car is worth about 8.5K IMO
Even though it has low miles, it is a 02.

[rrs26ja]

DSMer,

I agree. When I looked at both NADA and Kelly Blue Book I come up with the same $8,500. But when I go to dealers or look on line at Cars.com or AutoTrader.com, these cars are going for $10,500 - 13,500. I know this is the asking price, but it seems like Toyotas and Hondas get more than the NADA or Kelly Blue Book

[glenn14]

Originally Posted by rrs26ja

DSMer,

I agree. When I looked at both NADA and Kelly Blue Book I come up with the same $8,500. But when I go to dealers or look on line at Cars.com or AutoTrader.com, these cars are going for $10,500 - 13,500. I know this is the asking price, but it seems like Toyotas and Hondas get more than the NADA or Kelly Blue Book

In Mass, where I am from this is what a dealer would be asking for a similer 2002 Camry LE.
http://www.kbb.com/KBB/UsedCars/Pric...C186553%7Ctrue

Glenn

[jayrguidaben]

make an offer at the dealer. 8,500 or 9,500 or even lower than the kelly blue book.if they don't want it, leave and go to the other dealer near you. they are desperate to sell cars now.

[Nick :D]

I have a Gen 5 (like yours) with >100K miles on it and have never had a single problem with it

[CamrySExxx]

Originally Posted by rrs26ja

Hello All,

I am in the middle of purchasing my first Toyota. Its a 2002 Camry LE. 4 cyl, ABS brakes, power windows/seat/door locks. The car is very very clean 26,672 miles, looks like it came out of the show room. What should I be looking for on this car? What are some of the issues you Camry owners have had? Is there ay special maintenance I need to have down around this time/miles?

The price is $10,500. This is about $1500 to $2000 higher than NADA or Kelly Blue Book but lower than most I have seen at dealers, or cars.com, or autotrader.com

Thanks in advance for your help and suggestions:

Ron

The only problem you might have is some clicking/clunking sound when turning the steering wheel. There is a TSB on it.

[islandboy57]

The price is too high. Keep in mind this is a buyer's market so don't hesitate to negotiate. If they're unwilling to bargain, leave. As far as the actual car, I don't believe the '02 was affected by the TSB for the steering intermediate shaft. If the car was maintained well, the four-cylinder in that car will definitely be reliable and fairly cheap to maintain.

Don't forget that even though it has just 26K miles, it's 7 years old so you'll want to replace the tires if they're original. Good luck!

[MrObvious]

And look up the TSBs. Being the 02 was the first Gen. 5, there were a number of them.

[rrs26ja]

What is a TSB and how do I lookthem up?

Thanks

[the critic]

The water pump has been an issue with the 2AZ-FE. Not all of them leak though, but if they do, it's usually when they have more miles (60k+). It's an easy fix though.

Oil leaks aren't uncommon either, especially from the oil pan gasket.

I remember reading a few threads on here about head problems??? I think they were just isolated incidents though.

Also, Sonnax recently released a few updates for the U240E's valve body. It seems like the aftermarket is starting to see issues with these transmissions as they age.

[BlackCamSe]

The gen 5 (02-06) camrys are rock solid reliability wise. There aren't many known problems with them. Just try and work that price down.