2005 Camry LE??? - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

rickytz7111 · 08-03-2005, 01:21 PM

I'm looking at buying my First Toyota. I have been a honda fan for quit some time now. But all my friends say that the Camry rides so much better then the Accord. I just wanted to hear what you guys might have to say about the new Camry. I think it looks great. I just want to be able to get at least 150k out of the car. Oh also one last question does it have a timing belt or chain? Thanks for any reaplys

white3ch0c0late · 08-03-2005, 01:27 PM

You're going to get at least 500k out of it, and I believe that is has a timing belt.

rickytz7111 · 08-03-2005, 01:54 PM

I take it that you are very happy with your Camry. I take it the maintenence on the Camrys are like the Accords very minimal? Thanks

05CamryGuy · 08-03-2005, 02:11 PM

The 4 cylinder engine uses a timing chain. The V6 uses timing belt. I've driven both Accords and Camry's a lot and yes, the Accord has a stiffer (sportier?) ride than the Camry.

rickytz7111 · 08-03-2005, 03:08 PM

I noticed that you own some older Camrys. Have you had any major problems out of them. I just couldn't believe how much better the Camry rode compared to the Accord and how quiet it was on the road. Do the new ones have any kind of problems at all? Like I know Hondas are know for their AC's going out on them.

jhbhatia · 08-03-2005, 03:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickytz7111

I take it that you are very happy with your Camry. I take it the maintenence on the Camrys are like the Accords very minimal? Thanks

Define minimal?
I think minimal as every:
3K oil changes
15K transmission flushes
10K Air Filter
yearly coolant flushes
60K Power steering, brake flushes

this is what we do for our accord to, so as long as your do the 'minimal' i don't see why a camry won't reach 150K easily!
-Jai

***Phi*** · 08-03-2005, 03:51 PM

I can't compare to an Accord as I've never owned one. However, based on my experience with Camrys, you don't have to worry about their reliablity. Provided that you maintain the car regularily, you'll have few issues. My family has owned 4 Camry's in the past 15yrs. None of them as given us any problems.

Back in 2002 when the Gen5 was introduced, there were some complaints about pulling to one side, sulphur smell and lag in throttle response. I believe those issues have all been rectified. You can sift through TSB's at http://www.alldata.com/recalls/index.html

Edit: forgot to mention that the new 2007 is coming soon. Hold off if you can

Mighty~Mart · 08-03-2005, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 05CamryGuy

The 4 cylinder engine uses a timing chain. The V6 uses timing belt. I've driven both Accords and Camry's a lot and yes, the Accord has a stiffer (sportier?) ride than the Camry.

is this why my engine sounds so squeaky?

xpeed · 08-03-2005, 06:31 PM

Yeah, probably. But yeah, a Camry will last you 10 years guarantee if you maintain it well. No real engine problems along the way. And I haven't had any problems with my camry yet and it's over 13000 miles now.

kenny1773 · 08-03-2005, 07:15 PM

I owned a 1995 Camry V6 LE, I bought it new and maintained most of it myself.

My father and my sister both owned Accords.

I can say in my little world, my father and sister both had more problems with their accords in 120k miles than I had with my camry.

Items I had to do to my camry while I owned it.

oil change every 4000-4500 (mobil I synthetic, toyota filters)
Air filter every 15,000, I put a K&N drop-in in it at about 50,000
Auto trans fluid every 15,000 2.5 quart pan drain (full flush at 100,000)
Radiator flushed every 60,000
Timing belt every 60,000
water pump + thermostat at 120,000 (I just replaced it to be safe, it was still ok)
serpentine belt and PS belt at 75,000 (again to be safe)
brakes about every 60k (and I drive fairly hard)
CV boots both sides at about 110,000
shocks at 100,000
battery at about 5 years
tires as needed YMMV
dogbone mount ($20 part) at 130,000
flushed the brake fluid at 120,000
power antenna froze (but still received signal) at 90,000, I just left it up all the time

important note - it still had the factory original exhaust at 150,000 and 10 years old and it was still going strong. The transmission still shifted as tight as ever and didn't show any signs of wearing out. All power accessories (moon roof, windows, etc) were in perfect working order and never had a repair. Interior held up very well to daily wear, still looked great after 10 years. The most important thing to me, even after 10 years 150k miles it was still QUIET as ever. It never developed any noises (engine, body, or interrior).

Now I own a 2005 Camry SE I-4. What sold me was my past experience, price, and how quiet and smooth it was. The '05 is way smoother than the '95 which was already smooth.

I have 8000 miles on the '05 now and my only complaint is the seat belt warning buzzer from hell. The car is simply perfect. Fuel efficient, smooth, quiet, solid, roomy, handles nice, brakes great.

The maintenance on the 2005 looks even less

Radiator is good until 120,000
timing chain is good until - it makes noise, well over 150k I assume
oil every 5000
5 speed AUTO tranmissions states DO NOT REPLACE FLUID (you can search for a thread on that)

it looks virtually maintenance free. If you changed you own oil on the accord, you will immediately love the '05 camry the first time you change the oil. Honda loves to bury the filter in the back and make it a bitch to get to, Toyota puts it right up front, I don't even need to jack my car up to change the oil. I have a fram surdrain installed to quickly handle the oil pan bolt and the filter is literaly 'right there' next to the oil pan up front and it is mounted vertically. Easy on, easy off, minimal mess, less than 10 minutes to change.

I think you will be a happy Toyota camry owner coming from an accord.

rickytz7111 · 08-03-2005, 07:31 PM

Thanks for all the great info guys. I guess i'm heading to get a Camry. I have 189K on my Accord and minial maint. has been done to it. I have owned 4 hondas now 2 with over 200K miles and no Major probelms at all. But the Camry just rode so smooth and was so quiet that I couldn't belive it. I guess I will be buying my first Toyota. I have had friends that have owned Tacomas and have had no problems out of them at all. Thanks Again.

05CamryGuy · 08-03-2005, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rickytz7111

I noticed that you own some older Camrys. Have you had any major problems out of them. I just couldn't believe how much better the Camry rode compared to the Accord and how quiet it was on the road. Do the new ones have any kind of problems at all? Like I know Hondas are know for their AC's going out on them.

I've not had any problems with any of the Camry's I've driven before or now. We had a '98 Accord previously (bought within a few months of our '98 Camry) and it had transmission problems two years later at 30K miles while the '98 Camry had absolutely no problems at all.

The Camry has always been targeted towards the more luxury-oriented crowd while the Accord is more sporty. The only complaint I have about my current '05 Camry is that the interior isn't as good looking as that of the Accord's, albeit the exterior looks better because of the OEM fog lights (but hey, looks are very subjective - you may not think the same as I). Also, the steering wheel could really use a telescoping feature - but these are minor things, I can survive fine w/o them. Other than that, I've not had any major problems - in fact my '93 Camry has got 200K miles on it w/o any complaints

Good luck on your purchase, and welcome to the Toyota family...

redgtxdi · 08-03-2005, 10:07 PM

------------- CV boots both sides at about 110,000---------------

Does this mean you used split boots to replace the solids??? If so, how'd it work out???

Also.............what's a dogbone mount????????

And lastly.........how'd you actually "FLUSH" the brake fluid??? (Toyota's been all over this lately and when they tell me I typically just bleed all the brakes & fill the reservoir with more fresh fluid to keep it looking cleaning than it was so they don't bug me about it again).

I notice, too, that while they love to say this about brake fluid..........they never say it about Clutch or Power Steering fluid. Since they're all pretty much a hydraulic fluid, I wonder why they consider these less important????

rickytz7111 · 08-03-2005, 10:13 PM

The only thing that I noticed was the steering didn't feel tight like the Accord did. That was the only thing that I didn't like about it. Does it have a diffrent steering system then the Accord? Thanks Again for all the Replys

ekim55121 · 08-03-2005, 10:27 PM

ive never had 1 problem with my camry and it was second hand i got it at 100k and it has 170k now, ive only had it for about 11 months and never had one problem. had a very funny buzzing noise that drove me nuts untill i found out that it was my keys against the dash