Buying a used camry ... oil leak?

[spgc2000]

Looking for some advice guys ...

Recently I came across a 98 Toyota camry for sale with low mileage (45k miles). The guy selling it is the original owner and it's his wifes car.
He has done all the major service and has records (timing belt etc).

The only thing that's holding me back is that there were some spots of oil stain where he parks his car. He admited that it does leak a little oil.
Going through his records, I found one of the garage reciepts which mentions "oil leaks from valve cover gasket, powersteering pump area" ... this is from the time he had his timing belt replaced (notes by the mechanic)

Now I am wondering if these things are easily fixed or would I be buying a potential problem car?

Any thoughts guys? BTW, I am having the car inspected at a Toyota dealer, are there things I should tell them to inspect in particular?

[eyeball96]

Is it a V6 or 4? My coupe V6 had leaking valve covers when I found it, no big deal, but more expensive to repair than a 4...Taking it to the dealer is a bad idea...they'll find all kinds of expensive problems, that don't necessarily need to be repaired. Take it to a local mechanic/repair shop. It cost me 35 bucks to have mine inspected! Good Luck.

[spgc2000]

Originally Posted by eyeball96

Is it a V6 or 4? My coupe V6 had leaking valve covers when I found it, no big deal, but more expensive to repair than a 4...Taking it to the dealer is a bad idea...they'll find all kinds of expensive problems, that don't necessarily need to be repaired. Take it to a local mechanic/repair shop. It cost me 35 bucks to have mine inspected! Good Luck.

It is a V6 ... XLE actually

I have been doing a little research and seems like 97-01 cars were non for pil sludge problem is there an easy way to get that checked out?

[toyomoho]

To check for sludge remove one of the valve covers. Oil leaks are pretty common on both V6 and I4 engines. Do a TN Camry history search on topics such as “inspection”, "problems", etc. There have been several threads in the last year or two detailing common Camry problems and what areas to inspect. If you know someone or a mechanic familiar with Camry might have them inspect the car.

[marc780]

Only 45,000 on a 98? Thats excellent - if the speedo cable wasnt disconnected or broken for a long time or something that is.

An oil leak (compared with actual oil burning) is annoying, but not usually a huge problem on an otherwise good car, unless it is the rear main seal. All the leaks on front of the engine require removing the timing belt parts (camshaft, oil pump, front main bearing seal) but if these parts have to come off you could change them all at once for a few bucks. The valve covers and oil pan arent too bad to replace either - if the car were a good deal an oil leak wouldnt stop me from buying it.

If the owner lets you pull a valve cover like toyo says, it will tell you all you need to know about oil sludging, if any, and the oil change intervals this car has had. If the engine looks clean inside, it probably is clean. It may not be spotless but at this mileage there should not be much dirt or sludge if the owner changed the oil once in a while.

If i were checking the engine and pulling a valve cover anyway, i'd also pull the plugs to look at them (or at least the front 3 if it is a V6) The plugs should be tan or dark grey in color, dry with no shiny oil on them.