How dare you propose such a thing! (Just kidding

They were pretty nice cars from the factory. The engine did experience gelling (sludging) issues at times, so have a look under the valve cover for signs of that. I would also look in the oil filter for crusty stuff that might indicate a botched cleanup job (of previous sludge.)

But, routine oil changes (and ATF) should enable a car such as this to go further than most.

I've never heard about the issues that you referred to.

 

There are a lot of people here with motors well over 150k, which is already more than the average motor lasts. I personally highly recommend this motor. I think it is more prone to valve cover gasket leaks more than anything else. My .02

 

Well the one I am looking at has 200+ on it but is in perfect mechanical condition, just some minor cosmetic flaws. I am only concerned because I have a 94 toyota corolla that has 162 on it and doesn't have a single problem and never has; so I dont want to screw myself. I would have to sell it to buy the camry. The only reason that I really want to switch to the camry is because of the torque and the size of the car. I think it would be more comfortbale to jump in a bigger car and have more space. I just dont want to sell my perfectly working corolla and then get a camry that has some kind of major problem soon after I buy it.

 

Wow! I just found a 97 v6 with 170k for $2000. All that is wrong is leaky valve cover gaskets and cracked windshield. Should I do it???

 

id have a mechanic you trust do a prepurchase inspection but yeah thats a pretty good deal.

 

I've had very little trouble with the motor. Just regular wear and tear.

 

I haven't heard anything about an above average frequency of x problem on the 1MZ - besides sludging, but if you keep up with oil changes that isn't a problem. As far as the tranny, well, all transmissions will begin to fail after hundreds of thousands of miles.

I love the 1MZ EXCEPT for the location of its oil filter! Other than that, it's a great motor.. Coming from a Corolla you'll love the power, that's for sure.

 

Im just afraid im gonna buy a car that is notorious for say... blowing head gaskets or something. I dont want a nightmare on my hands. You guys have been helpful so far, thank you.

 

if you buy anything with a 1mz in it then it will be notorius for working well. and as long as ya take care of it, she'll last a long time.

 

Great, it looks like I will be picking this one up tonight for $1900. Ill just pull the leaking valve cover off and put on a new gasket and it should be good to go. Im gonna do a full fluid change on it as soon as I get it because I have read about the sludging that sometimes happens. I read about the tranny needing a certain fluid too. Should I just go with what all-data says and be fine with that?

 

I read about the tranny needing a certain fluid too. Should I just go with what all-data says and be fine with that?

In later years, Toyota started using Toyota-branded Type T-IV ATF. In a 4th gen I'm pretty sure it still uses the widely available Dexron III. The former is only available at the dealer and is sort of pricey.

 

The engine that had the bad head gaskets was the old 3vze 3.0L in the trucks from about 88-96 or so. It's completely unrelated to the 1mzfe in the camry/avalon/sienna/solara/highlander/es300/etc etc which, when properly maintained, is just about bulletproof. True, valve covers leak, but that happens on every engine. Be sure to check the back one - that one is more prone to leaking onto the exhaust, giving you a burning oil smell.

the 1mz in my red 95 se v6 coupe had 180k when i sold it to a buddy... it had a supercharger on it for like 90k miles before i removed the s/c to sell the car. Last I heard, it's got about 245k on it now, still going strong. he did have to replace the tranny at like 215k, but really... 215k miles is a long life for an automatic, especially considering the 90k of abuse I put it thru w/ the supercharger. I think he spent about 1900 for a shop to do it, but it came w/ a great warranty.

my current 98 camry also has the 1mzfe, and it's only got about 114k.

 

Lol my buddy has a 97 with a TRD charger on it and wants to know if I want to buy it. He just bought an s2000 and is putting the camry back to stock. How much torque do you think I could see by slapping that on? And its a roots style blower right?

 

yes, it's roots. its only 4psi boost, but it really flattens out the torque curve so you have more available down low. peak tq only goes up like 40 ft-lbs, but because you have SO much more tq down low, it's much more usable. When I sold my s/c'd 95 for a miata, the torque and the big trunk were the ONLY things i missed about it.

 

I believe a 97 is a 5th gen and I thought I read specifically not to use dexron

 

no, 97-01 is 4th gen for camrys. 5th gen is 02-06.

regardless of what year your camry is, you can look at the atf's dipstick and it will tell you what kind of fluid to use.

 

Weird, wikipedia says that a 97 is a gen 5: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camry#Fifth_generation_.28XV20.29_.281996.E2.80.932001.29 but this site says its a Gen 4

 

wow... that "gen4 v40" looks more like a nissan product - specifically, an infiniti q45. since it was japan only, and only for a short period, I wonder whether it was honestly worth its own "generation" designation. Especially since the wiki entry says it shares so much with models on either side of it.

If you read the text of the wiki entry on the "3rd gen" it says:

These generation classification are for the Japanese market Camry. The third generation US Camry was introduced from 1992-1996 while the fourth generation was introduced from 1997-2001, the fifth generation camry was from 2002-2006, and lastly the sixth and current generation in the US is from 2007-present. The U.S. Camry is presently in its six generation while the Japanese market version is in its seventh generation.

 

So i picked up the 97. The car is in great condition, I bought it from the original owners and they gave me all service receipts. The only thing I can find wrong with the car is that it has a check engine and leaky valve covers.
For the valve covers I'm just going to remove the intake manifold and take both covers off, then replace the gaskets with OEM gaskets and new bolts. Im gonna do the 2 washer trick so that I can get the valve covers torqued to 15lbs instead of 4lbs. That should stop all my leaks. Oh and I will obviously check for sludging while I have the covers off.
For the check engine, it is throwing a "shift solenoid e malfunction" or something along those lines, maybe a p3073 I cant remember the code. I read that sometimes oil and gunk gets in one of the tranny connectors for the wiring harness and if you just unplug it and blast it out with brake clean it will make the code go away. I guess the connector will throw a code if its not seeing the right resistance. I believe the solenoid has something to do with "shift lock out" or something. I think it has to do with when the tranny goes from coasting to engaging in gear.
Anyways I am also going to change the tranny fluid, my buddy told me that when I go to drain it I will only be able to get like 30% of the fluid out, so he reccomended that I do 3 tranny fluid changes within 3 weeks just to get all the old stuff out.

Sorry for all the questions, I'm excited about my new car and want to take good care of it! This is the best daily driver anyone could ask for!! Thanks guys.

 

The 2000-2001 1MZs came with factory MLS head gaskets for improved reliability:

That's my 1MZ during the rebuild I did. The MLS gasket has 3 layers. They are a direct fit for any 1MZ.

There's nothing wrong with the older paper gasket either. As long as the head bolts were properly torqued (+ 45 degree turn to stretch), they shouldn't fail unless the engine is overheated.

 

Can anyone offer any advice on the tranny drain/fill? I was thinking about doing it tomorrow morning.

 

Make sure you can take the fill plug out FIRST! If you can't...and you drain it...well...I'm sure you can see it would be pointless to have a disabled car.

Git all yer supplies and rags. Mark yer disposal container so you know how many quarts you are taking out so you can put in the same amount. Measure it out with water...

It's better to have less than more...cause you can easily add in but not easy to take out.