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Buying Advice for 3rd gen Camry

5K views 34 replies 9 participants last post by  insightbrewery 
#1 ·
Hi Toyota Nation,

This is my first post, but I'm very familiar with forums. I used to be a Classic VW guy a few years back and practically lived on forums lol. I have been looking into buying a Camry for a commuter car and decided to go for a 3rd Gen because I have always been a fan of that body style. I have already begin looking through Craigslist, Offerup and Auto Trader for potential cars to buy. But I did have some questions that maybe the Camry community can help me with. When looking at these years of Camry's what are the common issues to look out for? From what i read thus far I've seen door latches breaking, engine sludge issues and EGR Valves going bad. Is there something else I should watch out for?

I'm looking to spend any where from 1,500-2,000 for a decent car that runs and drives good. I have seen some good condition cars go for $2,500-$3,000 with Mileage in the 120,000-180,000 range. I looked up KBB values, but they are not matching the markets values of these cars. From your opinion what is a good price for a Mechanically Sound Car? or a car that is cosmetically and mechanically sound? I live in Southern California... not sure if that makes a difference.

I'm looking to make this a 2nd car to commute and learn how to do basic mechanic maintenance things like Breaks, Tune Ups, Oil Changes, and basic repairs. with this in mind I have been told that I should look for a 1996 model that has OBD2 to make it easier to diagnose issues in the future. Ideally looking for a 2.2 model as well.

I really appreciate everyone's input. Looking forward to checking out the forum when I find my Camry.

Cheers,
Fernando B
 
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#33 ·
Man, that would look good as a police interceptor. Congratulations!

Hey, consider using an image hosting service such as imgur to embed your images inline with your text. Also, your site storage will run out quickly compared to external hosting.
 
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