2007 Toyota Camry SE from North America - Comments

Hi. I currently have a 1998 Lexus ES300 with 205,000 miles on it (made by Toyota). I've also had two Camry's: a 1992 4 cylinder and a 1995 V6 coupe. The 1992 Camry was sold with 166,000 miles. The 1995 Camry was sold with 125K miles on it. I still own the Lexus.

All of these cars were very reliable, but I had to do some maintenance on each one: struts, timing belts, axles, IAC valve, etc. Only the 1992 left me stranded on two occasions because the timing belt broke. Despite these maintenance issues, all of them combined did not equal the engine replacement in my 1993 Mercury Cougar due to blown head gaskets. But, in all fairness, that car was given to my mom and stepfather, which was still running at 210K miles (with a slipping transmission, broken drivers seat and considerable rust on the rear quarter panel).

However, I have had more success with the Toyota products, and I have seen many still on the road with close to 300k miles. My mother has had Fords and Chryslers with major problems. What I know about the recent Camrys is that Consumer Reports did not recommend the V6's: the four cylinder models were recommended by results collected through their annual subscriber surveys. So, in my opinion, Toyota makes a better product, but I cannot really comment on the recent models because I do not own one.

Since 1974 until 2007, I was in the automobile business (with a few years off in between for college).

I have sold almost every make, and in my opinion as far as passenger vehicles go - Toyota makes some of the very best vehicles on the planet.

I should state the nobody in my family owns a Toyota product, and that I am no longer in the car business, so this is my opinion based on many years in the business.

Sorry but Ford or GM cannot compete (with the exception of Full Size Pick-up trucks as the domestics are still the best work trucks).

The only other Ford worth mention is the Fusion. The rest you couldn't give me.

GM has some good, some bad.

The worst cars in my opinion - anything that Chrysler builds. Poor engineering, poor build quality, woeful longterm reliability.

Nissan has slipped as far as Japanese vehicles go, but Toyota is virtually without peer.

"Nissan has slipped as far as Japanese vehicles go, but Toyota is virtually without peer."

1) Nissan never "slipped". They have NEVER built a reliable car.

2) As for Toyota, most automotive experts regard them as mediocre at best. In a 4-car comparison in 2006 in Car and Driver, Camry finished dead last (behind Hyundai). In 2007 Toyota's reliability was so poor that Consumer Reports dropped its "recommended" status. In J.D. Powers long-term reliability rankings Buick and Ford both beat out even Toyota's over-rated Lexus brand.

3) Last year Toyota's Sequoia SUV had the second-worst resale value of any SUV (Nissan Armada was the only one worse). GM SUV's had the HIGHEST resale values.

4) Toyota builds nothing with even the slightest sporting appeal. It can be argued that they are good basic transportation for some folks. My 85-year-old aunt drives a Camry. She drives about 900 miles a year, never exceeds 35mph and the car will probably outlast her (if she's lucky). Personally, I prefer vehicles that are sporty, reliable and don't require visits to the service department weekly. That's why my cars are Ford and GM.

00:41

Nissan certainly did build reliable cars - My father had a Datsun pick-up that he owned for 13 years without an issue. I owned a 1987 Pathfinder also for 13 years, and other than oil changes, one set of tires, and one exhaust system, this vehicle needed nothing.

The Nissans of today are not the reliable Nissans of 20 and 30 years ago.

"and don't require visits to the service department weekly. That's why my cars are Ford and GM."

That's why I bought a Honda. It's not a souless machine like a Toyota, yet it's just as reliable.