1994 Toyota Camry LE from North America - Comments

Back when it was only 90K the engine had trouble starting in the morning. This was really due to the fact that the spark plug wires needed to be replaced. However the dealer who checked up on the car had the nerve to try to charge me $800 for the "time" it took to diagnose the problems. I told them, "I'd get right back to them." and proceeded to use my spare key to drive the car out.

Otherwise the car has only left me stranded twice when the battery went dead. Again, not the manufacturer's fault.

This has easily been the best car I have ever owned in my life, and is highly regarded at the auto auctions I work at as a reliable and easy to maintain car (I'm an auctioneer by profession). The vehicle in question is an LE Coupe and it has regularly given me 30 - 32 mpg on the interstates and 26 - 28 mpg in city driving. I keep up with EVERYTHING on this car. Oil every 3K, tire rotation every 5K, transmission fluid every 30K, air filter every 15K, spark plugs every 50K (and plug wires since I now know better), timing belt every 60K, and the water pump / thermostat every 120K. Even though this has cost me a couple hundred more in parts, I can tell you that this vehicle shifts as smoothly as the day I got it and the engine still lets me know that it was designed like an underpowered Mercedes. Actually, the car is a little underpowered, but the higher gas mileage and easy to maintain engine more than make up for it over the course of ownership.

Great story. Like you, my 1994 Camry LE Coupe has given me little trouble over the 172,000 miles of service. Lately, it has developed what I call "idle surge". When started from cold conditions, the idle speed surges up and down until the engine warms up - usually a few minutes. After warm up, surging stops and it idles fine. Ever experience this? If so, what did you do? Thanks for your help.

I actually sold the 1994 Toyota Camry LE for $2500 about six months ago. The two door coupe still ran like a top after 239,000 miles. Unfortunately though, I've been buying so many other cars at my sales that I rarely had the time to drive it.

Folks, I have to tell you that the mid-90's Toyota Camry represented the absolute pinnacle of long-term quality and durability for this brand. The 1997 re-design resulted in a lot of decontenting that made Toyota cars more price competitive in the marketplace. For the Camry, it worked. The Camry became the best selling car in America... but there are a lot of mechanical and interior cosmetic problems associated with the 1997 - 2001 generation that simply weren't there with this generation.

Funny enough, I actually purchased a 4-door 1994 Toyota Camry from a Carmax sale for $2190 a couple of weeks ago. The car has 190,000+ miles, but still runs like a top with absolutely no rattles or noise issues. Like ny car, I think this has to do with the one owner only using top quality parts on her Camry. In fact, my neighbor's 1994 camry lasted 319,000 miles before the tranny gave out on that one.

If you're looking for a reliable vehicle that is VERY easy to maintain yourself, a 4-cylinder Camry can be a great choice. But that's only if the prior owner took excellent care of it. Don't be fooled by all the marones who say that the name on the car dictates the reliability. That's simply not true. It's the owner's maintenance habits, driving style, and the quality of the parts used that dictate how well the car will last.

The surging problem may be attributable to the IAC valve (idle air control valve). I've seen this problem in several other vehicles and that will usually fix it in the end.

I don't know if it's the same thing you guys are talking about, but my car idles at 2500 RPM (or thereabouts) at startup, but settles down to 1500 RPM within a minute (I let my cars idle for a minute at startup anyway). It is a bit of a pain to have it idle so high, people may think I am racing a cold engine.