1999 Toyota Camry LE from North America - Comments

I just bought a 99 Camry at 115k. I've read a couple of reports of bad suspensions or struts. There has been a clanking sound from the front passenger side 2 days after I bought the car, and now there is a grinding noise there too. I'm thinking that the brakes are worn out, but does anyone know if that's related to the suspension? should I do something about that at the same time? And also, I live in a mountainous area and my check engine light came on. The code is P0770 though, not P0446. That's the solenoid malfunction. A tranny mechanic said that I should open up the transmission, which is going to cost a lot. But the light comes and goes, and the tranny oil is brown, so I am thinking maybe oil just needs replacing (and get the gunk out). Also, he told me that with transmissions that hasnt had the fluid change in a long time, its worse for it to get a transmission flush. Anyone know if thats true? Is there another way to try to fix the code? I have only had the car for a month. I think I will buy a new car next time...

1999 Toyota Camary LE 4-cyclinder purchased new in Dec. of '99. Have had some unusual repairs for a car that was reputed to be maintenance free. At 48K the water pump went out and that required a new timing belt. Also, at 48.8K the front struts had to be repalaced - apparently a common problem on this model. Somewhere around 85K I started having a puff of smoke with start-up in the morning. Three mechanics have told me this points to valve stem seals; a major and expensive repair. This also seems to be a common problem with this car. At 102K another water pump and of course timing belt. Along the way there were other minor repairs, such as interior light electrical problems, and transmission repairs. I normally keep my cars until they have 125k to 150k, but today I started shopping for a new car. I hope I pass my state inspection next month without any additional expenditures. I'm disappointed that Toyota has not been willing to acknowledge these defects and do not help customers resolve them.

A few years back some import fans talked my good friend into buying a 1999 Camry. The car totally fell apart well before 80,000 miles. He purchased a used Chevy Malibu. It has been flawless.

Bought a 2000 Toyota Camry in 2003 with 100,000 miles on it.

At 150,000 miles transmission went out; cost $2000 to get it replaced.

Timing belt and water pump replacement at 175,000 miles at a cost of $500.

At 200,000 miles replaced timing belt again at a cost of $250.

Replaced EGR sensor and catalytic converter at 265,000 miles at a cost of $800, for it to pass smog.

I now have 269,000 miles on Camry with no problems. Car runs great. Change oil and filter at 3000 mile intervals. Expect to get another 150,000 miles out of this car.

I am purchasing a 1999 Camry tomorrow with 142,000 miles from a friend for my soon to be 16 year old son. My mechanic is recommending replacing the timing belt (never been replaced) and replacing the water pump. There has been an oil leak for some time, but he believes the changing of the timing belt will take care of that.

I hope that my luck is good!!!

22:15: After listing numerous repairs costing THOUSANDS of dollars, he states "I now have 269,000 miles on the Camry with no problems". Gee, tons of repairs and thousands of dollars out of pocket, NO PROBLEMS???

I love these "I had to replace 3 engines, 2 transmissions, the transaxle and most of the body in the first 50,000 miles, but otherwise my import is fantastically reliable" versus the "At 468,000 miles the cigarette lighter stopped working in my friend's Taurus, so it is TOTAL CRAP" comments.

I'll be buying a 1999 Camry LE tomorrow. After reading all these comments, I'm still convinced that Toyota cars are reliable, as long as you take care of them too. Good luck in my new journey with Toyota!

Bought one of those 99 Camry cars a couple of months ago (58K miles) and started getting weird rattling noise on the front end last week and could not live with it any more so I went to a mechanic to check it out and they said it is the struts and that cost 400$ to repair (Monroe parts + 2 hr labor). After picking her up this evening and driving home, I noticed the car still makes the same f***** noise. I'll go back tomorrow and see what they come up with but I'm afraid this is gonna be one long journey for a supposedly reliable trouble-free car!

To 21:23: I'd put some pressure on the shop that diagnosed the problem as the struts. File a complaint with your local Better Business Bureau if they refuse to do anything or compensate you for falsely diagnosing your problem.

I'm a mechanic, and I've never had a problem with struts on any of my cars. I drive only domestics and and have NEVER replaced the struts, even on some with over 200,000 miles.

I know Toyota quality has dropped like a lead balloon in recent years, but strut failure at only 58,000 miles sounds very fishy to me, even for an import.

I have a 99 camry CE. Are these OBD1 or OBD 2 compliant?

To save paying the diagnostic/reset fee again, I bought an OBD 2 code reader after my third check engine from loose gas cap,(won't ever reset itself even after tightening.) The code reader gets power but it does not communicate with the computer. "Error"

I checked the vehicle's emissions sticker under the hood per the code reader's manual and it does not say "OBD 2 Certified". So what kind of code reader works to read and reset the CEL?

Try disconnecting battery shortly before emissions test. Test to see how many miles of driving and how many starts it takes before CEL reappears.

I know someone who did and their car passed emissions in the window of time between reconnecting the battery and the computer finding the code and turning the CEL light back on. This suggests that car was not polluting, the computer signaling CEL was messed up.

My 1999 Camry LE has 222,000 miles and the check engine light has been on for over the past 100,000 miles or so without any ill effects. I also own a 1992 Toyota pickup (4 cyl) with automatic transmission and 358,000 miles.

Also my wife drives a 1997 Honda CRV with 124,000 miles. I do my own routine maintenance on them and have NEVER needed to take any of them to a dealer. Thank GOD for Japanese vehicles.

In the past I always bought American cars and was constantly rebuilding engines, transmissions, suspensions, etc. I'm 67 years old and it took me 55 years to learn domestic cars are nothing but junk.

Okay, I bought my 1999 Camry LE, 6 cylinder new in 1998. Other than an occasional loose gas cap, my CEL has been pretty docile until the 98K mark. It recently has come on and refuses to go off. Since I live in a state that doesn't bother with emissions, I don't know that I'm going to get too excited. I do have a question regarding replacement of the timing belt and truly when this should occur? I have done nothing but tires, filters, and oil for 11 years now but don't want to let it sink into oblivion at this point. I might even splurge and do brakes and plugs if everyone feels that there are enough years left to make it worth my while.

I have a 1999 Camry LE with 61000 miles on it. I had a problem at 7000 miles on it, took it to a dealer, reason was the check engine light was on. They replaced it with a new oxygen sensor and fuel sensor. Since this time no problems.

This car has been a good car. I carry a timing belt and a water pump in the trunk.

Now I have given it to my grandson in South Caroline. While visiting there in June of 2009, I checked the car again for any oil leaks. I believe in pre-flight an auto at least once a week on checking oil, oil leaks of any type. I tried to convince him it is a must quite often to lift up the hood for any possible problems. On all autos I have ever owned I do this and never had a problem with any car. A car is a machine, there is more to it then just driving it. I admit I only had new cars, I don't understand the problems of the 1999 Camry, but many people had the problem of check engine light coming on, this happens on all autos since 1995, this is when they begin to put sensors on cars; a mistake that the federal govt required the auto industry to do it.

"In the past I always bought American cars and was constantly rebuilding engines, transmissions, suspensions, etc. I'm 67 years old and it took me 55 years to learn domestic cars are nothing but junk."

That's funny, It only took me a year and a half with a 2006 Camry to find out that Domestics are way better.

"That's funny, It only took me a year and a half with a 2006 Camry to find out that Domestics are way better."

That's more in line with reality. I'm almost as old as the domestic-bashing commenter, and I'm an avid car enthusiast who has owned a LOT of cars over the years, including German and Japanese makes. I've NEVER rebuilt an engine, transmission, or suspension component on ANY of our domestics, including one Ford with over 300,000 miles on it and Dodges and GM's with way over 200,000 miles on them.

On the flip side, one of my Japanese cars literally had the frame sagging just from the weight of the car at 84,000 miles. I was told it couldn't be aligned without having the frame member straightened. The shop referred to the problem as the "Japanese Flimsies" and told me it was VERY common with Japanese vehicles. I traded that car for a Ford with 139,000 miles on it. It ran flawlessly until I traded it 4 years later. Another of my brand-name Japanese imports was sold to a junk dealer at 99,000 miles with parts of the engine's insides hanging out of a gaping hole in the block. I was told it would cost more to repair than the car was worth. I junked it and bought another Ford. That one was sold to a friend for his son at 160,000+ miles. It had never had a repair beyond routine maintenance.

It only took three imports to send me running back to domestics as fast as I could, and I haven't looked back since.