1998 Toyota Camry CE from North America - Comments

Suspension.

Steering.

Window rattles.

Interior materials coming apart.

Heater problems and so on.

Toyota has no interest in repairing anything. Dealer says Toyota does not pay them enough for service!

Overrated and overpriced car. Poor engineering, poor build quality, cheap and poor quality materials.

Poor suspension and steering design. Very weak engine (4 cylinder).

I totally disagree with your complaints about the Toyota Camry Car. I have had Camry's, Tacoma's, etc... and have had no (ZERO) problems since I have owned a Toyota, period.

I am certainly curious as to what you are comparing the Camry to, in a newsgroup you would be suspected of being a troll since your conclusions run completely against the grain of everyone else's experience.

Every car is made by machines and human beings. Machines carry warranties against human defect. It sounds like this Camry is just a LEMON!! It happens to all Manufacturers and Toyota is not exempted.

I come from Australia where the Camry was made and it was made for the Aussie heat and terrain conditions. I admit after driving one that the 4 cylinder is a bit gutless, but they are still OK in the manual. If you want something with a lot of power you should get the V6 model, they are so efficient, nearly better than the 4 cylinder and they have heaps of guts and fly. Other than that, the 4 cylinder is still a great smooth car.

I have a rental Camry, and I must agree with many of things you've said.

While it has not gone in for any repairs (it's a 2001 rental...), it rattles far more than my 4 year old Sable with 100,000+ abusive miles.

Anybody who bought one of these things certainly did not shop around enough.

Have had problems with a 98 Camry as well. On the 3rd set of tires and only have 45,000 miles. Replaced the 1st set at 30,000 and the 2nd at 45,000.

The car has pulled to the left since we got it new. Dealer worked on it for over a month before telling us it was "engineered that way". Now we have been told the struts are bad...

Will never by another Toyota EVER!!

I must disagree with your opinion of the Toyota Camry. I have a 1998 Camry- the same year as yours, with more than 75k miles on it, and it has never left me stranded. No repair bills, other that routine maintenance. The car is not at fault for the poor tire life. If your Camry came with the same General brand tires that mine came with, it is definitely the tires that are at fault. I also replaced the original tires at 30,000 miles, and haven't since. consider buying more expensive tires with a higher tredlife.

My car is as reliable and well put together as the day I bought it. After 75k miles, I have only one complaint about the car- the change holder latch doesn't work well, but that might have been caused by an aftermarket alarm installation. (The fuses are hidden behind the change holder, and the holder must be removed in order to access them.) Not bad for a car with 75k miles on it.

The problem of the poor performance can be solved by simply choosing the V6 engine. Although it adds considerably to the bottom line, it is well worth it.

I comment from Australia, where we have been locally manufacturing Toyotas since 1964. My father & I have owned Toyota Camrys also.

The one fault that I found tremendously annoying was the dashboard skin separating around the windshield defogger vents. This is a MAJOR problem, not only confined to Camrys built in Australia between 03/1993-06/95, but I have also seen this problem on Lexus ES 300's imported from Japan between 1992-1996.

What adds insult to injury is the fact that Toyota Australia will not acknowledge that there is a problem,& therefore I have seen THOUSANDS of these models with this problem.

The other problem is the door cloth inserts peeling from the trims, & in some cases, headlinings have dropped.

These problems aside, the car is a paragon of reliability. If Toyota went about honouring legitimate warranty claims without the stonewall & denying liability caper, it would be an outstanding experience.

Leased a 1998 Camry and had front end trouble with it right from the start, dealer reluctantly installed two new front tires.

Then the engine failed at 30,000 miles after being maintained by a professional mechanic. Dealer refused to repair the engine under Toyota warranty policy and we were forced to let them repossess the car. It was the fourth Toyota in the family and the last. Have heard many similar complaints since mine.

Date 07/15/2002.

I have owned a 1989 toyota camry le v6 and I must say that is the best car I have ever owned. it did not break down on me once. I now own a 1998 toyota camry xle v6 and it is the smoothest nicest car I have ever ridden in. and NO problems what so ever. my husband and I own a 1996 pontiac grand am bought that with 20000 miles on it and have had many problems not to mention an 800.00 repair because the water pump went out at 37000 miles on the grand am. out camry has 100000 miles on it and we absolutely love that car. everything still works too. I will never own another car besides toyota again.

How can someone disagree with someone's complaint? A complaint is reflecting someone's personal experience and not to be agreed or disagreed with. You may have a different experience and you can express it as such - your personal experience. Toyota owners (or maybe it is Toyota dealers) seem particularly sensitive to any complaints about their vehicles. Just go to thecomplaintstation. com for Toyota and see how they try to totally disrupt that site.

Good luck with your Camry. Every make and model can have problems, every make is going to have a few lemons.