1999 Toyota Camry CSi wagon 3.0 litre V6
Summary:
Crossed Australia ten times and never let me down! Fantastic!
Faults:
Almost nothing has gone wrong.
Recently had the brake rotors machined.
When I first bought it, the 'check engine' light came on. Took it to Toyota and they fixed whatever the problem was for $200. Except for the light, I couldn't tell that anything was wrong - it still drove and sounded fine.
General Comments:
I can't express just how positive I feel about this car. I took this year off work and did several camping trips around Australia in this car. From Melbourne, it's crossed the country in several directions ten times and never let me down. This is incredibly important in a big country like Australia, where much of the country is very sparsely populated. If your car breaks down, you could be waiting a considerable amount of time for help, and that help could be very expensive. I never felt I had to worry with the Camry, because, despite its age and kilometres, it always starts, it always sounds and drives smoothly and quietly, and never does anything that would be a cause for concern.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 4th December, 2009
10th Aug 2015, 11:16
OP again. The car recently clicked over 460,000 km, and despite a creaking suspension, it's still going strong; always starts and never breaks down. Engine is still quiet, smooth and gutsy. The indicators screwed up about a year ago and cost $200 to fix, but that's all.
However, I finally decided to bite the bullet and get something newer. I'm picking up a four year old RAV4 tomorrow. I thought I wouldn't bother buying another car until something went wrong with the Camry, but I got sick of waiting! It just seems like it will never die! I was going to buy a Nissan X-trail (I wanted something with mild off-road ability and decent ground clearance), but I guess you could say I chickened out - I've had such a good run with my Camry, I just felt another Toyota would be a safe bet.
I may end up keeping the Camry as well, because it certainly wouldn't be worth any decent money now anyway - particularly since I spray-painted it Mission Brown!
10th Aug 2015, 21:27
I have had RAV4s for over 8 years (4 Rav4s - 2 years lease) now and they have all been lease vehicles thru my company. They are actually a Camry engine (2.4L) and you'll be surprised how good they are, and they do nearly everything that a Hilux can do. I have taken it to many tracks for my projects, and I was totally amazed. The Nissan X-Trail or Honda CRV look like SUVs, but if you read forums or try one yourself when it comes to offroading - you'll be disappointed. The RAV4 does get cabin noises, but everything else is awesome. I prefer the 2006-2012 shape more than newer shape when it comes to handling, but overall you won't be disappointed.
7th Jun 2012, 22:08
As of June 2012, my car has now done 338,000 km and still going strong. No breakdowns, always starts, no major component failures, and the original transmission is still working fine and shifts smoothly.
I've had a couple of steering rack-boots replaced, had the timing belt changed (it didn't break, it was due to be changed) and those machined brake rotors I mentioned in the original review had to be replaced about a year later.
At the start of this year, my mechanic noticed that the power steering pump had finally started to develop a leak, but there have been no other leaks anywhere from the vehicle.
I keep thinking about buying another car, just for a change, but it simply doesn't make sense when this one is still running so well, and never causes me any grief.