27th Aug 2008, 10:43

A look at the outrageous expenses of repairing the Prius will take the edge off that hybrid mania everyone seems to be having. The technology and repair expenses of the Camry hybrid are just as expensive as Prius.

If you are extremely wealthy and don't mind paying the cost of the car several times over in repairs to drive it 100,000 miles, buy a Camry or Prius. Otherwise you are much better off with a gas-engined domestic with a 100,000 mile warranty.

Saving a few dollars a year on gas doesn't offset the huge repair cost of the hybrids, not to mention the $3000 batteries that require very frequent replacement.

28th Aug 2008, 11:56

I know of 8 people who have hybrids, including some as old as 02, and not one person has had these very expensive repairs.

Perhaps you can tell us some names of people or vin # of these faulty Prius's.

I bet next you are going to tell us the Chevy Aveo is a good car with great mileage.

I can't help but wonder how many Hyundai's you have owned, seeing as they have the best warranty and have for the last 10 years.

Face it, the 100k warranty is nothing more than a sales tactic, to try and bring back some people who they have burned over the years. What I am waiting to see is how they try to weasel out of their warranty, just like they did when it was only 36k. Just ask someone that has own a 90's Blazer how much GM stands by their vehicles.

28th Aug 2008, 12:18

I spoke with a tow truck driver recently and asked him what vehicles he has to pick up the most. He said Toyota Prius because of failure of their complicated electrical systems. That comment is especially significant because there are not even a large number of Prius on the road compared to other vehicles, yet they still require the most tows. I doubt the Camry Hybrid would be much different.

29th Aug 2008, 08:24

"Just ask someone that has own a 90's Blazer how much GM stands by their vehicles..."

I had a '92 Blazer I sold with 280,000 miles that never had any problems except for an alternator and oxygen sensor. I never had to associate with GM after the purchase - both minor problems I had occurred after 100,000 miles and I fixed them myself.

29th Aug 2008, 12:10

If you go to Google and type in "Prius transaxle repairs" you'll find that the problem is a major issue costing several thousand dollars.

As for repairs on GM vehicles, I've never had any so I really don't know. The most my family has ever put on a GM was a measly 270,000 miles.

28th Sep 2008, 11:22

These stories about hybrid reliability problems are grossly overblown and exaggerated. I just finished putting almost 75k miles on a Prius, and had no problems. Just sold it to my son, and got a Camry hybrid. No car is flawless, they're all man-made machines. In the Toyota HSD cars (the hybrids), you get some added machinery, but you get some simplicity back too. Tranmissions? They can and do fail in ANY car, and are ALWAYS expensive if they do. The HSD cars have only a couple dozen loaded moving parts, compared to hundreds in conventional automatics. An no one ever gives the HSD cars credit for not needing and not having a starter motor, an alternator, any belts to drive the AC or power steering, and so forth.

Some guy has a trans failure in a Chevy, and he gripes about the trans design (rightfully perhaps). Something breaks on a hybrid, and it's somehow because the car is a hybrid...

Bottom line: they've been on the roads world-wide for more than ten years, and in the US for over eight years. NONE of the dire disasters predicted by the nay-sayers have proven true. None of them.

29th Nov 2008, 12:40

Re: 11:02.

What do you mean when you say " A couple of dozen loaded parts in a Toyota hybrid transmission?

30th Nov 2008, 15:21

I always laugh when I hear the comments such as "I bought this car because of Toyota quality" or "My Corolla gets 37 mpg city". Every model is different and things change every year. If your uncle had a Toyota Corolla that was reliable in 1976, that has nothing to do with the future reliability of a new Camry.

Don't fall for the hype. We owned two Sentra's, a Corolla and a Subaru that other people claimed no problems and 30-50 MPG. The truth is they were no better than their competitors and they averaged 17-21 in city and 27-34 on the highway.

3rd Jan 2009, 00:13

We test drove a Toyota before buying our GM vehicle. I can truthfully say "We bought this car because of Toyota's quality".

3rd Jan 2009, 15:10

Are we forgetting V8 models somewhere along the way?... engines barely running with any load with accessories, A/C on, overdrive transmissions getting very respectable mileage. I am not a big fan of overworked, overrevving motors turning accessories. Historically my V8 engines in my domestics have had few issues ever. Drive a 100,000 mile front wheel drive into the shop and see a mechanic frown that they have to work on them, but smile when they forsee the bill coming. I'd rather have 25 mpg average with no issues, than 35-40 with a small uncomfortable rattletrap beating along on a long trip.

15th Jan 2009, 23:45

The Prius and Camry batteries come with an 8 year 100,000 mile warranty. The Camry has been the best selling car in the US for 10 out of the past 11 years.

26th Jan 2009, 18:04

We have owned 4 Toyotas since 2000. Purchased all new. Sequoia, 4-Runner, Corolla, and a Camry hybrid. The first 2 we drove over 115,000 miles. The Corolla has 66K and the Hybrid 50,000. No problems whatsoever.

That said, the transmission just blew out on the Camry. Was a very bad noise. I do not blame Toyota. The drive train remains under warranty until 60,000 miles.

This is what the warranty is for. Things happen. The dealership, not where I purchased it, but several hundred miles away on a trip, was very nice. By the way, Toyota provided a rental car...

I will continue to purchase Toyota cars in the future. Do yourself a favor, get one too.

17th Mar 2009, 18:22

I love my Toyota and am planning on keeping it for a long time to come.

2nd Feb 2011, 20:10

Talk, talk, talk, with nothing to back the comments with. 63 years old and my first import. Tired of the crap cars that are made in America. My 08 Camry hybrid is the most comfortable and well made car yet.

23rd Mar 2014, 19:16

I agree with 20:10... The Camry is a fine car. I have a '98, arguably Toyota's best year. All cars can have issues, some more than others. Why are domestic owners reading Camry reviews and making comments anyway? Thanks for the public service announcement.

By the way, what is it that makes domestic cars so "American" when over the last 10 years or more, most "domestics" were built in Canada and Mexico? The majority of Camry's, Accord's and Subaru's are built in America! Ohio, Indiana, South Carolina etc. Domestic owners are similar to people that wave the flag for the wrong reasons, complaining about outsourcing, yet they support the Mexican and Canadian economy just so they can have their so called "American" cars.

Only recently has Ford started making the European Focus available here, which is a much better car than the domestic only Ford models previously available state side.

FYI, most if not all dealerships will try not to fix things under warranty if they don't have to. It costs them money, and as much as we want to love car companies, they are a business, which by definition, exist only to turn a profit. That is all.