Driving on rural highway the car heats up the coolant from the reservoir overflows. In the engine compartment affecting steering and your ability to drive because of the vapor fron the burning coolant. Repair man says head gasket is gone....this is the third time now to replace the head gasket.because the head bolts and threads all stripped due to bad engineering or improper torque by Toyota engineering department....I been rwading about this problem and found out that this is a very common probkem with these cars from 2003-2006... I feel that if it was something simple to fix then Toyota would address the problem but since its seens like a new engine is the only fix for this problem so they are hush hush...because it would be a costly recall for Toyota.

- Detroit, MI, USA

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Camry. While making a left turn at an unknown speed, the engine revved and the vehicle independently lunged forward. The contact depressed the brake pedal to avoid a collision. The dealer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 25,000.

- Owasso, OK, USA

The "check engine" light came on while driving on the freeway. About 2 minutes later, a rattling sound could be heard under the hood. While changing lanes to exit the highway, the car would not accelerate and a loud pounding sound could be heard when trying to accelerate. Just after turning onto the side street from exiting the highway, the car died. All of this occurred within a 5 minute period. Upon opening the hood, there was smoke coming from the engine area of the vehicle and the reservoir for the radiator fluid was bone dry. The radiator had been flushed and refilled only 2 months earlier. The car was towed to my local mechanic. Upon their inspection, I was told the head gasket was blown. There had been no warning lights or indication that the vehicle was running hot previous to the "check engine" light coming on minutes before the head gasket blew. In August, 2012, a rushing fluid sound could be heard in the dash area. I had the car inspected and the water pump, thermostat, all hoses and a radiator flush were done to the vehicle. In February 2013, the power steering pump had to be replaced. The rushing fluid sound could still be heard often. If the radiator fluid reservoir was topped off, generally the sound would stop. The fluid sound began again in January 2015. That was the main reason for getting the radiator flushed. A new radiator cap was also installed at that time. I never heard the rushing fluid sound after that flush. The car is a total loss. I am forced to replace the vehicle. The cost of a used motor and all labor is almost $5,000. That's approximately what the car is worth. I understand that there have been hundreds of almost identical complaints listed on the internet. I believe that this is a defect in the vehicle and Toyota should be responsible to correct it.

- Peoria, AZ, USA

Car had been driven to get gas 1/2 mile down road. When returned from gas station we pulled onto property, turned off car and there were flames coming from the hood. Fire dept arrived and put out the fire. Total loss for car.

- Hixson, TN, USA

My wife had taken her 2003 Toyota Camry in for regular service in January, 2012 and told the dealer that she had been hearing unusual noises from the engine for some time. After inspecting the vehicle the service person said that Toyota had issued a bulletin to the dealers regarding replacement of the intake manifold dated April 15, 2008. It is curious that the bulletin stated that "this repair is covered under the Toyota federal emission warranty. This is in effect for 36 months or 36,000 mile, whichever occurs first-". the bulletin is dated April 15, 2008 and is to cover vehicles of the 2002-2004 model year Camry. This makes no sense as supposedly covering vehicles built 2002-2004 and issue a bulletin in 2008 and then say there is a 36 month warranty from the date the vehicle was put in service. We were never advised of this bulletin until 2012 and repairs were done at the cost of $ $765.52 on March 27, 2012. We sent a letter of complaint to Toyota in torrance, California on February 28, 2014 with no response.

- Stephens City, VA, USA

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Camry le. The contact was traveling 45 mph, the check engine light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The technician determined that the bolt connected to the intake valves to the engine had become loose and allowed coolant to run on to the exhaust. As a result, exhaust fumes emitted into the vehicle. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 180,000.

- Shaenandoah, VA, USA

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that while driving approximately 40 mph, the engine seized while the check engine light illuminated. The vehicle was able to be restarted. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that there was a leak in the radiator and the engine needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 88,259.

- Honolulu, HI, USA

I own a 2003 Toyota Camry and noticed that it was overheating!!! went to replace the gasket and the head bolts were stripped and had to have to have a head bolt repair kit put in along with the gasket kit which with labor cost me over 4,000 dollars in repairs! the first problem was the aluminum block that over heated because of the coolant leak which in that overheated the block/bolts and caused them to strip the thread from the block bolt, in that had to get a repair kit drill the hole out insert a steal coil to hold the steal bolt in the aluminum block!!! point being I had to pay for this factory error of an aluminum head that either should have had steal inserts or a steal block to begin with for about 4,000 which is close to what the car would cost if I bought it at this time with the miles currently on it!!! a waste of my money when this could easily have been prevented from Toyota in the first place!!!! I honestly can say that this is my 3rd Camry I have owned and I have always swore by the Toyota Camry but after my research and my money and my headache I am really disappointed in how there not stepping up to the plate on this one and us as Toyota owners love and value the Toyota name come across this problem and nothing is being done about it its very upsetting I've drove the Camry since 2004 and been so proud of the name and passed along the good quality of the Camry name on and on then I come across this issue and there are so many people who have the same exact problems and Toyota won't step up to the plate on it really tarnishes the name for me!!!!

- Noblesville, IN, USA

While driving the car, the engine and electrical components suddenly shut off. The first few times this happened, I was able to simply re-start the car with everything working again. I then brought the car to 3 different mechanics who could not find anything wrong with the battery or alternator (or anything else). The problem was erratic so it never occurred with the mechanics. Now the problem occurs occasionally when I turn the headlights or brights of the car on. The last time it happened (10/11/14) was while I was driving about 60 mph. The engine shut out, the dash lights went off (as well as all the other electrical things: Gps, ac, radio, etc). Even the flashers would not turn on. Then, in a matter of moments, everything turned on again. The car's engine did not even need to be restarted. I was able to keep driving without incident for 20+ miles. This incident has happened a total of about 3-4 times in the past, however, it was not triggered in the past by turning the lights on. There was no apparent trigger at all. The problem is erratic and does not happen all the time.

- Milledgeville, GA, USA

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that oil leaked from the engine of the vehicle. The dealer stated that the leak was due to a faulty head gasket. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not notified. The VIN was not available. The failure mileage was 115,000.

- Charlotte , NC, USA

My family and I were out of state on a trip for a funeral in February. It was very cold where we were, so I started our Camry to warm up the car. However, instead of warming up, it actually started to overheat due to low coolant. Suspecting a cracked hose or a radiator issue, I searched for the leak, but could not find one. We kept the car filled with fluid, watched the temp gauge like a hawk, and limped the car home to our mechanic. Thankfully, it didn't even come close to overheating again the entire trip home. When I took it into the shop, they said that it was leaking from the head gasket. Upon further inspection, the mechanic found that three bolts near the heat shield were not only loose, but actually stripped. This sounded odd to me. I have an 89 Toyota pickup that I bought brand new, and it is still running like a champ 25 years and 250,000+ miles later. I expected the same kind of service life from our well maintained Camry with less than 150,000. Stripped head bolts just sounded off to me for a Toyota, so I did an online search. Imagine my surprise when I found web page and forum after web page and forum dedicated to this issue alone. One site - carcomplaints.com - has 36 complaints filed already for just the 2002 and 2003 model years, and this problem extend to engines up to the 2007 model year. Another web site - camryforums.com - has 6 pages of forums dedicated to this issue. Six pages. All of them with the same exact issue - coolant leaks from the stripped head bolts next to the insulation. And there are more sites and more forums than just those. Considering that only a small percentage of people are going to file these kinds of complaints or post on an online forum, this is a huge problem with these cars. They should be recalled and repaired.

- Crockett, VA, USA

As we were driving on the highway the check engine light, lit up and the car started making odd noises when the acceleration pedal was pressed, we quickly pulled over to the shoulder of the highway. When we opened the front the engine and coolant were smoking. There was no indication before this that anything was wrong, apparently the oil had been leaking and the engine had overheated, even though the car gave no indication of this.

- Willingboro, NJ, USA

My car was leaking oil and when I had it diagnosed, there was no more thread on the screws to hold the motor on correctly, after a month of the rethreading, my head gasket/motor both stopped working.

- San Jose, CA, USA

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that there was oil leaking from under the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, who indicated that the head gasket needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 188,000. The VIN was not available.

- Louisville, KY, USA

I pulled into a parking space, stopped, and was in the process of pulling up the emergency brake, when the vehicle suddenly accelerated. The car bolted going over the parking curb and continuing on into a building, all with no momentum as the car was stopped. One witness said it was a very loud revving sound. Two others said it sounded like a truck. The person who was behind me said my brake lights were on.

- Modesto, CA, USA

According to Toyota's technical service bulletin T-sb-0034-08 (April 15, 2008), the intake manifold in 2002 ? 2004 Camry equipped with 2az engine may produce a loud rattle noise from the engine area, most noticeable at idle or on light acceleration. The intake manifold has been updated / modified to solve this issues on the newer vehicles. A faulty intake manifold will affect engine performance and affect emissions. Toyota usa should recall all the affected vehicles with this faulty intake manifold, but they only cover the repair to the vehicles which are under warranty. This faulty intake manifold needs to be replaced. Please investigate this serious issue.

- Arcadia, CA, USA

This is to report a failure on engine model #2az-fe (effects 2002-2007 Camry, highlanders and rav4) due to stripped cylinder head bolts on the back side of the engine. There is at least one technical service bulletin issued by Toyota tsb2740 that relates to this recognized problem of steel cylinder head bolts stripping out of the aluminum engine, especially on the firewall or backside of the engine possibly due to a foam insulation piece to protect a plastic manifold part from heat. It is suggested that the foam piece allows a heat build up on the engine side. The costs to repair this problem was $2,131. And includes machining the warped head, new head gasket and bolts and a long thread insert set. I am very disappointed to learn that Toyota knew years ago of this design problem and issued a tsb; but did not recall for a solution before this led to metal failure and engine overheating. Many of these engines will fail after the warranty period of 60K has expired. If you have any suggestions as to remedies with Toyota Corp for this failure, I would appreciate knowing about it. I am glad to report this as I see that many, many engine failures have been caused by this basically unaddressed design problem. Thank you.

- Anacortes, WA, USA

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that the cylinder heads were fractured. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the failure was confirmed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage and VIN were unavailable.

- Fountain , CO, USA

I am the original owner. At 65,000 miles I noticed white smoke from the exhaust pipe on morning startup. Research led me to the engine head not being secured because of the stripped bolt problem. I started using a dip stick to measure the amount of coolant in my overflow bottle before morning startup. I physically mark the dip stick. The coolant loss is minimal so far. I now have 85,000 miles on the car. The question is: Do I dare take the car on the highway? apparently there is not enough money to be made for a law office to start a class action suit.

- Warren, NJ, USA

After ten years, my 2003 Camry engine light came on, my husband was on route 20 with the oil shot out, started smoking he had to make an emergency stop, the 511 emergency saw the smoke from far away which made them follow the smoke. My husband could have been killed. All of the oil and antifreeze emptied out in a matter of minutes. Two tows at $189 a piece and a diagnostic from the auto repair at $112.

- Acworth, GA, USA