CarComplaints.com Notes: Beware of the NHTSA complaint data for the 2004 Camry. It is almost certainly misleading.
The problem with NHTSA data for the 2004 Camry is that for months on end, the news media repeatedly told the public that several Toyota models had an unintended acceleration defect, & to go to safercar.gov (the NHTSA's website) to file a complaint.
So, the NHTSA received a disproportionate number of complaints about unintended acceleration issues because of the national news media attention, to the point where their data is unreliable taken in context with any other vehicle that did not receive national news attention.
CarComplaints.com typically receives more complaints per day about vehicles than the NHTSA does, but the news media did not repeatedly say "go to CarComplaints.com to report your Camry acceleration problems" like they did about the NHTSA -- so although we have less complaint data than the NHTSA for the 2004 Camry, our data for the Camry is a far more statistically accurate representation of the Camry's reliability than what the NHTSA data shows.
On Oct 18, 2012, my car started to overheat. We had it towed to our mechanic. On Friday, Oct 19, 2012 our mechanic stated he could not fix it and looks like it is an engine coolant leak. He further stated we needed to take it to the dealership that we bought it from to confirm the engine was none repairable.
On Monday, Oct 22, 2012, the service department called us and confirmed the bad news. Our 2004 Camry 2.4L engine is leaking coolant inside the engine and the engine bolts are stripped. They gave us some options. The dealer could try to repair the bolts by retreading them (no guarantee it world work). Replace the engine (rebuilt and not guarantee it wouldn’t happen again). And finally, trade in the car (not enough to pay off my loan).
After further research, this issue has been happening to Toyota Camrys since 2002. One post stated it was fixed with the 2004 models, but in 2004 the same engine is in the Highlander as the Camry. The Highlander also has several posts to the same issue. When will Toyota take reasonability for this problem and fix it without coming after the consumer! I have contacted Toyota at 800-331-4331 and filed a complaint and was told the same thing the dealer told me, not their fault. I am really hoping the government takes these complaints and forces Toyota to recall these cars and fixes the issue.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
On Oct 18, 2012, my car started to overheat. We had it towed to our mechanic. On Friday, Oct 19, 2012 our mechanic stated he could not fix it and looks like it is an engine coolant leak. He further stated we needed to take it to the dealership that we bought it from to confirm the engine was none repairable.
On Monday, Oct 22, 2012, the service department called us and confirmed the bad news. Our 2004 Camry 2.4L engine is leaking coolant inside the engine and the engine bolts are stripped. They gave us some options. The dealer could try to repair the bolts by retreading them (no guarantee it world work). Replace the engine (rebuilt and not guarantee it wouldn’t happen again). And finally, trade in the car (not enough to pay off my loan).
After further research, this issue has been happening to Toyota Camrys since 2002. One post stated it was fixed with the 2004 models, but in 2004 the same engine is in the Highlander as the Camry. The Highlander also has several posts to the same issue. When will Toyota take reasonability for this problem and fix it without coming after the consumer! I have contacted Toyota at 800-331-4331 and filed a complaint and was told the same thing the dealer told me, not their fault. I am really hoping the government takes these complaints and forces Toyota to recall these cars and fixes the issue.
- Mary A., Tampa, FL, US