Ask the Car People.SM


Toyota Camry Basic Maintenance Questions

678 messages,  Last post on Sep 02, 2012 at 6:55 AM

You are in the Toyota Camry Forum.

What is this discussion about? Toyota Camry, Toyota Camry Solara, Oil, Sedan

Messages Page 49 of 69

#475 of 678 Re: 2003 Camry 60K maintenance [Mr_Shiftright] by dmcdonnell

Oct 23, 2008 (9:56 pm)

Replying to: Mr_Shiftright (Oct 22, 2008 6:37 pm)
Mr shiftright, what can i say? I admit it. I'm cheap. ok $25 or an oil change is a little cheap if you like to get an oil with a familar name. Let's say $35 then. For me, it's $10 including an oil filter to put 5 qts of Castrol XLR in it myself.
 
However, the point I'm making is that dealer service centers are in the business to make money. If a person does not educate themselves on required basic vehicle maintenance, they will be raped at a dealership. That is almost guaranteed. I am not familiar with any camry maintenance schedule spelled out in the user manual that recommends full flushes of transmissions, steering or brake systems. The only one I have ever seen is a cooling system flush. And now with toyota long life coolant, I'm not even sure if a flush is even recommended before 100K or even more. Waterpumps arnd their seals are more reliable these days. Replacement is recommeneded at every other timing belt change and no more. It's a waste of money to get these things changed more frequently. Oil and trans drain and fills at the scheduled intervals are probably the best bang for the buck maintenance you can do increase your car's longetivity. Things to change for reliability and performance are plugs and wires at 100K+, batteries every 3-5 years depending on quality, air filter every 50K or whatever the schedule states
 
dmcd
.

#476 of 678 Re: 2003 Camry 60K maintenance [dmcdonnell] by Mr_Shiftright HOST

Oct 24, 2008 (9:02 am)

Replying to: dmcdonnell (Oct 23, 2008 9:56 pm)
LOL! No, I didn't say YOU were cheap....I just meant that the prices you estimated seemed too cheap for my area of the country at any rate.
 
But you are right, it is the owner's job to look at what the dealer is trying to sell them versus what the factory actually recommends.

#477 of 678 What is it, revisited by metalibrarian

Oct 24, 2008 (7:34 pm)

Now that this discussion is live again, anybody want to try an answer to my question in #466? On the 2004 Camry, 4 cylinder, there is a white translucent box or tank under the battery tray, on the driver's side.. What is it? Looks like a coolant recovery tank but isn't. That tank is over on the passenger side in plain sight.
 
I'm curiouser and curiouser...

#478 of 678 I think my toyota dealership is taking me for a ride... by daises2daises

Jan 04, 2009 (6:28 pm)

Went in to get my 2000 Camry's oil changed and the dealership (which has never tried to get me to pay for extras before) said that there are two things on my Camry that are urgent. They said that I need to get the fuel injectors cleaned (quoted about $120) and my steering fluid flushed (about $120 also-discount because we bought our car there). My car is running great, I just went over 70K miles and was doing a routine oil change. We bought our car nov of 2007 and have had no problems....I think my dealership is trying to take me for a ride, what do you think?
 
Thank you!!

#479 of 678 Re: I think my toyota dealership is taking me for a ride... [daises2daises] by 210delray

Jan 04, 2009 (7:05 pm)

Replying to: daises2daises (Jan 04, 2009 6:28 pm)
Both are ripoffs and completely unnecessary, especially considering your car is running great.

#480 of 678 Re: I think my toyota dealership is taking me for a ride... [daises2daises] by alex24

Jan 04, 2009 (9:27 pm)

Replying to: daises2daises (Jan 04, 2009 6:28 pm)
Yes a total RIP OFF, When is our Government going to start Protecting us from things like this, When they waste Millions Protecting Irags, I do part time Mechanic work and I have a 93 Camry 4 cyl, with 192000 miles on it, I never had to do a fuel injector flush or a steering fluid flush, and it stile runs great.

#481 of 678 Re: I think my toyota dealership is taking me for a ride... [alex24] by kingfans1

Jan 05, 2009 (10:49 pm)

Replying to: alex24 (Jan 04, 2009 9:27 pm)
Yea man. that is a total rip off. I have a 2006 Toyota Camry Le V6 bought on July 2006 brand new. I do alot of driving. As today 01/05/2009 my camry is 128,000 miles. I never had to do a fuel injector flush or a steering fluid flush. The only thing I did to my car was change brake pads, spark plugs, tune up, . other than that change oil regularly.
 
Toyota are very reliable car.

#482 of 678 Tire rotation necessary? by Novice07

Jan 16, 2009 (1:05 pm)

Hi, I am a new driver with not so much experience with cars and dealers. However, I am well aware that dealers are very good at convincing people to add unnecessary services at additional costs. I have Camry 2007 and have owned it for one-and-half-a-year. I have 10,000 miles. I recently made an appointment for an oil change, and I have several questions to educate myself before agreeing to have suggested services by the dealer.
 
(1) The dealer tells me that I should do tire rotation for every 5,000 miles for an additional charge of $13. They did not ask me for this when I went in for an oil change with 5,000 miles. I remain skeptical whether or not this is a necessary service to maintain my car in a good shape. Do I need it? I drive about 10 miles a day or so.
 
(2) This morning, I had a warning signal on for having tire pressure below the level. When I go in for an oil change, will they look into fixing this tire pressure issue?
 
(3) What exactly is tire rotation and how do I get rid of the warning signal for having low tire pressure?
 
(4) When I got my car in the summer '07, I obviously had a new set of tires. How long does a new set of tires usually last?
 
As you can tell from my questions, I am very new with car stuff. Please advise me. I feel like if I don't educate myself, I will end up paying lots of money for lots of unnecessary services suggested at the dealer. I realize that employees at the dealer are not the right group of people to ask for help in educating myself.
 
Thanks

#483 of 678 Re: Tire rotation necessary? [Novice07] by kiawah

Jan 16, 2009 (1:13 pm)

Replying to: Novice07 (Jan 16, 2009 1:05 pm)
It would be good to rotate tires at least every 10K miles, it just helps keep uneven wear from occurring. Tire mileage will vary depending upon driving style and tire compound, but you should probably get about 30-40K on that original set of tires. When they 'rotate' tires, they will take the front right, and switch it with the back right. and similar on the left side. $13 is very reasonable for a rotation. Front tires in front wheel drive vehicles wear faster than the rears. They do the steering, hold the most weight, and do the majority of the stopping.
 
The TPMS light means you have low air pressure in one of your tires. Check the tire(s) pressure and refill with air, and don't forget the tire in the trunk, it has a pressure sensor on it as well. Common when cold weather hits to loose pressure and cause the light to come on.

#484 of 678 Re: Tire rotation necessary? [kiawah] by mcdawgg

Jan 16, 2009 (2:26 pm)

Replying to: kiawah (Jan 16, 2009 1:13 pm)
People should know that for every 10 degree F drop in temperature, the tire pressure drops by 1 lb. For example, in my garage lately, it is around 45 degrees. If the temperature outside is supposed to be 15 degrees, I set my pressures at 35 lbs because that would really equal 32 lbs, which is 2 lbs over recommended, and that's what I always set my tires at - 2 lbs. over. Better two over than 2 under!
 
Kiawah is right, rotate at least every 10k or so.
 
It varies how long tires last, but in general, on original tires from the factory, anywhere from 30,000 to 45,000 miles.

Messages Page 49 of 69

To POST a message, please Sign In.

Advertisement

Browse by Category

Browse by Vehicle
   View All Vehicles

Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
View All Topics

Edmunds Community

Advertisement