# How long can I drive with bad camshafts? **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** venza, toyota\ **Created:** [December 9, 2019, 10:05am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/how-long-can-i-drive-with-bad-camshafts/154308 "2019-12-09T10:05:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![SarahKelly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/858c86/32.png) [@SarahKelly](https://community.cartalk.com/u/SarahKelly)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 10:05am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/how-long-can-i-drive-with-bad-camshafts/154308/1 "2019-12-09T10:05:49Z")
How long can I drive my car with bad camshafts ---
**Author:** ![gdawgs](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/258eb7/32.png) [@gdawgs](https://community.cartalk.com/u/gdawgs)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 1:03pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/how-long-can-i-drive-with-bad-camshafts/154308/2 "2019-12-09T13:03:02Z")
I think you should include details of your vehicle. For my bmw 2001 525i, mechanic stated that it would be 2k+ to repair. I drove for 2 more years and gave car to friend. Still works fine today without repair. My car was low value and thus low risk. ---
**Author:** ![circuitsmith](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/circuitsmith/32/40376_2.png) [@circuitsmith](https://community.cartalk.com/u/circuitsmith)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 2:13pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/how-long-can-i-drive-with-bad-camshafts/154308/3 "2019-12-09T14:13:10Z")
In what way are they bad? Lobes or bearings? How badly does it run? If the check engine light is blinking you’ll ruin the catalytic converter. ---
**Author:** ![TwinTurbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8baadc/32.png) [@TwinTurbo](https://community.cartalk.com/u/TwinTurbo)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 3:01pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/how-long-can-i-drive-with-bad-camshafts/154308/4 "2019-12-09T15:01:52Z")
> [@SarahKelly](#): > > How long can I drive my car with bad camshafts All the way to the place they fail. ---
**Author:** ![ok4450](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9bcb4/32.png) [@ok4450](https://community.cartalk.com/u/ok4450)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2019, 6:59pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/how-long-can-i-drive-with-bad-camshafts/154308/5 "2019-12-09T18:59:06Z")
Car and miles would help along with knowing exactly what you were told about the camshafts. Noisy or what? If the cams are legitimately wiped out then I would have concerns about the rest of the engine. Cam damage is generally caused by insufficient oil changes or running the engine low/out of motor oil. ---
**Author:** ![George\_San\_Jose1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e5b9ba/32.png) [@George\_San\_Jose1](https://community.cartalk.com/u/George_San_Jose1)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 4:26am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/how-long-can-i-drive-with-bad-camshafts/154308/6 "2019-12-10T04:26:56Z")
It depends what’s wrong w/them. If the cam-lobes are wearing out, all that means is that the valves won’t open as much as they should. The engine will still run, perhaps for many years longer, but you’ll gradually notice a loss in power. When accelerating up a freeway on ramp will take longer to get to 60 mph. If the camshaft bearings are the problem, at some point the engine simply won’t run at all. You know that’s going to happen in pitch darkness when it is raining, and no help to be found, right? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![PvtPublic](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/pvtpublic/32/13089_2.png) [@PvtPublic](https://community.cartalk.com/u/PvtPublic)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2019, 9:19am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/how-long-can-i-drive-with-bad-camshafts/154308/7 "2019-12-10T09:19:08Z")
> [@SarahKelly](#): > > How long can I drive my car with bad camshafts You can drive it right up until dies. At this point your guess is as good as anyone else’s.