And what did you get?
What light? There are so many.
Checking the oil level is something that needs to be done between oil changes - often enough that if there is a loss of oil, it gets made up long before the oil level has gone down to a damaging level. Waiting for a warning light is a big mistake.
And @VOLVO_V70 while this originally started as a thread to see what alternatives might be best, this continued discussion and learning of the engine oil concern on the manufacturer, service, and ownership side and how many consumers also were affected is enlightening me on this, as I’m also replying to comments about it. It’s an uncovering of the underlying things that led to the initial question.
The heading is ’ What should I do with my Camry ? '. After 83 posts it seems you should have an idea what you want to do by now.
@VOLVO_V70, then for your sake, let’s call it, “Don’t buy a 2008 Camry, or if you do, make sure the engine oil issue is resolved under warranty”. I appreciate your thought of going new based on the warranty, etc, though based on the type of cars I like as stated in my initial post I can’t afford anything like those specific cars or their equivalents brand new, so I’d have to go used and brand new isn’t an option for me. If you can’t read past the headline or have anything truly constructive to add, no need to chime in.
Judging by your username was this brand new car that you bought a Volvo? I do like their cars though haven’t seen anything new that was $20k. If I’m wrong feel free to enlighten me.
This discussion has undergone the very common circumstance sometimes known as “mission creep.” In this case no cost in lives or honor or taxes, so I am happy to let the discussion go on.
I think the OP learned a lesson here. Here is what I would take away.
- Make sure to get whatever issue taken care of under warranty and do their own consumption testing BEFORE taking it in in case the dealer lies about the test results.
- Check your oil often. Damage is likely being done by the time the low oil light is coming on.
- The fact the car still runs and can be kept going with frequent oil checks and additions is great. This buys the owner time to find a newer car at a great price. Replacing the car is not an emergency at this point so they have time to negotiate or look for a deal.
@shanonia yep makes sense. Some of this is due to me learning more about this issue both in this thread and then through further research now, even seeing how other people were affected in a class action lawsuit, and also finding a trusted mechanic and learning what this can do to your engine. As far as your question, it was a low engine oil pressure light on the dashboard. Lessons learned for me so far are: keep checking the oil levels consistently, as small problems can lead to dangerous ones, understanding that this specific car and model has had issues with this so get it addressed within the warranty period, and find a good dealer / service shop where you can trust their work and advice, and verify that they are doing it correctly. It’s a bit akin to the finance industry, consumers should educate themselves yes, though companies can also take advantage of those less knowledgeable (ie mortgages, selling them products with high interest rates they might not understand), so trust is paramount. And finally, no car is perfect, though if you’re spending 15k or more on a product that is no small amount, so get something you like!
Doesn’t seem like a reliability issue to me, but a maintenance issue.
Wife owns a 07 Lexus (basically an upgraded Camry). Over 200k miles and it runs PERFECT. Only issue was to replace a water-pump under 100k miles. No other repairs…just normal maintenance.
I think this 07-08 year range was a bad year for the 4 cyl Camry. Others have been great although I do think some people worship Toyota like they are the best car around. They have had problems just like all the others although they are overall a very good car.
Toyotas typically have a good resale/trade in value which is good considering you are looking to get rid of this one.
Don’t mind @VOLVO_V70. He’s been that way ever since they banned Olestra.
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I think you’ll find far more people worship Ford and GM then any other brand.
You might be right. There are also die hard MOPAR people which I don’t understand.
As for import brands, it seems that more people worship Toyota than all the others.
Car complaints is a great site if you want to research the pitfalls with any used car. Remember that certain engines are duds in some models/years. This Toyota is a great example. The V6 for this year range was fine but most came with the 4 cyl so that year Camry gets a negative rating, largely due to oil consumption issues.
If you go by sales, or you’re surveying country folk, yes. If you go by customer satisfaction surveys, the top brands tend to be dominated by luxury car makers.
Interestingly, CR’s 2017 customer satisfaction rankings show Chrysler moving up to the #4 spot, with Toyota and Honda falling to #8 and #9, respectively. Contrary to sales, GM and Ford are pretty far down the list.
I had a Ford Maverick that used a quart of oil every thousand miles. The car was 6 years old at the time. Replacing the Maverick with a newer car would have put a severe strain on my budget. For the same budgetary reason, an engine overhaul would have crimped my lifestyle as I would have had less money to spend.
I elected to buy oil, which was 49¢ a quart in those days and drive on so I could get the use out of that car.
As an analogy, I suffer with Plantar Fasciitis in my right foot. I went to a foot doctor who thought he should amputate the foot. He had a defeetist complex. Having my foot removed would have changed my life style. I play in two different bands and a chamber orchestra. It would be distracting to the other musicians in the horn section for me to tap out the rhythm with my stump. I could only play compositions in the slow time of Andante Amputante. Hence, I elected to purchase a seven day supply of PFTape for $20 and tape the foot when needed, just as I bought a supply of 49¢ motor oil for my Maverick. At age 77, it isn’t worth it to me to get a foot transplant, just as it wasn’t worth getting an engine transplant for the Maverick. I’ll just tape up my foot when needed, just as I added oil to the Maverick when it was down a quart.
Don’t be defeated by oil consumption. Just pour in a quart when needed and drive on.
I have a couple Geo Metros as well. One came to me with a drinking problem. The engine had obviously been neglected and it drank oil. It would go through a quart every 100 miles. Sometimes under load it would blow so much oil through the PCV system that it would sputter and lose power as it overflowed from the head and go right into the intake system. It would literally fog for mosquitoes on the interstate on a long uphill grade. You could see other cars and semis pulling over because of the massive smoke cloud. I am sure others pulled over as well but I just couldn’t see them through the smoke cloud.
If I drove the car at all aggressively, I could burn through a quart of oil in only a few miles all while leaving a massive cloud of smoke in my wake. Apparently these little engines are known for developing this problem if neglected. This one came to me with a hole in the air filter as well as sand and rocks in the intake so blame that for this issue.
I came across a used engine from a wreck in good shape with good compression for $150. I unbolted it from the mounts and the transmission and lifted it out of the donor car and into my car without a hoist. It was $150 well spent. There is no way and engine in this condition would have stayed running long. For being in such bad shape it actually ran pretty well and was giving me over 50 mpg.