Newer Camry (14+) vs ???? Commuter

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I finally wore out the old commuter and have been looking at a new ride. Commute is almost 90mi round trip, mostly highway speeds. Reliability, economy, comfort most important. I've had corollas, but Camry seems to get same mpg for a few grand more in price. Prius (not C or V) is on the table, but I'm not sure I want the cost ($1500-2000?) of replacing a battery down the road, and I usually plan to drive my cars into the ground. Also Prius probably runs $5k more than camry for similar year/mileage. Do Accords still use timing belts? I havent liked honda seats as much as Toyota.

I've mostly been looking at MY 14-17 Camry LE, 10-40k mi, $14-16k, seems to be the sweet spot of depreciation vs usable mileage left. As in, any older is not much cheaper, and comes with much higher mileage. And sellers seem to think 10 year old camrys are made of gold. I'm not thrilled about dumping $14-16k in a depreciating asset though. I'm probably looking at LE, though SE seems to pop up often in searches. Is LE most common?


Any other makes/models that i should consider, with similar reliability, lack planned repair costs (timing belt, hybrid battery, etc), and get 30+ mpg with some comfort? I'd thought about Taurus or Fusion, Honda Accord/Civic/Fit, Hyundai/Kia Soul, Nissan Altima/Cube/Sentra, leftover Scion remnants... Id probably go as old as 10 years, if I can find something with reasonable miles for $5-7k.

Not looking to take the mpg penalty of an SUV, and dont need the added "utility."

Thanks!
 
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We've got a 2015 Camry LE in the family. I prefer the ride of the LE with the 16" steelies over the larger aluminum wheels on the higher up models. It's a nice car that I enjoy driving when I can. Even being the most basic model, best we could do when we got it for my mom brand-new was ~$22400 +TTL, but she did have a trade-in. Could have maybe done a bit better w/out a trade. A ~2019 base model is probaby a grand more than that now.
 
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The LE is the entry level stripped-down version. Not many bells or whistles on them. Body shape changed in 2015. Same basic engine and interior.
 
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Originally Posted by JTK
We've got a 2015 Camry LE in the family. I prefer the ride of the LE with the 16" steelies over the larger aluminum wheels on the higher up models. It's a nice car that I enjoy driving when I can.


One of the reasons I went with the XLE instead of the XSE. I didn't want the 18" wheels/tires.
 
It will be hard to score any Camry with a normal number of miles on it that hasn't been used for pulling stumps for $5K - $7K. Their residual value is too strong. I'm seeing 2011s with 130K miles for $6,995, but that mileage defeats your purpose.

https://www.cars.com/for-sale/searc...113&zc=32666&localVehicles=false

Hondas have been using chains for years. I'm with you on timing belts. Time bombs. Accords run pretty strong on residual value as well, so a good price on a low-mileage example will be a unicorn.

Due to past experience, I can't, with any good conscience, recommend a Nissan to anyone. There isn't a Scion I'd travel that many miles in, as I've never found them to be terribly comfortable. Taurus won't give you the MPG you'll want for that much driving. A current generation Fusion might do well, but keep the turbo in mind when you're scheduling your oil changes. Purely my opinion: I don't pay any attention to maintenance-minders on turbocharged engines. The older Fusions, up through 2012, are actually the cars that put Ford on the quality map when they surpassed Toyota that one year before the new Focus tanked them. I had a 2011 SEL V6 for a short while. Great engine, horrible transmission programming, and a chronically boring car, but very comfortable for long drives. The 2.5 version I test-drove was loud and coarse.

The older Sonatas had engine recalls (catastropic failure) so make sure any one you entertain has had it done. My co-worker's 2010 Soul has been a trouble-free performer for her, but I think they built it lacking ANY sound insulation. Cheap and tinny all around, but she loves it because it never needs work (except the timing belt, which they've probably phased out on the newer ones).

Happy hunting! Let us know when you find that cheap Camry in good condition! :)
 
I could recommend a Fusion as well. We have one in the family, and have no complaints with it. Nothing but oil changes.

Last fall, I bought it 7 years old, with 70,000 miles for $7,000... with a recent set of top-of-the-line Goodyear tires, along with a recent brake job and new battery.

At this point, it is getting right at 25,000 miles a year put on it.

4 years of that kind of use, and I figure it'll be worth about $2.000 when we're done with it.

Four years and 100,000 miles of use, for a $5,000 loss... are numbers that work for me.
 
I have a 2012 (the ones you are looking at are the refreshed version of mine) and hopefully can give you some insight... (As far as pricing, mine was ~ $12k this spring, with 30k miles for a 2012 LE).

It gets phenomenal mileage. I have had a number of 39+ mpg tanks of fuel, for trips at speeds of 65-80 mph. It turns just 2000 rpm at 70 mph, so it's not really working hard at freeway speeds. I can consistently get high 30s without really trying. Combined with a 17-gallon tank, this gives great cruising range (500-600 miles).

It's a very light car (
Features for the LE are decent. I wouldn't really call it stripped down (touchscreen radio/Bluetooth, remote, power seat, 10 airbags, 13+ have standard backup cam, as well as the standard A/C, power windows, locks, mirrors, etc.)

All in all, it's a very good car. It doesn't really excel at anything but is very good at nearly everything. After having mine, I'd absolutely recommend it.
 
I -4 LE with 16" wheels for the softer ride. Just oil changes so far. 35 miles of mixed driving to visit Grandsons get 37.xx mpg. I like the car for what it does.
 
How about a Lincoln MKZ Hybrid?

A lot like the Fusion, but with some nicer luxury features. Prices seem reasonable on them.
 
The LE is the strippie, but even so they are really nicely optioned cars.
I have rented Fusions; they are nice cars and you might save some money initially.

I would do a Camry if it fits the budget.

You might try Hertz car sales; their cars are maintained and prices are very competitive.
 
Did a recent car search, best value by far is the Hyundai Sonata or KIA Optima, 2012 - 2015.
And they come with a 100,000 mile engine replacement warranty if you are concerned about the recall.
 
The Prius V is a great choice because the midsize wagon has lots of room inside, plus the good mileage on them
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The V6 Accord still uses a timing belt. The 4-cylinder has used a chain since 2003.

Another midsize sedan worth considering is the Mazda 6. It was also the last midsize sedan to offer a V6 with the manual transmission, if you want something fast and sporty. The 4-cylinder Mazda 6 is also a good car.

The Buick Regal may also be a good value. They are made in Germany. New for 2018, they have the 4-door hatchback Regal Sportback, or the Regal TourX wagon.

For 2008 only, there is the Saturn Astra. If you're lucky, you might be able to find one with the panoramic sunroof.

The Toyota Matrix/Pontiac Vibe is also worth considering, still has excellent Toyota quality and good mpg. They're just Corolla wagons.

For 16k, you can probably get a brand new Fit or Yaris.

If you buy a Hyundai or Kia, be aware that the 10-year warranty is NOT transferable and only applies to the first owner. Otherwise, it's 5 years/60k. However, the Hyundai/Kia CPO cars do have the 10-year warranty.
 
I took my moms old 02 camry (first year of the body style and 2.4 4 cyl) 50k miles, mostly trouble free. Just a coil pack, brakes, and a clutch when I got it. 33 MPG summer. Stick shift.
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Flipped a y2k camry V6. Very well built car. I think they cheapened the car for 02, it just feels "stretched out" like silly putty taken too far, if that makes sense.

There is an age, about 15 years up here, where people think camrys are about done, but in fact, they are not. If you got a newish one I'm confident it would work well for you.

I'm up to three priusses, two of which I bought with supposedly dead HV batteries, but both of which were ressurected with a single module out of the 28 available. Cheap OBD readers get the generic code "Replace HV battery" while Toyota-specific ones will read "fault at cell 8." Misdiagnosis leads to premature divesting on the seller's part.

Toyota has great DIY support with ebay's $20 techstream dongle and software of suspicious origin. This is necessary if you want to bleed rear prius brakes for example.
 
Not sure about a Camry, but my '03 Grand Marquis is capable of 25 MPG if driven reasonably, and it was only $3100 (with 112K on it). I wouldn't hesitate to drive it anywhere, and it is far more comfortable than my xB, or either of the family Matrixes (Matrices?) for that matter.
 
I like the previous generation of Camry far more than the current generation.

I don't know how you drive, and at what speeds. But the prev gen Camry is not fantastic with MPG. Expect 28MPG in all around driving and to possibly reach 30MPG in real world highway driving if you are careful.

The current gen Camry will get 40 highway if I go easy on it and 36-38 in real world highway.



As you may know I rent cars all the time. The cheap MPG champ is the Altima. 36 highway at stupid-speed (take a guess at the speed and add some) ! The current gen Prius gets 45 highway with me at the helm.

The Malibu 1.5L gets 28 highway
 
You can't go wrong with the Toyota. I have had lots of Honda's with zero major problems. Had an 07 Honda bought brand new ran it up to 85,000 miles and sold it for $10,000. I put a new timing belt, water pump, and belt as well as a belt tensioner on it right before selling and had the Honda dealership do it for about $850.00. I would probably go with the 4 cylinder to obtain the better mileage. Either Honda or Toyota I don't think you can go wrong and the resale is there if you want to sell it later.
 
If you want something that is ho-hum, reliable, and easy to maintain, it is the car for you. If you like to engage in your driving experience, not so much. That said our '15 has been a good car so far; only oil changes and tire rotations.
 
I dunno.. I wouldn't consider a ~2011-2016 Camry the easiest in terms of basic DIY maintenance. The undermount plastic oil filter housing is kind of a pain when you compare them to a top mount or a standard spin-on oil filter. Transmission fluid drain, fill and level checks are also ridiculously over complicated IMO.

OTOH.. what's the recommended OCI on the 4cyl, every 10K miles or once a year? and transmission fluid maintenance doesn't even have to be a thing if you don't want it to be.
 
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