stevelaw

Fidgits is right about Denso plugs----but by chance are you looking to pick up 2 extra horses? The NGK 6957 is a good Iridium plug. You only change them at 60K miles. I have used them in the past. Gets a little bit better gas mileage, too. DON'T gap them. Gap is preset.

If you want to know what major consumer advocates are praising about the Prius--go to : HTTP://www.clarkhoward.com

Replacing the fuel filter on your Corolla is one of the most difficult jobs to do. They probably used dual crowfoot wrenches on the top and the bottm at the same time, and they probably spilled a gallon of gas while they did it. What were you charged to replace that $25 filter?

For future reference, you can try cleaning the PCV valve with brake cleaner and then shaking it clean. Sometimes, a PCV valve is replaced when it is merely clogged. Life is good when you fix a problem for 50 cents.

Peter, after installing the K&N--what kind of mileage have you been experiencing?

Welcome to the Toyota Owners' Club USA. You will be happy to know that Toyota Owners from every walk of life post here. Mechanics, do-it-yourselfer's, and many others share information here. We are Owners. Your 2005 Camry is an excellent car. Just make sure to follow the service intervals. Especially the transmission fluid changes. STEVE

I believe that leighmcm may be correct (glovebox), is there any chance that your Camry was involved in an accident in the past? STEVE

To all Camry 2002-2005 owners: I have been informed by the good folks at Haynes Publishing that the repair manual for the 2002-2005 Camry is now available. They gave me the following part number: 92008. I will be the Guinea Pig reading the manual this weekend or early next week. It IS on the shelf right now in the Southeastern USA. STEVE

I just had to replace the battery on my '02 Camry. I called FOUR different service departments in Atlanta to see what each mechanic's opinion woulkd be as to whether it was a shot battery or the alternator. ALL FOUR said that the Nippondenso (Denso) alternators in the 2002-2004 model years were tough as nails and they did not replace them frequently and that it was a bad battery. So I threw a battery in it on Wednesday and it has been running just fine for 8 days now---so it could not have been the alternator. $65.00 at Advance Auto Parts for a 37 month no questions asked battery with 580 CCAs. Worth my 10 minutes to put it in!

I am no longer a mechanic, but I do recall changing the timing belt on my 1994 Corolla and I did not have to pull the engine. See if you can get away with taking the biscuit out of the engine mount on the timing belt side. The Camry should be similar. A Chilton's or Haynes manual should tell you if you can get away with going that route. I had to take the biscuit out and then I put a jack under the engine with a chunk of wood I cut off of a 2x4 (to protect the engine) and raised the engine like one inch and I managed to get it in there. It did take over 2 hours to do the job, so consider that time is worth $$.

You can change your frnot pads yourself without any problems. I just did it to my '02 Camry, like any other car I've ever had. But one thing to consider: you need to take the filler cap off and gently place it back down on the master cylinder because once you put the new pads on and start pumping the brake pedal, it will displace the brake fluid higher up into the master cylinder and it may overflow (wrap a shop towel around it after loosening the cap). So even though merely throwing new pads on is unlikely to cause air to enter the system, why not carefully siphon some of that dirty fluid out and put in some fresh brake fluid while you're doing the pads? STEVE

Thanks much! You were right. Job done. STEVE

I had to get the cat convertor replaced about a week ago. Has this happened to anyone else? I am not complaining about Atlanta Toyota. They did a great job and it didn't cost me a dime. But has this happened to anyone else? STEVE

First of all, WOW-my condolences to the dude whose 2000 toyota tranny went out -Ross Brooks. Anyway, does anyone know exactly what wrench is needed to drain the tranny fluid on a 2002 camry? I need to do it soon, it's getting dark. STEVE

My 2002 Camry now has 55K on it. It runs great and the tranny shifts great. But the fluid IS dirty. So I need to drain and refill, I guess. Since it was a leased vehicle, I would normally assume that the dude who owned it before me changed the tranny fluid, but maybe not. Anyone out there getting the dealerships pushing total flushes on them? I think it'll stir up a lot of crap from the pan and a better way to go is the old fashioned way--drop the pan, clean it, clean the screen, new gasket, button it back up and go.

It was reported at one time that some US made Camrys had transmission problems that year. I don't specifically know of any recalls---maybe someone else does. TSBs are Technical Service Bulletins. TSBs are sometimes referred to as "silent recalls". If you go to: www.alldata.com you might find out if there are either as relates to your car.

TO EVERYONE: I tried to give it away, but there were no takers. Therefore, I put it up on ebay and I have a buyer for it.

The thing works. In fact, if you go to the website for the tornado folks, you'll see how and why it works---and they used MY year of Camry for one of the test vehicles. I am not going to suggest that you will see a phenonenal increases in mileage: but I got a gain of about 2 MPG. This think really works: as long as you don't change your normal driving habits. No---I am not a shareholder of the company. :)

I have two suggestions for you to try: 1. Have you heard of the TORNADO? My Camry is a 2002, and I love the car, but it also gets a few MPG less than advertised. So what I did was install a TORNADO---it's a piece of cake. You put it in the air intake. It's a ring shaped metal device that causes the air coming into the intake to swirl and it gives you better mileage and a few more HP to boot. VERY noticable difference in just 3 weeks of using it. They are $65 at Pep Boys, NAPA, and you can buy them online as well. No moving parts: nothing to wear out. http://www.tornado.com 2. The Iridium-tipped spark plugs that TOY recommends are $13 each and don't give any extra mileage to the engine. Denso makes another double-Platinum plated plug for $10 that works better--I think I picked up some mileage by using them. Also, I wonder if the K&N air filters are out yet for our Camrys.

I even put WD=40 in the tilt-wheel crack and it still does it. This car is almost new!

ANyone know why the steering wheel squeaks in myCamry? I saw some other posts on the internet of some other people complaining of the same problem, but no one seems to have an answer: INCLUDING the service department. What gives? STEVE

TO: fidgits Believe me, no offense caused or taken. I guess that in today's day and age people don't try to give away things of value anymore. I just want to see the manual go to someone who needs it. Sooner or later someone will want it. There's tons of 1994's still on the road.

TO: fidgits: I am giving it away because I am trying to do the right thing. I firmly believe that one should excersize good karma. What comes around goes around. So I am giving the manual away, just whoever wants it pays for the shipping. My hope is that whoever wants the manual will tell me pretty soon because I may be going to Sumatra for 2 weeks. STEVE

I was one of the many people in the southeast (FLA, GA) who lost a car in the recent hurricaine IVAN. I have volume #2 of the factory service manual for the 1994 Corolla. Who wants it? Send me $15 bucks for postage and it is yours. It has the speedometer variance guide...useful when going before the judge on a speeding ticket. OOPS...guess I'm not supposed to mention I have a law degree. It works. You've got room to netogiate with the prosecutor. STEVE<----Atlanta email me: steve1law@excite.com fax: 404-636-5418

I was one of the many people in the southeast (FLA, GA) who lost a car in the recent hurricaine IVAN. I have volume #2 of the factory service manual for the 1994 Corolla. Who wants it? Send me $15 bucks for postage and it is yours. It has the speedometer variance guide...useful when going before the judge on a speeding ticket. OOPS...guess I'm not supposed to mention I have a law degree. It works. You've got room to netogiate with the prosecutor. STEVE<----Atlanta email me: steve1law@excite.com fax: 404-636-5418 I am happy with my new Camry, but the steering wheel squeaks.