Nick1994
$100 site donor 2023
I have no words to say...
Actually I do. My aunt bought a brand new Avalon a year ago for under $30k OTD and it’s got close to 300hp.
Refreshing a Camry for an entitled old man
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Originally Posted By: PandaBear
He went out and financed a 18 Camry XLE Hybrid for $31500 and 60 month 0% APR, in a color combination that is not in stock so it is "ordered" and will arrive mid Jan. At least it is not a lease, wife will help out with $8k.
I don't think he drove enough miles to make it a good deal, but he seems to think it has less NVH and "close enough" to a V6. We'll probably start saving up for a new battery pack in 15 years.
We'll see how it turns out in 15 years. They will likely drive 50k in that time frame and park in moderate climate under shade, and by that time FIL will be 88 and MIL will be 85. By 15 years even if the N-1 cells are not bad, they'll likely be heavily aged.
Again, 15 years is a long time, at least 10 of it will be under the battery warranty.
Based on their Camry's condition, I'd say by then the struts will be shot, bumpers rattle can spray painted, sun visor ripped (he was pretty harsh on sun visors), interior stained, buttons and knobs cracked and letters worn off (they put a lot of lotion on before driving, and oil is bad for plastic), some leaks and squeaks here and there, the usual aged stuff.
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Parents sound alittle to snooty for my taste buds!! 
Originally Posted By: Nick1994
I have no words to say...
Actually I do. My aunt bought a brand new Avalon a year ago for under $30k OTD and it’s got close to 300hp.
2016 Toyota Avalon XLE with 16k miles for $25k at Enterprise.
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This one is $19,600 but has more miles. Still a 2016:
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Originally Posted By: PandaBear
You guys probably remembered my post to trouble shoot the warm start problem of my father in law's 97 Camry V6. Recently it went so bad that our daughter was stuck in school or his car is stuck in our driveway after the inlaws dropping her off at our home, about once a week or more. During the Thanksgiving weekend my wife and I suggested to him that we will buy them a "slightly used" car instead. The goal was to provide them with a replacement that will be under warranty for a long time while affordable for their daily routine (about 3 miles per weekday).
The car would have been a Hertz retired 2016 Hyundai Elantra with 82k miles. It would be $8100 and be under warranty for about 8 years with their usage. By then it would be a 10 year old car with around 100k miles, my oldest daughter would be 16 and youngest would be 13, and inlaws be 86 / 88 years old. It sounded just about right to me and my wife.
The idea was rejected for the following reason:
1) They are currently driving a then "top of the line" Camry V6 XLE, and "Nobody downgrade when replacing cars"
2) Mother in law thinks Elantra is too small inside, and the window glass is too small to look outward.
3) Mother in law cannot live with black interior, she needs at least grey but prefer beige, that rules out Hertz.
4) Father in law likes to stay with at least a Toyota Camry, prefer at least a SoftTex seat, and a V6 for smoothness and torque. Based on this he sort of ruled out LE, and he pretty much wants at least an SE if not XLE or XSE.
5) Because we are trying to replace an aging car for reliability over 10 years, it makes no sense to look for something that has little warranty year left (remember they do not drive much, so warranty will expire in years first).
6) Father in law will pay for another 7k to move the budget to 15k from 8k, but it is still not enough to get what "he wants" and what "mother in law wants" ($14.3k if retired SE from Hertz, $19k if SE from other dealers with beige interior, $27k V6 XSE/XLE with extended warranty).
As a result, I would not be helping them with a replacement vehicle. Congratulation Mr. entitled baby boomer, no soup for you. What I am planning to do now, is to "throw parts at the old Camry" to replace anything that can cause reliability issues 10 years down the road in a warm climate with no rust concern. Basically, I want anything that won't last 30 years and 200k miles on that Camry replaced as preventive maintenance.
I'm coming up with a list right now, can you think of anything that I've missed? Which one should I buy reman which one should I buy new?
1. Alternator (reman?)
2. Starter (reman?)
3. Radiator (new any brand)
4. Radiator Hose (new)
5. Timing belt, accessory belts (new, reputable brand)
6. Water pump (new Denso or Aisin)
7. Radiator cap (new OEM)
8. IACV (which brand?)
9. Coil over plug (which brand?)
10. Plugs (Densor or NGK)
11. Thermostat (OEM)
12. Injector (which brand?)
13. Fuel pump (Denso?) and strainer
14. Fuel filter (any brand)
15. Fuel pressure regulator (which brand?)
16. Air filter (any brand)
17. EGR (clean or replace, new or reman?)
18. Exhaust manifold gasket (Fel-Pro)
19. Valve cover gasket (Fel-Pro)
20. Oil pan gasket (Fel-Pro)
21. Timing belt idler pulley (Timken if available, buy with timing belt kit)
22. O2 sensors (Denso or NTK)
23. CV axles / shafts if boot cracked (technically I can ignore it if it is only city driving, OEM)
24. Any other sensors like ECT/CTS, MAP/MAF, Knock, crank angle / position?
25. Anything on the power steering?
26. Anything I've missed?
Things already done long time ago:
1. Struts (KYB GR2)
2. ATF change
3. battery
Originally Posted By: PandaBear
He went out and financed a 18 Camry XLE Hybrid for $31500 and 60 month 0% APR, in a color combination that is not in stock so it is "ordered" and will arrive mid Jan. At least it is not a lease, wife will help out with $8k.
I don't think he drove enough miles to make it a good deal, but he seems to think it has less NVH and "close enough" to a V6. We'll probably start saving up for a new battery pack in 15 years.
Originally Posted By: pandus13
PandaBear,
did you get a "Thank you"?
now back to important stuff:
How are your kids liking the new Camry?
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This guy's lucky he isn't my father in law.
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