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CarComplaints.com Notes: Beware of the NHTSA complaint data for the 2003 Camry. It is almost certainly misleading.

The problem with NHTSA data for the 2003 Camry is that for months on end, the news media repeatedly told the public that several Toyota models had an unintended acceleration defect, & to go to safercar.gov (the NHTSA's website) to file a complaint.

So, the NHTSA received a disproportionate number of complaints about Toyota unintended acceleration issues because of the national news media attention, to the point where their data is unreliable taken in context with any other vehicle that did not receive national news attention.

CarComplaints.com typically receives more complaints per day about vehicles than the NHTSA does, but the news media did not repeatedly say "go to CarComplaints.com to report your Camry acceleration problems" like they did about the NHTSA -- so although we have less complaint data than the NHTSA for the 2003 Camry, our data for the Camry is a far more statistically accurate representation of the Camry's reliability than what the NHTSA data shows.

4.4

definitely annoying
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
25,000 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2003 Toyota Camry brakes problems

brakes problem

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2003 Toyota Camry Owner Comments

problem #1

Dec 082007

Camry 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 25,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Brake-ABS-vsc-trac off lights in my dash have been coming on for the last couple weeks with increasing frequency. First just once, then a week later every couple days, finally 3 times in one morning. When I took it to my personal mechanic, they said there were no codes. Then I called the dealer where purchased and someone suggested venting the gas cap. It still came on again later that day, and I took it to the dealer with the lights illuminated. I have been told my brake, ABS/vsc and trac off lights have been coming on in my 2003 Camry lev6 because the vsc computer needs replacing for almost $1,800. On a car with only 25K miles that is absurd and I refused!! the dealer consultant even said that was odd. There is obviously a defect for this to go bad. I have read on-line forums where many truck and SUV owners are experiencing this same problem. I feel that this is a safety concern and a problem Toyota is responsible for. I am not about to spend this much money on a problem that should not have occurred in the first place. Some owners say they have been told that various sensors could be at fault and not the whole computer. One owner said he found it was a bad brake pad! I think the sensors should be checked for replacement. Whether it is the sensors or the computer, it is a factory defect, and Toyota should pay for it.

- St. Petersburg, FL, USA

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