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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.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
38,435 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 drivetrain problems

drivetrain problem

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2003 Toyota Camry Owner Comments

problem #13

Apr 262022

Camry

  • miles

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

Having purchased w 2003 Toyota Camry 2.4l, (with good paint, no rust, great interior, and new clear headlights) 3 days prior, the previous owner reported no current issues. The check engine light come on the 3 rd day as I drove away from the DMV having just titled it. AC was blowing cold, no other dash lights were on and I couldn't feel any apparent issues driving, so I proceed to my place of employment, where a friend whom is an independent mechanic had the machine to read check engine codes. I never made it. Had driven approximately 25 miles and came to a full stop for a red light. Upon turning green and beginning to accelerate, my Camry's engine died and would not start. When the key was turned it made no noise at all. Towed to a mechanic shop, I was asked if it had overheated, it had not. Without investing further and me acquiring a diagnostics charge, he said one apparent issue was the fact that there was absolutely no coolant in the engine. Dumfounded I had ittowed home where another Mechanic friend (licensed) was going to see about reapiring it. One of the code//errors read, was that the was no combustion, the radiator was full, but there was no traces of coolant in the engine, when took of the engine mainfold right away he noticed 3 cool packs that were damaged, as well as what appeared to be a used head gasket poorly installed, and worse if all the timing chain had jumped and made a mad mesh nightmare to the engine...so previous owners obviously sold me their night mare, I now am stuck with either replacing the engine (not) or bring carless once again.-œ"️-œ"️ Note: Contacted the acclaimed christian, God fearing sellers, whom I paid $4000 and they kindly refunded me $1000, as they stated it was no fault of theirs..

- Gulf Breeze , FL, USA

problem #12

Jun 162006

Camry

  • miles
Takata inflators: Every time I fix my vehicle individuals cause hate crimes damaging my vehicle as I go to sleep or when I am not viewing my vehicle they must know exactly when I go to sleep because I cant catch them even though I think I know who it is I can not prove it so this is why I am complaining I remember checking my tires in the night noticing nothing wrong with them then checked in the mourning and noticed nails nailed in the tires then I noticed dried turtle wax all over the body of the car messing up the paint wheel alignment out of line right door power window malfunction trunk open power switch broken power sun roof sliding window broken vehicle was stationary this happened on different date in combination to the damage between 06/16/06 to 04/21/17.

- Los Angeles, CA, USA

problem #11

Jul 162015

Camry

  • miles
"takata recall" - I am experiencing a clicking noise from the steering wheel when turning the wheel to the left & right, the whole dash board shakes when the ac or heat is on, brakes pedal goes all the way to the floor & making sounds, and when you put the car in park it will move forward.

- Dorchester, MA, USA

problem #10

Jul 172015

Camry

  • 33,705 miles

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

The contact owns a 2003 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that when making a left or right turn, there was an abnormal noise emitting from the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where it was diagnosed that the lower steering shaft needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure recurred. In addition, the contact stated that when the brake pedal was depressed, the vehicle hesitated to respond. The contact also mentioned that after switching into the park position, the vehicle independently switched in the reverse position without warning. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 33,705.

- Dorchester, MA, USA

problem #9

Jan 012011

Camry

  • 90,000 miles
According to Toyota's technical service bulletin T-sb-0034-08 (April 15, 2008), the intake manifold in 2002 ? 2004 Camry equipped with 2az engine may produce a loud rattle noise from the engine area, most noticeable at idle or on light acceleration. The intake manifold has been updated / modified to solve this issues on the newer vehicles. A faulty intake manifold will affect engine performance and affect emissions. Toyota usa should recall all the affected vehicles with this faulty intake manifold, but they only cover the repair to the vehicles which are under warranty. This faulty intake manifold needs to be replaced. Please investigate this serious issue.

- Arcadia, CA, USA

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problem #8

Jul 262013

Camry 4-cyl

  • miles
I was in the driver seat waiting to turn left, when suddenly I got hit from the rear right part of my car. From that moment the car could not drive.. the rear left part of the car body and the tire was totally damaged. The repair shop declared that the car could not be repaired any more. Only later of the incident did I remember that the airbags did not work at all.

- Tucson, AZ, USA

problem #7

Oct 242012

Camry 4-cyl

  • 127,470 miles

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

On October 24, 2012, I parallel parked my 2003 Toyota Camry on the street. The car in front of me was leaving, so he asked me to move back a few inches so he could get out. My car was still running so I shifted the car into reverse, and as I began to take my foot off the brake pedal, my car accelerated backwards at a very fast speed into the car behind me. Wanting to pull up a few inches to get out and assess the damage, I shifted the car into drive and as I did, my car accelerated forwards into the parked car in front of me. It accelerated at such a high speed that it pushed the three cars in front of me together. At no point during these two rapid accelerations did I ever apply my foot to the gas pedal. This incident caused damage to several cars and could have ended up with much more severe consequences had I not been in that location.

- Bergenfield, NJ, USA

problem #6

Apr 042010

Camry

  • 122,867 miles
2003 Toyota Camry le was running, sitting in driveway, but in park with emergency brake on. Car "took off" in reverse, and only came to a stop when driver jumped into car, pushed hard on foot brake, turned off ignition, and car door slammed into another parked vehicle.

- Dallas, GA, USA

problem #5

Nov 202009

Camry

  • 53,000 miles
On 2 occasions our 2003 Camry le accelerated. The first time the vehicle hit a tree in a parking lot. The second time it occurred while preparing to move into traffic from a stop. No injuries but minor damage to the bumper from the first incident.

- Ojai , CA, USA

problem #4

May 062009

Camry

  • 40 miles
Vehicle accelerated on its one in driveway after shifting into drive.

- Louisville, KY, USA

problem #3

Jan 182003

Camry

  • 65,000 miles

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

Followup to ODI #10256120. Informed by Toyota rep that your Agency performed two investigations F the 2003 Camry respecting acceleration surges but returned no findings of vehicle failure.your website recounts about 130 reports of such 2003 Camry failures mostly (102) under vehicle speed control, some under power train auto trans & vsc accelerator pedal. For Ford Taurus I counted 12; Honda Accord and Chevrolet Malibu 20+ - all for model year 2003. As % of cars sold quite small even for Camry but as an occurrence ratio of 6-1 or 10-1 vs. The other models quite impressive.. the fact you conducted two investigations of Camry is telling in and of itself. How many accelerator investigations did you conduct for the 2003 Taurus, Accord & Malibu" absent an airplane like recorder how can you be assured that there was no vehicular failure" the alternative is to imply that Camry operators are less competent than drivers of other makes... harvey miller

- Atlanta, GA, USA

problem #2

Feb 192004

Camry 6-cyl

  • 7,572 miles
2003 Toyota Camry experiencing problems with hesitation upon acceleration.** answer required*** this would occur as the consumer would attempt to pass other vehicles. There was a break and or chatter in the left front wheel. The hesitation would occur at all speeds and there was a rubbing noise in the steering column.

- Casselberry, FL, USA

problem #1

May 012003

Camry 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • miles
Toyota Camry 2003. The consumers car hesitates when trying to accelerate. It actually slows down by 10-20 mph. The vehicle would lurch forward after hesitating. The problem occurred when turning corners or when attempting to drive onto the highway from a rolling start.

- West Islip, NY, USA

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