Print this page

CarComplaints.com Notes: Beware of the NHTSA complaint data for the 2004 Camry. It is almost certainly misleading.

The problem with NHTSA data for the 2004 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 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 2004 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:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
10 / 0
Average Mileage:
64,051 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.

2004 Toyota Camry engine problems

engine problem

Find something helpful? Spread the word.
Get notified about new defects, investigations, recalls & lawsuits for the 2004 Toyota Camry:

Unsubscribe any time. We don't sell/share your email.

2004 Toyota Camry Owner Comments

problem #18

Aug 222008

Camry

  • miles

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

Engine light continues to turn on and off. When the mechanic checks it he can't find the problem as diagnostic comes back clear. It is agitating bc if the engine light comes on I won't know if it is serious or not.

- Winter Haven, FL, USA

problem #17

Oct 242014

Camry 4-cyl

  • 88,000 miles
.......just need to ask a question, in light of the stories on air bag, the light on my dashboard says..."passenger air bag off"......I called Toyota and they asked if I were nearby and could I come in when I called (about 4 pm).... I said I was nearby and drove directly there (67th western, Chicago. One of the tech's looked at the light and said "oh that light will go off when some one sits in the passenger seat ( knew it wouldn't)....he immediately went to the passenger side, sat down and the light didn't go off.....then he said oh, ur airbag light is on (behind the steering wheel). He then said since ur car is not on the re-call list, we have to conduct an inspection..about $110 dollars, and then if we find something, the $110 will be applied to the charges. I said like what, he said it might be a sensor, it might be something else we don't know until we inspect it............................so, my question to you is how do you know that 2004 Camry's are not included, and whether or not, Toyota just wants to charge me for something that they should have covered.... secondly, 2 items on your recall list, I don't believe were done a) NHTSA #11V539000, Nov. 9, 2011..........................and B)NHTSA#04V346000, July 13, 2004.......................thank you for your assistance and advice.

- Chicago, IL, USA

problem #16

Aug 242007

Camry 4-cyl

  • 45,453 miles
When I was driving my car from parking lot to go home, I heard loud noise from front of my car and felt stiffness of control of my car. I tried to drive back to parking to take a look, but the car lost of power steering assist. The car was towed to Toyota dealer. The dealer found out the power steering pulley had broken off and the drive belt came off. I was lucky it happened in parking lot, or I may get to a car accident. I have contacted to Toyota, but they said it was not in recall of failed crankshaft pulley because the VIN number does not in the range of recall. But my car has exactly same issue the recall NHTSA campaign id number: 11V539000 has. The car is 2004 Camry.

- Sunnyvale, CA, USA

problem #15

Apr 142012

Camry

  • 79,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2004 Toyota Camry. While driving 5 mph, the contact attempted to brake and noticed that the vehicle had suddenly accelerated uncontrollably. As a result, the contact crashed into a grocery store and injured ten people. A police report was filed for the incident and the contact was not injured during the crash. The vehicle had not been diagnosed and no repairs had been performed on the vehicle. The failure and current mileages were 79,000.

- Palm Coast, FL, USA

problem #14

Feb 142012

Camry 4-cyl Diesel

  • 155,000 miles
Our 2004 Camry 2.4 engine has just been diagnosed with the stripped head bolts at 155,000 miles and is currently in the shop. They are telling me it may need a new engine due to this common faulty Toyota defect on this particular engine. I am outraged to know that I'm gonna be charged almost 6000 dollars to replace a faulty engine. Why isn't Toyota doing something about this?! how much can they get away with for crying out loud.

- Maceo, KY, USA

problem #13

Oct 032011

Camry 4-cyl

  • 74,000 miles
While driving on a busy city highway, the throttle body assemble stuck wide open. The car's computer shut it down, causing the car to stop in heavy traffic. The engine would not restart, as the stuck open throttle body made the engine race and the computer shut it down. As this was a know factory design defect, the newly redesigned replacement throttle body fixed the problem but Toyota charges about $1000 for the replacement part. With the many reported failures of this part and the decision to make a redesign to cure the problem, it appears that the customer absorbs the corporate responsibility. There was no help from the local dealer etc! ergo my initiation of a complaint! with the large number of complaints over a long period, it is hard to understand why no recall was ever initiated nor was there a satisfactory investigation!

- Indian Harbour Beach, FL, USA

problem #12

Oct 262010

Camry

  • 136,950 miles

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

The contact owns a 2004 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that the check engine light illuminated and the temperature gauge indicated that the vehicle was very hot. The contact had the oil changed and the check engine light turned off. The vehicle was driven the next day and the same failure occurred. The vehicle was taken to a repair shop where the contact was informed that the bolts on the intake manifold were stripped and the engine needed to be replaced. The contact also noticed a leak. The contact called the dealership who verified that because of the bolts, the engine needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been repaired. The contact called the manufacturer who stated that there were no related recalls. The current mileage was approximately 137,000. The failure mileage was approximately 136,950.

- Temecula, CA, USA

problem #11

Oct 122010

Camry

  • 60,000 miles
Engine failed. Car stalled while traveling on busy road. Dealership identified as throttle body. Required $ 1,100 replacement. Research indicates extensive problem for Toyota.

- Norfolk, VA, USA

problem #10

Jul 202010

Camry

  • 35,000 miles
While driving the vehicle it would suddenly accelerate and then slow down almost to a stop without driver pressure on the accelerator pedal changing. This problem occurred each time the vehicle was driven. The service department where the vehicle was purchased strongly recommended the vehicle not be driven before repairs could be made. The vehicle was left at the service department where they diagnosed the problem as a defective throttle pedal control, P/N 78010-33010. I am waiting on the service department to repair the problem.

- Oklahoma City, OK, USA

problem #9

Apr 152008

Camry

  • 42,393 miles
On April 15,2008 my wife was driving our 2004 Toyota Camry down our street when all of a sudden the car went into idle and wouldn't accelerate. I had a extended warranty still in effect since the car only had 42,393 miles on the car so I called my local Toyota dealer and they replaced the accelerator pedal sensor. We haven't had a problem since but I am afraid that the replaced sensor may be defective and could cause unwanted acceleration/deceleration since it was replaced in 2008. I am concerned that the newly replaced accelerator sensor may not be safe either considering all the recent reports. Please use your power and get Toyota to add the 2004 Toyota Camry to their recall list before other serious problems occur. Thanks for your serious consideration on this matter. Please let me know what you decide.

- Paradise, CA, USA

problem #8

Jul 272009

Camry 4-cyl

  • 76,000 miles

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

Acceleration on my 2004 Toyota Camry began to fluctuate wildly while I was driving down the road. Car would suddenly accelerate, then decelerate almost non-stop. I shut engine off, called Toyota and had the car towed in. I was told that the engine control module (ECM) was defective and would be replaced under a federally mandated warranty - car had 76,000 miles, and warranty was good to 80,000 miles. However they also told me that the accelerator pedal assembly had simultaneously failed. That would cost me $681. Toyota's own technician said that the ECM failure caused the accelerator pedal assembly to fail. Toyota corporate, however, told me that the two incidents were unrelated. After reading about the "accelerator pedal sticking" problem in the news lately, I wonder if my problem is not part of a much larger problem involving the ECM on Toyota cars. If I was not wise enough to shut off my engine when the problem occurred, a serious accident could easily have occurred. Please continue to investigate the ECM problem, as I believe that Toyota is not forthcoming with the full story here. The consumer also stated there weas an engine knock coming from the vehicle. The dealer repalced the tensioner, and belt. The water pump was wearing prematurely, there was a noise coming from the steering column when turning the wheel. The dealer replaced the intermediate steering shaft. The check engine light was on all the time. The dealer replaced the catalytic converter. The ECM and accelerator pedal were replaced. Updated IVOQ 04/15/11

- Cape Coral, FL, USA

problem #7

Dec 192009

Camry

  • 72,000 miles
I was driving forward slowly in a driveway and was braking lightly to stop before turning onto a street. Although I was braking, my car started to accelerate. I pressed the brake hard and it bucked briefly. Then I put it in park. The engine raced for a few more seconds and then dropped back to normal.

- Bloomington, MN, USA

problem #6

Jun 112009

Camry

  • 77,419 miles
Check engine light came on. Before I could get it serviced the vehicle started cutting off when I tried to accelerate and with in a day started cutting off when idling. This almost caused me to be in an accident because I was on the highway when the car cut off the first time and someone almost rear ended me. When my car cut off it decelerated so fast that the car behind me swerved to avoid me and ran off the road. The problem is occurring constantly and my car is not safe to drive at this point. I have had diagnostics run on it and I have been told that it needs a throttle body assembly replaced and we are trying to locate the part. When I researched the throttle body, I was shocked to see how many people are also having this problem on Toyota Camry' with relatively low mileage. My vehicle only has 77,000 miles.

- Columbus, GA, USA

problem #5

May 222009

Camry

  • 30,000 miles
I drive a 2004 Toyota Camry that has been perfectly maintained over the years with only 30,000 miles. I have never had any issue with it until I was driving one day and it just suddenly stalled on me. I was on a highway and was nearly rammed in the back. I had my car towed to a service station and they indicated that it was the throttle body position sensor. I then had my car towed to a Toyota dealership and they told me the exact same thing and that it would cost $1300. I have done extensive research and have found that this is a very common problem with the 2004 Camry. This matter needs to be addressed immediately!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was nearly killed on the highway because of my car suddenly stalling on me without any warning whatsoever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

- Charlotte, NC, USA

problem #4

Feb 012009

Camry

  • 69,500 miles
The check engine light came on 1/29/09 after car had been parked for about 5 hours. Upon starting the car, I pushed the accelerator down, but did not get any response from the vehicle. It warmed up. I turned the vehicle off and restarted. Accelerator was now working. I took the vehicle to check the diagnostic code. The code read that the throttle body could be failing. I started driving towards Toyota dealership and the check engine light went off. A few days went by with no problems. The next time it failed, I was driving down a main road and had to coast to a side street. Car did not stall, but would only idle. Again no response when pushing accelerator. I had the vehicle towed to the local Toyota dealership. They replaced the throttle body for over $1000 for a new part. They gave me the option to replace the part used for $150. I don't want this problem to happen again a year from now, so I opted to go with the new part. After searching online, this problem is much more widespread than Toyota will admit. It is a clear design flaw that needs to be corrected before there is a serious accident causing major injury or even death. There are at least 50 accounts of this occurring throughout the United States, and the response from Toyota appears to be the same in all instances.

- Florence, KY, USA

problem #3

Mar 302007

Camry 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 51,000 miles
Mil "check engine" light came on morning of Friday March 30, 1997. Car performed normal for most of day (35 miles) upon start the vehicle failed to respond to accelerator. Subsequent restarts vary from no response to sudden surge of acceleration to very low power and stalls.

- Arlington, TX, USA

problem #2

Apr 282006

Camry 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 61,000 miles
I purchased a 2004 certified Toyota Camry, with 51,000 miles on the unit. One week after purchase the service engine light came on. I took it back to dealership, they just said it was a sensor issue, and reset the light. The light continued to go on and off for the next 7 months. I took the Toyota the dealership for an oil change in April 2006, again I complained about the service engine light coming on and going off at times, they just reset it again, and did not document anything. On 4-28-06 the service engine came on early morning, and I heard a ticking sound from engine. I immediately called the service dept. At the same Toyota dealership, the service advisor told me to bring the car in since I was a few blocks away. I arrived 10 minutes later, and there was fluid starting to run out and steam starting to come from my hood. The technician checked the car out, and said that the water pump went out, and the engine block was damaged also. He explained these things can happen pretty quick. I purchased the car with Toyota extra warranty, and mpp extended warranty, and my vehicle is within the warranty periods for both, and both cover the damaged parts. But, Toyota refuses to fix the issue because they wont to put neglect on the driver. When the dealership admits on paper to the better business bureau of Indiana, that the driver made an honest effort to get this car in for servicing, and that the condition of the car before breakdown was really good.

- Naperville, IL, USA

problem #1

Jul 092004

Camry 6-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 200 miles
On two separate occasions vehicle commenced to accelerate while pulling into a parking space and applying the brakes. Vehicle was driven to the dealer, who was unable to duplicate the problem.

- Skillman, NJ, USA

Not what you are looking for?