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CarComplaints.com Notes: Beware of the NHTSA complaint data for the 2005 Camry. It is almost certainly misleading.

The problem with NHTSA data for the 2005 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 2005 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:
142 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
70 / 5
Average Mileage:
38,920 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.

2005 Toyota Camry engine problems

engine problem

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2005 Toyota Camry Owner Comments (Page 9 of 13)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #87

Oct 162006

Camry 4-cyl

  • miles

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

My father was driving a 2006 Camry. He was backing into a parking spot at a supermarket shopping center in palisades park, NJ. He decided to go forward and then back up again. When he attempted to go forward slowly and briefly, the accelerator opened full-throttle. He attempted to brake as hard as he could but the car kept accelerating. He hit two people while trying to bring the car under control and then slammed into a long row of shopping carts. The car shut off once it collided with the carts. One of the persons was killed. The other sustained a broken arm. The car was examined by the palisades park police and found to have no observable defect with the accelerator. My father had the car fixed and ended up selling it, so it is still on the road. I would have to search his files and see if any information was saved about the car. Perhaps his VIN # would be traceable through his former insurance company, all-state, or the palisades NJ police dept. Updated 03/14/10 updated 08/06/10 update 9/19/2011

- Old Tappan, NY, USA

problem #86

Feb 072010

Camry

  • 72,000 miles
I have a 2005 Camry. The car started off fine and within a minute it did not accelerate even with the gas pedal down all the way. The engine check light was on and I let it idle for 10 mins. It started running fine and there was no longer the check engine light. Now the car was able to accelerate. 4 days later, I stopped at a traffic light and made a turn to the left and the car slowed down and did not accelerate thereafter.

- Richmond, VA, USA

problem #85

Feb 122010

Camry

  • 39,100 miles
I own a 2005 Camry. I was driving on I 95 at 60 mph when the car lunged twice, then stopped accelerating and went from 60 to 0 in ten seconds making it difficult to coast to a stop on the side of the very busy highway. After towing car to the dealer nearest me, it was diagnosed as the throttle body failure. I wa told it would cost 1,000 to replace it. My car only has 39,000 miles on it. The warranty did not cover this part. Then the dealer repairman said he would clean it out for $145 which he did. He said this has to be done every 30,000 miles because of a design problem. I did some research and have found Toyota Camry 02-06 have this flawed part and there are many complaints over the internet documented. I felt very unsafe when the incident happened and now am anxious that it will happen again. My question is: Why did the dealer want to see if it was covered under our warranty we paid for extra by another insurance company (ie., not toyotal mfr. Warranty) and when they found out it was not covered, they just cleaned it and said it was fine now? as a consumer, I am not wanting to go through the experience of my car just abruptly stopping like that and being left on the side of the road again.

- Cocoa, FL, USA

problem #84

Mar 052005

Camry

  • 5,200 miles

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

My 5 month old Toyota Camry SE V6 2005 with 5,200 miles on odometer suddenly accelerated when approaching slowly into driveway as usual for nearly 20 years of my residence. The Camry was only stopped on itself after it hit the wall of rocky ledge standing at driveway's end. I felt very lucky and god blessed because if this accident happened on the road its consequences is very horrible beyond any imagination of fatalities.after this accident, I notified the Toyota corporation and they answered me that they found nothing defective with this Camry after an investigation. I was really disappointed at Toyota Corp action. Repair of damage cost more than 7,000 dollars and I must pay surcharge since 2005 until now on my insurance policy. At that time, I was completely given up because Toyota is a very powerful corporation and my voice unheard and unnoticed by anyone.

- Malden, MA, USA

problem #83

Oct 062009

Camry

  • 48,742 miles
On October 6, 2009, I drove my 2005 Camry into the parking lot making a right turn and coasting into my usual parking space with my foot lightly on the brake. As I approached the curb, my Camry suddenly accelerated, jumping the approximately six-inch curb, and hitting a tree approximately six feet from the curb while continuing to accelerate, after which I turned off the car with my key. I called my insurance agent, then aaa to have the car towed to our body shop, in-and-out auto body in gaithersburg, md. I told the insurance company I didn't know what had happened, that my Camry had suddenly accelerated toward the tree, and asked the body shop to check the brakes and accelerator. After they repaired my Camry (bill was $5321), the body shop confirmed that the brakes and accelerator were working as expected. I drove the Camry home but later my husband told me of reports he found on the internet of 'sudden acceleration' by Toyota, particularly 2005 Camry, and I no longer trust this car and will not drive it.

- North Potomac, MD, USA

problem #82

Jan 122010

Camry

  • 40,000 miles
Vehicle suddenly accelerated for no reason.

- Marietta, OH, USA

problem #81

Jan 122010

Camry

  • 40,000 miles

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

My 2005 Camry suddenly accelerated for no apparent reason.

- Marietta, OH, USA

problem #80

Jun 052005

Camry

  • 5,000 miles
My parents were both killed in a 2005 Toyota Camry. The investigating officer informed me that my mother had not slowed down and was traveling at a high rate of speed when leaving the road. There was not any indication that she tried slowing down. At the time I asked for an investigation of the vehicle but was told the damage was so severe there was no way of determining if there was a problem with the car. I do have photos of the car taken 2 days after the accident updated 02/13/10 updated 02/16/10. Updated 03/10/10 updated 07/12/10 update 9/19/2011

- Bradenton, FL, USA

problem #79

Mar 102005

Camry

  • miles
2005 Camry at low throttle positions 35-40 mph rpms jump 200 and then returns. This happens consistantly. I have written Toyota three letters and they have blown me off each time. I still have copies of the letters. Now that Toyota is fessing up, perhaps they will fix this condition as it unnerving if not dangerous. I am putting in a date as your form will not let me continue although this happens all the time.

- Austin, TX, USA

problem #78

Sep 192006

Camry

  • miles
Because the brake pedal and the accelerator pedal on my 2005 Camry le are close to each other and engage at the same level, it is all too easy for a foot to overlap the brake pedal and depress the accelerator and brake at the same time. Unless I am unusually vigilant about my foot position, this can happen, and the car accelerates instead of braking. This has happened often, both in city and highway driving. My mechanic has tried his best to raise the level of the brake pedal engagement, but without success; there is no brake adjustment on this model. My Toyota dealer says, too, that there is no adjustment possible and refuses to modify the brake pedal to raise it above the accelerator level. This is a design problem, but it occurs to me that at least some of the incidents of inadvertent acceleration may be due to this fault. If the car accelerates while you are braking, one instinctively presses harder on the brake pedal, which also further depresses the accelerator pedal. This has not resulted in an accident in my case. It seems like the simple addition of a thicker pad on the brake pedal might correct the defect.

- Garrett Park, MD, USA

problem #77

Feb 022010

Camry

  • 38,335 miles

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

2005 Toyota Camry with 3.0L V6 engine. I recently braked my Toyota Camry on the street next to my house, parallel to the curbing. Then, I put the vehicle in reverse, made a 180 degree turn and backed between the two large bushes on either side of my driveway. I must back very slowly into the opening. After I had the vehicle between the 2 bushes at the top of the driveway, I braked the vehicle, still in reverse, so that I could straighten out and proceed slowly to park next to my husband's truck at the end of the driveway. Suddenly, the vehicle jolted and I found myself practically flying backwards. The vehicle went back about 25 feet, then took out our fence, and half of our 6 foot trellis. However, it did not stop there. It practically flew into our next door neighbor's yard, did a 180 behind the neighbor's house, finally stopping at the bottom of a hill in some snow two doors down from my house. During this time, I had no control over the vehicle. Because of the recent Toyota recalls, I thought I had programmed myself as to what to do, if my vehicle went out of control. However, going in reverse at a high speed is something different. It completely disoriented me, so that I did not drop the vehicle into nuetral or turn off the key. I have been backing into my driveway the same way for 45 years, and never experienced any problem because I do so at such a slow pace. My vehicle must have gone about 150 feet before stopping, and I felt like it was possessed. Fortunately, no one was injured, but there is $5,000 worth of damage to my vehicle. After reading about similar experiences on your site, I truly feel the 2005 Camry should be included in the recall. I do not feel that I could trust it again.

- South Portland, ME, USA

problem #76

Feb 052010

Camry

  • 48,000 miles
Constant "jumping" at stoplights. I always have to check to see if someone has bumped into me from behind. This has been an ongoing problem since I purchased the car in 2005.

- Naperville, IL, USA

problem #75

Jun 222005

Camry

  • 5 miles
I own a 2005 Toyota Camry xle V6, purchased from koons tysons Toyota, va in August 2004. While driving home the car gave me a feeling of an imminent stall as I would press the gas pedal from a dead stop, after coasting and upon trying to accelerate to change lanes. I had an occasion to go back to the dealer to pick up some accessories that I was missing initially. I brought my driving experience to the attention of the salesperson who in turn asked a service technician. The explanation I was given was that 'this year model car does not have a linkage cable but a sensor at the gas pedal; upon depressing the pedal, it sends a signal to the computer and the computer does all the rest, hence the hesitation is normal'. the driving experience has been the same for my wife and son. They are scared to drive this car! in January 2005 the car was at laurel Toyota in laurel, md for oil service and I mentioned my concern to the service advisor who in turn got me a similar explanation as stated above from his technician. I subsequently called Toyota national customer relations who told me that someone will call me from koons tysons Toyota and they gave me case #. I had a call from Mr. A representative from the dealership and he asked me to bring the car in today at 10 a.M. to be seen by his technician. The car was test driven by Mr. Melvin beavers who agreed with me that there is hesitation as you press the gas pedal and he offered that other owners of the same year model car have complained of this problem as well. His explanation however was the same regarding the redesign that eliminated the accelerator linkage cable and that the behavior is typical and normal for this year's model? this is dangerous and unacceptable behavior of the car in case of a lane change or any other sudden acceleration siituation! I would like Toyota motor sales, usa to address and remedy this extremely dangerous design flaw.

- Silver Spring, MD, USA

problem #74

Dec 012008

Camry

  • 29,363 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Camry. While driving approximately 20 mph, the vehicle was began coasting although the engine was running the vehicle responded normally when the accelerator pedal was engaged. When he attempted to stop the vehicle, he noticed the hesitation and suddenly the vehicle would accelerate rapidly. The failure occurred three times at a traffic light. A local mechanic stated that the throttle position sensor was out of range and needed to be replaced. The sensor was replace at the owners expense. Since the vehicle was repaired there was minimal hesitation when the vehicle is driven at low speeds. He has not called the manufacturer. The current mileage was approximately 33,000. The failure mileage was 29,363.

- Banning, CA, USA

problem #73

Jul 222009

Camry

  • 38,000 miles
Accelerator stuck and car advanced. Significant damaged avoided by swerving auto to miss house & go through landscaping. Car taken into repair shop next day & nothing found. Contacted Toyota & no help at that time. Therefore, no corrective action. Rugs were not an issue. This year & model is not part of the recall but I believe it should be.

- No Easton, MA, USA

problem #72

Nov 192009

Camry

  • 0 miles
The contact has a 2005 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that they have experienced the acceleration problem since the vehicle was purchased. The caller stated that the acceleration problem was not bad until the surge they had on November 19, 2009. The vehicle surge forward and the contact crashed into another car. The failure and current mileage was unknown.

- Towaco, NJ, USA

problem #71

Aug 302009

Camry

  • 32,000 miles
On August 30, 2009, I was backing out of my daughter's driveway, when the car suddenly accelerated. I was unable to stop the vehicle with the brakes. The car swerved onto my daughter's front lawn and propelled itself onto her neighbor's lawn, where it wedged between 2 tress. The tires continued to spin when I was wedged and someone leaned into the car and turned the ignition off. I have witnesses to the accident. The car was repaired at Suburban Toyota-Scion in troy, mi. This car is a 2005 Toyota Camry.

- Madison Heights, MI, USA

problem #70

Jun 202009

Camry

  • 53,550 miles
I had pulled my 2005 Camry xle into my garage stall and was at a complete stop. I let off the brake to inch forward another inch or two when all of a sudden my vehicle had a high power surge. The vehicle sounded like the rpms went to the max immediately, my car took off at full power and accelerated at a high speed into my garage wall. I slammed on the brake as hard as I possibly could, prior to hitting the garage wall. The garage wall was forced off the foundation by the impact and at that point my car stopped. This has only happened once, I had no idea how to explain to the insurance company what had happened since I was in complete shock and really had no good explanation for the insurance company how my car accelerated on it's own. My vehicle had auto body damage as well as property damage to my home. I did not contact Toyota at this time, searched the internet to find other 2005 Camry owners that have experienced the same situation, so I asked the insurance company if they have heard of this happening to others and they indicated yes. I had a witness in the garage who was thankfully not standing in front of my vehicle when it accelerated. The witness also heard the massive power surge of the vehicle.

- Hastings, MN, USA

problem #69

Jan 212006

Camry 4-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 5,311 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Toyota Camry. While driving 25 mph with his foot on the brake pedal, the vehicle accelerated on its own between 70 and 80 mph. He then applied a lot of pressure to the brake pedal which only functioned when the contact shifted into neutral gear. The dealer stated that there was nothing wrong with the vehicle since they could not duplicate the failure which occurred approximately 10 times. Previously the cruise control was repaired when the failure occurred. The failure mileage was 5311 and the current mileage was 21825. Updated 3/16/10 the consumer stated on one occasion, he struck a curb and caused damage to the vehicle. Updated 07/27/10

- Alburn , NY, USA

problem #68

Jan 232010

Camry

  • 48,643 miles
While I was pulling into a parking space in a parking deck, my 2005 Camry crashed into the wall at the end of the space because of sudden or unintended acceleration. Extensive damage was done to the bumper and hood, but there were no injuries to me or my passenger. This happened in arlington, va on 1/23/10.

- Arlington, VA, USA

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