2024 Toyota Camry: What to check before buying

Factory tires fail early and sometimes violently. Reports describe sidewall bulges, a crease across one tire, a tire that explodes at normal speed, and a full tread separation on the interstate that upsets stability and control. Failures show up between about 200 and 14,893 miles on original Bridgestone and Firestone tires. Dealers blame road hazards, and the tire maker declines warranty help in one case. One dealer ties the bulges to an unspecified voluntary recall but does not replace the tires.

Front air bags fail to deploy in two crashes. One is a 6-vehicle pileup with repeated front and rear impacts. The other is a frontal hit severe enough to total the car. Both drivers report head, neck, or back injuries afterward, and one says no warning light appeared beforehand. The third filing is not an air bag problem. It alleges the dealer withheld the car's ownership paperwork.

With adaptive cruise control on, Lane Trace Assist yanks the wheel left or right out of the lane. Sometimes it pulls toward vehicles the blind spot monitor has already detected. A dealer alignment does not fix it. A separate crash report with an injury describes the car steering itself with no lane departure warning. Another owner reports a roaring noise and steering wheel vibration starting around 3k miles. It gets worse in left turns, and finding it takes three dealer visits.

Rear passenger doors resist opening. Riders have to push the door outward while pulling the handle, and this has been the case since the car was new. A sunroof leaks in the rain within three months of purchase, and the dealer refuses to repair it. Another report traces a noise and vibration when pressing and releasing the brake to the driver's footwell. The dealer cannot find the cause. None of these reports involve a crash or injury.

The headlights aim low and do not reach far enough down the road, which makes night driving difficult. The dealer says the lights match every other 2024 Camry and that nothing can be done without a recall. A separate report describes melted plastic on the side mirrors, on the roof, and on the trim between the front and rear doors, with no cause given. No crashes are reported.

The second-row right seat belt fails to lock under hard braking at about 5 mph. The passenger hits the front seatback, and afterward the belt does not retract, leaving several feet of slack. Separately, the seat belt reminder lights and chimes come on at random for passengers who are already buckled. The owner reporting the reminder fault also complains of hazy, glaring headlights from other cars at night.

The engine can be shut off and the key removed while the shifter is still in Drive. No warning light or chime appears, and the car can roll away. The dealer, after consulting Toyota, calls this normal and says no fix exists. Another report describes hesitation. The engine revs when the gas pedal is pressed, but the car does not pull, which makes highway merges and turns into traffic risky.

The instrument panel lights fail during daytime driving at about 300 miles, and the gauges become hard to read. The dealer sends the owner to the manufacturer instead of repairing it. Another owner reports an air bag warning light that flashes too briefly for the dealer to diagnose, leaving doubt about whether the air bags will work. Both complaints remain unresolved, and neither involves a crash.