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1990 Toyota Camry problems

The most common problem on the 1990 Toyota Camry is seat belts. It has fewer complaints than a typical Camry model year.

Typical yearClose to a typical year
Owner complaints
134
Recalls
2
Service bulletins
28
Worst area
Seat belts
Fuel economy
19-26mpg

The worst 1990 Toyota Camry problems

Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.

Problems by type

Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.

Specific symptoms reported on the 1990 Toyota Camry

Door locks 20Seat belt 8Stalling 5

Recalls 2

Seats: front assembly: seat heater/coolerReported June 2, 2016 · 7,749 vehicles affected
What is wrong
Southeast Toyota Distributors, LLC (SET) is recalling certain 2005-2011 4Runner, Highlander, Sequoia, and Sienna, 2005-2010 Avalon and Tundra, 2006-2008 Camry Solara, 2006-2010 Highlander hybrid, 2006-2011 Rav4 and Tacoma, 2007-2010 FJ Cruiser, 2007-2011 Camry hybrid, 2009-2010 Venza, 2010-2012 Prius, 1988-1990 and 2005-2010 Camry, and 1989 and 2009-2010 Corolla vehicles equipped with aftermarket accessory seat heaters with a copper strand heating element. The electrical wiring in the seat heaters may be damaged when the seat cushion is compressed.
Risk
If damaged, the copper strand heating element may short circuit, increasing the risk of a fire.
Remedy
SET will notify owners, and dealers will disconnect the seat heaters, free of charge, and refund the purchase price of the seat heater accessory. The recall began on July 14, 2016. Owners may contact SET customer service at 1‑866‑405‑4226. SET number for this recall is SET16B.

Recall number 16V396000 · Recall details

Latches/locks/linkages: doors: latchReported September 22, 1992 · 554,910 vehicles affected
What is wrong
The electronic control unit (ecu) for the power door lock system can fail, causing the contacts to "weld", and resulting in door lock solenoid damage, with failure of the door to lock or unlock, even under manual operation.
Risk
If the door fails to open after ecu failure, vehicleoccupants would have increased difficulty exiting the vehicle in an emergency.
Remedy
Install an additional subcircuit relay control to prevent malfunction of original relays in the ecu.

Recall number 92V135000 · Recall details

See all 2 recalls for the 1990 Toyota Camry

Defect investigations

Leaking fuel tankOpened April 23, 1997, closed April 22, 1998

Cracks in the solder joint of the fuel fill or inlet pipe in the fuel tank allows liquid fuel to leak from the tank

EA97008

Leaking fuel tankOpened January 21, 1997, closed April 23, 1997

Cracks in the solder joint of the fuel fill or inlet pipe in the fuel tank allows liquid fuel to leak from the tank.

PE97003

Alleged battery explosionsOpened December 27, 1993, closed November 30, 1994

There is no summary currently available

EA93032

Alleged battery failuresOpened August 27, 1993, closed December 27, 1993

There is no summary currently available

PE93074

Stuck power door locksOpened May 8, 1992, closed May 12, 1993

There is no summary currently available

EA92013

Engine compartment firesOpened June 6, 1991, closed May 29, 1992

There is no summary currently available

EA91027

Engine compartment firesOpened February 7, 1991, closed June 6, 1991

There is no summary currently available

PE91042

Passive safety belt failsOpened May 29, 1990, closed February 28, 1992

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EA90028

Passive safety belt warninOpened December 15, 1989, closed May 29, 1990

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PE90027

Technical service bulletins for the 1990 Toyota Camry 28

Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.

See all 28 bulletins for the 1990 Toyota Camry

1990 Toyota Camry fuel economy

Official EPA estimates in miles per gallon (MPGe for electric). Ranges cover trims that share the same engine.

EngineDriveCityHighwayCombined
2.0L 4‑cylFWD21-2328-3124-26
2.0L 4‑cyl4WD1922-2520-21
2.5L 6‑cylFWD1723-2419

What 1990 Toyota Camry owners say

Most recent owner complaints, unedited.

Filed Apr 6, 2015 · Seat belts · PA · crash · 2 injuries

My husband was a passenger in this car when a dump truck smashed into the drivers side door, the impact caused the passenger side door to open which unlocked the seat belt which allowed my husband to be ejected from the car. He suffered broken back, crushed tibia, broken ribs....all because the door opened and the automatic seat belts unlocked when door opened. Seats where supposed to keep you in the car and not ejected from the car.

Filed Jul 29, 2014 · Locks · 54,310 miles · IL

Tl* the contact owns a 1990 toyota camry. The contact stated that while attempting to enter the vehicle through the front driver's side door, the door failed to unlock with the key and the contact had to enter through the front passenger's side door. The failure recurred on several occasions. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed with a bent lock mechanism. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 54,310.

Filed Mar 18, 2010 · Locks · WA

1990 toyota camry. Consumer states automatic door lock failure. *tgw the consumer stated the automatic door locks completely failed and she was unable to unlock any of the doors manually or with the key. This occurred during freezing temperatures, so at first she thought the locks were frozen. She used de-icer to no avail. Fortunately, her son was able to perform a maneuver to open the driver side door to get in the car. However, the next day, the consumer became trapped inside the vehicle and was unable to unlock/open any of the doors. The consumer had to open the driver side window and insert the key in the lock, turn it slightly and then pull on the outside door handle at the same time. Then on the way home, the door would not stay closed and she had to hold the door handle while driving with one hand. The consumer did some research and discovered a recall had been issued for over a half of million camry's for the same problem. The consumer contacted her local dealer and she was informed, her vehicle was not a part of the recall.

Filed Feb 28, 2010 · Acceleration · MI

Information redacted pursuant to the freedom of information act (foia), 5 u.s.c. 552(b)(6) while driving, my dad's car suddenly accelerated. He said that he had to drive with both feet on the accelerator. Later, he took the car to the dealership to have them look at it. The dealership said they repaired the problem, only to have the same thing occur again a few days later. Finally, my brother went to the dealership and had a heated discussion with the dealership. My dad went to pick the car up, but the dealership did not provide any paperwork to him on what repairs were made. He was not charged for the service but the dealership was adamant about not disclosing any details. It was only months later we found out that the cruise control was not functional. Sadly, we do not know if they disconnected it or it just stopped working. Either way, we have not experienced the sudden acceleration issue since then. I am not sure about the exact dates, but I am hoping that the dealership has record of this transaction. I am sending this email for notification purposes in light of everything that is going on with toyota camry. [xxx]

Filed Feb 24, 2010 · Tires · 162,500 miles · AZ

Tire tread failure separated. Bought tires used nov/dec 2009. Tire=general ameri g4s I have pictures.

Filed Nov 15, 2008 · Brakes · 238,000 miles · IL

My report is essentially identical to case #10153732 except we live in the midwest near chicago. We replaced the brake lines for the rear and now, several months later the front lines need to be replaced because of the same problem.

Filed Jun 16, 2006 · Locks · 151,000 miles · WI

Dear sir, I have a 1990 toyota camry and the driver side lock doesn't lock or unlock. I have been experiencing this since march of 2005. The lock doesn't work manually also I.e. Inserting a key from outside trying to open the door doesn't open it. This has been a lot of discomfort coming in and out of the car as I need to use the passenger side door. I have seen on the federal safety agency website that there was a recall notice for the same defect that I have been experiencing for the past one year with my car. When I mentioned the issue to toyota they said that my VIN number does not qualify for the recall. I wanted to complain this issue and if there are more number of cases like mine then may be toyota can consider our case. With best regards, -raja.

Filed Mar 26, 2006 · Brakes · 130,450 miles · NY

Toyota camry - situation where the rear brake lines (covered and cannot be seen) have corroded through. My camry recently had one of the lines fail (both brake lines and 3 fuel lines have severe corrosion under the shield) and I'm lucky I was able to stop without hitting anything or anybody. This is a very poor design for such areas as mine (syracuse, ny) where there is significant salt use during the winter months. The shield actually promotes corrosion by retaining winter slush, mud and salt. Toyota shows a complete of concern over such a potentially dangerous situation that is not covered by either a service bulletin or by a recommended inspection per the maintenance book. Toyota designed such an inadequate brake line system for this model for any area that uses salt during the winter months without even a warning to check under the plastic guards for corrosion, which could result in a failure or inability to stop.

Filed Mar 14, 2006 · Locks · 168,000 miles · OR

Dt*: the contact stated intermittently the front driver side door lock fails to unlock. There is a the federal safety agency recall, # 92v135000, regarding the door locks. The vehicle has the same problems as indicated in the recall; however it is not included in the recall due to the VIN. The rear windows failed to open. Updated 05/02/06.

Filed Jan 30, 2006 · Fuel system · GA · crash

While driving slowly out of parking the vehicle acclerated at full speed and crashed into telephone pole. The driver did not cause this

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Compare the 1990 Toyota Camry

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Other model years

19901991199219931994199519961997199819992000200120022003200420052006200720082009201020112012201320142015201620172018201920202021202220232024

Questions about the 1990 Toyota Camry

Is the 1990 Toyota Camry reliable?

Owners have filed 134 complaints about the 1990 Toyota Camry, fewer than a typical Camry model year.

What is the most common problem with the 1990 Toyota Camry?

Seat belts, with 24 complaints. Next is body (20).

How many recalls does the 1990 Toyota Camry have?

2 recalls, covering seats and latches/locks/linkages.

What year does the Toyota Camry have the most seat belts problems?

The Toyota Camry model years with the most seat belts complaints are 2005 (46 complaints), 2007 (36 complaints) and 1998 (35 complaints).

What gas mileage does the 1990 Toyota Camry get?

Official estimates for the 1990 Toyota Camry range from 19 to 26 mpg combined. The most efficient version (2.0L 4-cyl, FWD) gets 21-23 city and 28-31 highway.

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