My Favorite Ride: An old Toyota Camry with 250,000 miles and ice-cold A/C? Sold!

Laura Lane, The Herald-Times
·4 min read

The summer of 2023, it was a hot one.

The air conditioning in my 2003 Honda Accord had stopped working the year before. Unwilling to pay the $800 two mechanics said it would cost to make cold air come out of the vents, I drove with windows and sunroof open, creating a breeze.

This past July was sweltering, so I decided to invest in that new compressor, and found out the cost was up to $1,000.

I'd heard national news stories about the increased cost of car parts and repairs and shouldn't have been surprised. Yet I couldn't justify a thousand bucks for temporary comfort. Winter always comes in Indiana.

Then I met a woman who had her car in for some work at Mission Auto, where I have taken so many mechanically questionable vehicles of mine over the past two decades. It was 100 degrees that day, and I mentioned that my car had no A/C.

She was taken aback, then mentioned an older Toyota Camry she'd been wanting to sell. She said the exterior was rough; the car had been repaired after a few wrecks. The paint on two doors is a different shade of tan, and the back bumper has a big indentation. Rust is eating away the rear wheel wells.

There's been a good amount of body work done on my 2001 Toyota Camry over the years, all before I purchased the car in the summer of 2023. If I graze a parking garage wall or back over a trash can, no worries! This photo shows the car's worst side.
There's been a good amount of body work done on my 2001 Toyota Camry over the years, all before I purchased the car in the summer of 2023. If I graze a parking garage wall or back over a trash can, no worries! This photo shows the car's worst side.

But the air conditioning, she said, blew ice cold. The car was parked at her house. She gave me her phone number and address.

I asked Mission Auto office manager Trisha Villasana to look up the Camry's service records, which showed regular maintenance and standard mechanical repairs.

When I asked about the timing belt and water pump, she said they had been recently replaced. Valve gaskets were pretty new, as were the brakes. The transmission was sound. The tires had good tread and the oil had been changed every 3,000 miles or so.

The woman had several cars and was a regular customer. "Any of them she offers to sell, you should buy," Villasana advised. "She takes excellent care of her vehicles. If there's even a small leak, she brings them in."

I called her right then and drove out to see the 22-year-old Camry. I took it on a test drive with the A/C cranked up high, vents pointing my way.

The 243,588 miles on the odometer didn't concern me — I once took over a friend's 10-year-old Subaru Legacy Outback station wagon with 284,762 miles.

I knew this Toyota had been taken care of. It purred when started, sailed along on I-69 at 75 mph smooth as can be. The steering and alignment, steady.

I bought the car right then. For $1,800, I got not only as-promised-ice-cold A/C, but an entire dependable car to go along with.

This 2001 Toyota Camry has traveled 250,000 miles.
This 2001 Toyota Camry has traveled 250,000 miles.

It's nice having a back-up vehicle, especially since the driver's side door on my Accord suddenly won't open from the inside. This means I have to crawl across and get out the passenger door. I'm wondering how much fixing that will cost.

The doors on the Camry? They work fine. I've been driving it to town and back a lot.

Last week, on Thursday, I realized the odometer was on the brink of turning over to 250,000 miles. I have documented the transition here.

Driving on Rogers Street in downtown Bloomington last week, I realized a major automotive milestone was about to occur: the odometer on my 2001 Toyota Camry was going to reach a quarter of a million miles.
Driving on Rogers Street in downtown Bloomington last week, I realized a major automotive milestone was about to occur: the odometer on my 2001 Toyota Camry was going to reach a quarter of a million miles.
My "new" 23-year-old Toyota Camry has done some traveling in her time, 250,000 miles worth.
My "new" 23-year-old Toyota Camry has done some traveling in her time, 250,000 miles worth.

In the seven months I've owned the Toyota, it's taken me 6,412 miles. This winter, I am appreciating the heater, which really heats up.

Thanks, Shermeen. I'm taking good care of your car.

I'd like to write about some other old and high-mileage cars and trucks still on the road. Here's the plan:

If you have a vehicle that's older than 20 and has more than 250,000 miles on the odometer, send me a few pictures: one of the odometer, one from the car or truck's best side and one where it shows its age.

Distinctions such a this peeling paint on the edge of the trunk lid lend character to old cars like my 2001 Camry and make them easy to locate in a parking lot.
Distinctions such a this peeling paint on the edge of the trunk lid lend character to old cars like my 2001 Camry and make them easy to locate in a parking lot.

Tell me the story.

Email submissions to llane@heraldt.com. Or send in an actual envelope to: My Favorite Ride, 1840 S. Walnut St. Ste 110, Bloomington, Indiana, 47401.

Come back next week, when I'll tell the story of that all-wheel-drive 1998 Subaru station wagon with 284,762 miles. Spoiler alert: it got smashed by a tree that fell during a thunderstorm.

Have a story to tell about a car or truck? Contact My Favorite Ride Reporter Laura Lane at llane@heraldt.com or 812-318-5967.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: There's more road ahead for this 2001 Toyota Camry with 250,000 miles