Corolla V.S. Camry

[steppinthrax]

I'm looking to get a used car. I'm looking at the Toyota Camry. but the Corolla looks tempting due to it's lower price. My dad had a Camry and I remember it was a 95 he put 212K on it before he got rid of it. With just 212K the car had nor major problems. But I remember the car drove real smooth almost if you were driving the car remotely. The Corolla is a smaller car it also looks a little on the cheap side. Does it drive rougher? Is there wind noise? Is is as smooth? Is the interior a good as the camry? I'm looking at year range 95 to 2000.

I heard from my wife and her friends that the corolla is not as good

 

[LeiZaK]

Camry > Corolla
You usually get what you pay for.

 

[overst33r]

I have never driven a Camry, but in my 2000 Corolla, the wind and tire noise at highway speeds can become bothersome. The car is also susceptible to wind gusts and such. For the 14k miles I have owned it, it has given me no problems. Also with the 5-speed, it's decently quick in the first couple gears. Personally I like the maneuverability of a smaller car though.

 

[steppinthrax]

Originally posted by: mariok2006
I have never driven a Camry, but in my 2000 Corolla, the wind and tire noise at highway speeds can become bothersome. The car is also susceptible to wind gusts and such. For the 14k miles I have owned it, it has given me no problems. Also with the 5-speed, it's decently quick in the first couple gears. Personally I like the maneuverability of a smaller car though.

This is what I've heard. I kind of flelt this was the case considering it's s smaller car.

 

[slatr]

Interstate Driving/Commuting - Camry

City driving/Little Commuting - Corolla

The Corolla is not a bad car, but it will straining a bit to drive 70-75 so you lose the mpg advantage.

 

[overst33r]

Originally posted by: slatr
Interstate Driving/Commuting - Camry

City driving/Little Commuting - Corolla

The Corolla is not a bad car, but it will straining a bit to drive 70-75 so you lose the mpg advantage.

I have average 38mpg on my last tank, which was about 70hwy/30city. I usually travel between 65-80mph, depending on the flow of traffic.

I doubt a Camry could come close to that, even with the anemic 4 cylinder.

 

[slatr]

No it sure won't. Our Camry gets around 30-31 or so average.

I am suprised you get that good gas mileage at that speed. We drove a Corolla as a loaner and it seemed to be taxed out on the interstate.

 

[overst33r]

Originally posted by: slatr
No it sure won't. Our Camry gets around 30-31 or so average.

I am suprised you get that good gas mileage at that speed. We drove a Corolla as a loaner and it seemed to be taxed out on the interstate.

It's probably because I have a manual transmission, that's a difference of ~5% in translated power...

In this case, that is about 6hp or so... I doubt it would make much of a difference at hwy speeds though.

Also I am not sure how the gear ratios stack up to the newer model, but I doubt they have changed much over the years.

 

[CrackRabbit]

I have a friend with a 98 Camry. Other than the mushy ride and kind of weak engine it seems to be a fine car.

 

[athithi]

I test drove both back in '98 before buying the Corolla. The 4 cylinder Camry was way underpowered and it felt like driving a boat. The Corolla (from the 90s at least), is a pretty small car, plenty of wind/road noise, wobbles in high winds, etc., But it is a great car, handles very well in city commutes - very smooth drive and very, very, very reliable. In the 8.5 years I owned it, I didn't have a single problem. I recently sold it for a shade under $6k - more than even the KBB price. But then again, I only had 70k miles on it. If you need the space, the Camry is probably a better option.

 

[vi edit]

I'd go with a Camry from a comfort, safety, and cargo/people hauling standpoint. It's just a bigger, safer car. To me that's more important than a couple extra MPG on the highway.

 

[zoiks]

Originally posted by: athithi
I test drove both back in '98 before buying the Corolla. The 4 cylinder Camry was way underpowered and it felt like driving a boat. The Corolla (from the 90s at least), is a pretty small car, plenty of wind/road noise, wobbles in high winds, etc., But it is a great car, handles very well in city commutes - very smooth drive and very, very, very reliable. In the 8.5 years I owned it, I didn't have a single problem. I recently sold it for a shade under $6k - more than even the KBB price. But then again, I only had 70k miles on it. If you need the space, the Camry is probably a better option.

If you drove only 70k miles in 8.5 years then I'd say you didn't drive it very much.

Toyota quality is going to the pits nowadays. And the very very very reliable days are gone.

 

[dullard]

Don't overthink this. Do you need/want the extra space or not? Simple as that. Camry is bigger, and thus it costs more to buy and to use. If the space need/want is greater than the costs, get the Camry. If not, get the Corolla. Or better yet, get a Prizm. Basically the same car as the Corolla for far less money.

 

[athithi]

Originally posted by: zoiks

Originally posted by: athithi
I test drove both back in '98 before buying the Corolla. The 4 cylinder Camry was way underpowered and it felt like driving a boat. The Corolla (from the 90s at least), is a pretty small car, plenty of wind/road noise, wobbles in high winds, etc., But it is a great car, handles very well in city commutes - very smooth drive and very, very, very reliable. In the 8.5 years I owned it, I didn't have a single problem. I recently sold it for a shade under $6k - more than even the KBB price. But then again, I only had 70k miles on it. If you need the space, the Camry is probably a better option.

If you drove only 70k miles in 8.5 years then I'd say you didn't drive it very much.

Toyota quality is going to the pits nowadays. And the very very very reliable days are gone.

Actually, I drove 16k miles the first year, mostly on 96 miles per day commutes, and then we were driving it only a couple of miles a day for the next several years with occasional road trips from DC to NY. The last 3-4 years I was driving about 9 miles each way to work and back. That's still not a lot, I know. But every Corolla owner I've spoken to has unfailingly mentioned its reliability and I haven't seen any evidence to the contrary. I don't know if Toyota's quality started deteriorating as far back as '98 when I bought my car, but it served me very well and in 8.5 years there wasn't a single day I got into the car wondering if I would have any problems with it. To a non-car enthusiast like me, that symbolizes reliability.

I also bought an Accord about 8 months after I bought the Corolla and when I wanted to upgrade to a minivan, I wanted to sell the Accord and keep the Corolla. The only winning argument was that the Corolla would be a very tight squeeze for a family of four (with 2 child seats) whenever the Odyssey was not available. In other words, I felt safer and surer driving the Corolla than the Accord.

It's just my opinion. Like I said, I am no car enthusiast.

 

[steppinthrax]

Originally posted by: athithi

Originally posted by: zoiks

Originally posted by: athithi
I test drove both back in '98 before buying the Corolla. The 4 cylinder Camry was way underpowered and it felt like driving a boat. The Corolla (from the 90s at least), is a pretty small car, plenty of wind/road noise, wobbles in high winds, etc., But it is a great car, handles very well in city commutes - very smooth drive and very, very, very reliable. In the 8.5 years I owned it, I didn't have a single problem. I recently sold it for a shade under $6k - more than even the KBB price. But then again, I only had 70k miles on it. If you need the space, the Camry is probably a better option.

If you drove only 70k miles in 8.5 years then I'd say you didn't drive it very much.

Toyota quality is going to the pits nowadays. And the very very very reliable days are gone.

Actually, I drove 16k miles the first year, mostly on 96 miles per day commutes, and then we were driving it only a couple of miles a day for the next several years with occasional road trips from DC to NY. The last 3-4 years I was driving about 9 miles each way to work and back. That's still not a lot, I know. But every Corolla owner I've spoken to has unfailingly mentioned its reliability and I haven't seen any evidence to the contrary. I don't know if Toyota's quality started deteriorating as far back as '98 when I bought my car, but it served me very well and in 8.5 years there wasn't a single day I got into the car wondering if I would have any problems with it. To a non-car enthusiast like me, that symbolizes reliability.

I also bought an Accord about 8 months after I bought the Corolla and when I wanted to upgrade to a minivan, I wanted to sell the Accord and keep the Corolla. The only winning argument was that the Corolla would be a very tight squeeze for a family of four (with 2 child seats) whenever the Odyssey was not available. In other words, I felt safer and surer driving the Corolla than the Accord.

It's just my opinion. Like I said, I am no car enthusiast.

This is generally what I'm hearing from people but I don't thing the quality of toyotas have dimineshed any more then American Cars. All in all if you want a high quality car with few problems you look at Toyota, Nissan, Honda etc... I'm looking at the older camry's though Like I see a lot of 95 Toyota Camrys (good condition) with around 60 to 70K on them. They look great.

 

[PetunZ]

I have 122,000 miles on my '02 Corolla and it's still running like a champ. I'm hoping for 300K miles.

We still have a '96 Camry (V6), along with a newly purchased '07 Camry. Of course there are differences in ride quality, leg room, trunk space, etc. between the cars (Corolla < '96 Camry < '07 Camry), but all three are reliable and perform up to (if not better than) my expectations.

I'd hate to be the 5th passenger in my corolla for long trips, but in a Camry I don't think I'd have much of a problem. I think that's the main difference for me. Oh, and of course the engine power in the Camry makes a difference going uphill with 3 other adult passengers on the freeway.

 

[Lithium381]

Originally posted by: PetunZ
I have 122,000 miles on my '02 Corolla and it's still running like a champ. I'm hoping for 300K miles.

We still have a '96 Camry (V6), along with a newly purchased '07 Camry. Of course there are differences in ride quality, leg room, trunk space, etc. between the cars (Corolla < '96 Camry < '07 Camry), but all three are reliable and perform up to (if not better than) my expectations.

I'd hate to be the 5th passenger in my corolla for long trips, but in a Camry I don't think I'd have much of a problem. I think that's the main difference for me. Oh, and of course the engine power in the Camry makes a difference going uphill with 3 other adult passengers on the freeway.

Yep, don't even think of a 5 person road trip in a corolla! i did one in an accord, and even that seemed a little cramped. i've been thinking of a corolla for myself too, since my MPG right now is slightly sub-par

 

[0roo0roo]

current generation corolla just doesn't compete well with its competition.
camry does, and its a new model.