Now Drew's Funky Hippie Wagon Project 87 CAMRY

PICK UP PENDING.....

Ive had five of these things.....theyre the V Strom of the four wheeled world



I got this wagon with a bad engine
Found a lo mile Celica engine..had it put in..along with countless new parts like timing belt..water pump..Toyota coolant.. Plugs cap rotor wires.. Cam & crank oil seals.. Trans filter kit & flush..
Brake pads & rotors..lines... Tie rod ends...drive axles.. Wipers...

The car had newish frt struts & lower control arms when I bought it in 07 here in Waco.




Notice...the rear hatch stays up on its own...no stick needed...

The car developed a problem with one drive axle ("mechanic"ally induced...loose bolts)
Couldnt get it diagnosed properly over several years (5-6!!)...& the transmission shops didnt wanna mess with an old car.
Funally found a mechanic thru work (Oreallys) who properly fixed it... (removed broken axle tip inside drive housing) But by now... The fuel tank needed draining...pump replaced... Engine fuel system de gunked...etc

Bottom line is ...Ive spent $4K in new parts...engine...labor...& the car itself... IT STILL WONT DRIVE..
CRANKS...IDLES ROUGHLY...BUT WONT ACCEPT THROTTLE WITH ANY LOAD...
IM DONE... $500 & YOU FINISH IT
The car itself rides great...shifts smooth... & the power accys work
Needs some (at least 2) tires badly before driving... Needs a battery too

Oh yeah....these things tow a small bike trailer nicely.... I have ..many times
I still have the trailer hitch & lighting adapter for it...if wanted.

Jus put a tye dyed Texas sticker on...& roll it.......huuuuuh


Sent from my A450TL using Tapatalk

Mr2mch said:

Ive had five of these things.....theyre the V Strom of the four wheeled world

I got this wagon with a bad engine
Found a lo mile Celica engine..had it put in..along with countless new parts like timing belt..water pump..Toyota coolant.. Plugs cap rotor wires.. Cam & crank oil seals.. Trans filter kit & flush..
Brake pads & rotors..lines... Tie rod ends...drive axles.. Wipers...

The car had newish frt struts & lower control arms when I bought it in 07 here in Waco.

Notice...the rear hatch stays up on its own...no stick needed...

The car developed a problem with one drive axle ("mechanic"ally induced...loose bolts)
Couldnt get it diagnosed properly over several years (5-6!!)...& the transmission shops didnt wanna mess with an old car.
Funally found a mechanic thru work (Oreallys) who properly fixed it... (removed broken axle tip inside drive housing) But by now... The fuel tank needed draining...pump replaced... Engine fuel system de gunked...etc

Bottom line is ...Ive spent $4K in new parts...engine...labor...& the car itself... IT STILL WONT DRIVE..
CRANKS...IDLES ROUGHLY...BUT WONT ACCEPT THROTTLE WITH ANY LOAD...
IM DONE... $500 & YOU FINISH IT
The car itself rides great...shifts smooth... & the power accys work
Needs some (at least 2) tires badly before driving... Needs a battery too

Oh yeah....these things tow a small bike trailer nicely.... I have ..many times

Jus put a tye dyed Texas sticker on...& roll it.......huuuuuh


Sent from my A450TL using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

Anybody????

Sent from my LGL62VL using Tapatalk

I had an '88 Camry.

It was honestly the most well-made, bullet-proof car I ever owned, the pinnacle of Toyota quality.

The only thing it could not withstand was my wife pulling out in front of people.

I wish I still had it, unwrecked. Amazing car.

That is an awesome project for a great price!

GLWS

I bet you could sleep nicely in the back if its not too hot out there. I dont see the tow hitch. Seems like you got most of the big stuff whooped. Someone should bite for 500.

The temptation is sooo great. That is probably the best years of the Camry... and station wagons "Are the Best New Thing". It is the same color as my 93 T-100.
What I really believe is: not much wrong, DO Not Give UP. You are a M/C guy, we fix stuff, It is in your blood! rh

Have you tried weed eating the engine compartment?

Ive tried weed eating

Sent from my LML212VL using Tapatalk

I really do need this car gone.....
Im tired of mowing around it

It was last running about 4-5 years ago
I had a well known local mechanic finally fix the front axle retention problem & he replaced the fuel pump/flushed the tank/cleaned the injectors....among other little things.

Sent from my LML212VL using Tapatalk

And it has the self-strangling seat belts!

That work...
Or...they were last time I drove it a few years back

Sent from my LML212VL using Tapatalk

No offense intended deleted

Thats cruel

This wagon deserves better than the scrap heap.
C'mon folks......its already had lots of stuff replaced.....jus needs some methological diagnostics to cure a problem thats probably sumthin simple.
Im jus not that good at diagnostics.

Sent from my LML212VL using Tapatalk

Project???

So you have not done anything to the fuel system?

I havent touched the car... All the work was done by local mechanics...last work on fuel system done in about 2016-17

I will let my brother know. He's a Gambler 500 Racer

I'll ask some buddies, we've been looking for a car for the 24 hours of Lemons and I don't know for sure we could resist this.

This thing has eaten $4k in parts & labor over the last 10-12 years.....

Now its time for it to sit at your table

FREE

I would love to have it Rod.

Perfect car for you Drew....
I have the trailer hitch & light adapter for it.
1989 Factory service manual w/wiring supplement....yeah...not exact..but......

Heck, that could replace my UTV on the farm !! Somewhere along the line it lost its legendary camry reliability. A good mechanic could reinstall it I'm sure.

Mr2mch said:

Perfect car for you Drew....
I have the trailer hitch & light adapter for it.
1989 Factory service manual w/wiring supplement....yeah...not exact..but......

Click to expand...

Excellent. Wonder if my wrecked Avalon parts might fit? I grew up driving Pinto station wagons, so this fits right in.

Go get it Drew!

I can say with some authority that you will appreciate things more driving an old car like this! I bought an 88 Volvo 240 and I'm kinda getting that old feeling back of when I was a teenager. It's very mechanical. Very deliberate. So different from the disconnected software appliances everybody drives today.

This 87 wagon was #3 of 4 Camry wagons Ive owned of this body style. Also had a sedan too. I dont have any pics of the 1st wagon...a 91 LE V6 which was exactly like the 91 blue LE V6 sedan that I bought from a guy in DFW area
Wagon #2 was a 90 4cyl base model I think. Bought off of ebay. I rode the 04 Strom 650 up to St Louis to pick it up. Took hitch & light kit from #1 wagon & a few tools with me.
Went to the car lot first...to finalise deal...installed hitch/light kit...drove the wagon 50 miles other side of St Louis to pick up a trailer I had previously bought to haul bike back home. Drove back to car lot ...loaded bike & drove home.
I sold the trailer...got my $ out of it no prob. I also sold that dk blue wagon due to water leaks to interior (windshield channel rust). It ended up abandoned in the Denver impound by the lady I sold it to. Title never transferred!
The 4th copper 4cyl LE wagon I got from a guy in Belton. He had gotten it from his parents & used to commute to TSTC.
Definately the highest mileage of the 5 Camrys at 235K+ ..but still goin fine when I sold it.

All of these Camrys were as dependable as a 24 hr day. Never left me stranded ... Not once.
Only reason this 87 still has problems...is due to the long time sitting while I was tryin to find a good mechanic to work on it.....& my lack of expendable funds.