1992 Toyota Camry Problems

What owners report

Complaints on this model year come largely from long-term owners of high-mileage cars, and the biggest single theme is the gas struts that hold the engine hood open no longer holding it up. Owners also describe airbags deploying with no impact, sudden or unintended acceleration at low speeds, and smoke or flames from the stereo amplifier located under the passenger seat. Filings range from the 1990s through the 2010s, so many of them describe a vehicle that is now decades old.

1. 1
   Body and structure

   Hood and trunk lift supports won't hold open

   • 366 complaints (65%)
   • typically at 4.7 yrs old
   • 13 mention a crash, fire or injury
   • filed 1995–2004

   Owners describe the gas struts that hold the engine hood open losing their hold, so the hood sinks or drops suddenly while they are checking fluids or working underneath. Many say they resorted to propping the hood with a stick or having someone hold it, and a few report being struck on the head or shoulder. Some owners say the dealer replaced the struts under warranty, while others describe the problem returning after a few years. One owner reports a trunk lid that will not stay up when the car is parked on an uneven surface. Complaints of this kind appear from the 1990s through later years, frequently with no mileage listed, and several owners describe the hood dropping repeatedly over years of ownership.

   What to check: Lift the hood and let go: if it sinks or needs a prop to stay up, the struts are worn. Replacement struts are inexpensive, but check the hood hinges and latch as well.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Hood assembly is help open by gas pistons. When I first bought the car in 1994 the engine hood would stay up for 10 to 15 seconds and then come crashing down suddenly. There was just enough time to get your body under it. I got struck on the left shoulder the first time. I complained to the dealer and they changed the gas pistons. This was 6 years ago. Several weeks ago the same thing happned to me. I lifted the hood. It statyed up. I went to check the oil and the hood came crashing down on me. Fortunately I got out of the way. …”

   NHTSA complaint #729378, filed 2000-08

   “When servicing under the engine hood, the hood stays up for a little while and then falls down. Consumer states the hood will only stay in the up position briefly, he has to use a stick to keep the hood open.”

   NHTSA complaint #804201, filed 1996-10
2. 2
   Transmission and drivetrain

   Sudden acceleration and sticking throttle

   Mentioned in 9 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe the car surging forward without the accelerator being pressed, sometimes right after shifting into drive or reverse and sometimes while cruising at steady speed. Several say the gas pedal itself stuck down and that firm, repeated braking was needed to slow the car, and a few report the cruise control failing to disengage when the brake was applied. In some accounts the engine speed hangs above idle for several seconds after the throttle is released. One owner reports a mechanic disabling the cruise control as a workaround. Reported from roughly 85,000 to 150,000 miles, at speeds from about 15 to 55 mph, often just after shifting into gear or while using cruise control.

   What to check: During a test drive, check that the throttle pedal returns freely and that idle drops promptly when you lift off. Ask whether the cruise control has been serviced, and try it at low speed on a quiet road.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “My 1992 Camry, v-6, experiences sudden acceleration when I either put the car into drive from park, or if I just touch the throttle and release it, the engine RPM's increase over 1000 rpms and remain high for 15 secs rather than dropping back in sync with the throttle release. Similar symptons with the newer camrys.”

   NHTSA complaint #10062090, filed 2004-03, 85,000 miles

   “Several times in the last 6 months since my wife purchased a previously owned 1992 Toyota Camry, the car has accelerated on it's own with no one depressing the accelerator pedal. She said it feels as though the cruise control system has taken over control of the car. This phenomenon has taken place at speeds above 55 MPH and as slow as 15 MPH. A co-worker of my wife's sister has a Toyota and has described exactly the same thing happening while she is driving her car.”

   NHTSA complaint #10317944, filed 2010-03, 150,000 miles
3. 3
   Air bags

   Airbag deploys without an impact

   Mentioned in 6 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners report the driver or passenger airbag firing while the car was parked, idling at a fuel station, being started, or moving slowly over a bump, with no collision involved. Several describe the deployment itself causing bruising or back and ear injuries, and one reports smoke and a burning smell inside the cabin afterwards. A Toyota service bulletin in the file covers how dealers are to handle customer concerns about SRS airbag operation, and one owner reports being told the code pointed to a sensor fault. Reported from about 116,000 miles up into the 270,000s, often while the car was stationary, being started, or moving slowly over rough pavement.

   2 related service bulletins

   What to check: Ask whether the airbag system has been inspected and whether any SRS warning light has appeared, and have the system scanned for stored codes before purchase. Note that airbags of this age are well past the period Toyota originally specified for inspection.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “Takata recall - the vehicle was stationary in a parking lot. I entered the car, buckled my seatbelt, inserted the key into the ignition, started the car, and the airbag deployed. There had been no impact.”

   NHTSA complaint #10838643, filed 2016-02, 161,200 miles

   “I stopped at a gas station yesterday morning to put air in my tire and had my son with me , I left car in park with engine running , when done I was putting my son back into car seat , I leaned into car with my back to the steering wheel leaning over the driver seat fixing to buckle car seat when out of nowhere the airbag deployed from the steering wheel and hit me on the left side of my back and now there are 3 huge bruises which I have taken pics of , there was a man at the gas pump who saw and heard the commotion he came over from the gas …”

   NHTSA complaint #10480950, filed 2012-10, 273,600 miles
4. 4
   Electrical system

   Stereo amplifier and radio wiring smoke or fire

   Mentioned in 5 of 60 sampled complaints

   Owners describe smoke or flames coming from the stereo power amplifier mounted under the front passenger seat, in some cases shortly after the car was parked in a garage and in others while driving with the radio on. One owner says a module under the seat was hot enough to burn a fingertip, and another reports the radio's factory wiring starting a fire while driving, requiring the radio to be replaced. A separate complaint describes smoke from a small electrical box near the steering column. Owners who looked into it found a past campaign for this wiring on an earlier model year. Reported between about 100,000 and 130,000 miles, sometimes while driving with the radio on and sometimes within minutes of parking the car.

   What to check: Check what is mounted under the passenger seat and whether the amplifier or its harness looks or smells scorched, and ask whether the radio or amplifier has been replaced. Pulling the amplifier fuse is a question for a mechanic, not a fix to attempt on a seller's car.

   2 excerpts from owner complaints in NHTSA records

   “While driving my 1992 Toyota Camry xle 6 on the interstate, with the radio on, smoke suddenly started coming out from under the right front passenger seat and quickly filled the cabin. I pulled off the road and shut off the engine. I looked under the passenger seat and saw a wired electric module which was red-hot to the touch. (slightly burned fingertip) I then called for help and had the car towed to my home. The next day I found out that the underseat smoking module was the stereo power amplifier for the radio. …”

   NHTSA complaint #10358387, filed 2010-09, 101,000 miles

   “The cabin of the vehicle was full of a bluish color smoke within 15 minutes of parking the vehicle in the garage. Upon inspection of the vehicle by the fire department the origination of the smoke was undetermined, but the strongest smoke smell was at the stereo amplifier wiring located underneath the passenger side seat. There's a recall 93v147000 for this issue but it's on an earlier model.”

   NHTSA complaint #10057356, filed 2004-02, 130,000 miles

Buying note. This is a very old car, so condition and service history matter more than the complaint pattern; hood struts are a cheap wear item, but the airbag and under-seat amplifier reports are worth inspecting directly. Have a mechanic check the airbag system codes, the throttle and cruise control linkage, and the wiring under the passenger seat before you buy.

Summary written with AI from a sample of 60 NHTSA complaints for this model year (picked at random, with complaints that state a mileage and recent ones taken first), then checked automatically against the source records. Where a problem shows a complaint count, every complaint for this model year was matched with fixed keyword rules (written with AI and tested against the sample), and the mileage, age and repair figures are calculated from those complaints; owners' figures are as stated, not verified. Other counts refer to the sample. The excerpts come from NHTSA's public complaint records and are unverified; capitalisation is normalised, NHTSA staff notes are removed, and shortened text ends with “…”. Something wrong? Request a correction.