Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (doors, hood, frame, rust, paint and trim).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2002 Toyota Camry owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Sudden unintend acceleration at slow speed--on December 17, 2015, when pulling slowly into a garage and nearly stopped, the car suddenly surged forward raming the car into the garage interior wall. This resulted in "totaling the car" and damage to the garage and property in the garage. This is the second time that this sudden unintend acceleration occurred with this 2002 Camry . It also occurred on January 20, 2010 with a different driver (my wife) who had her foot on the brake when pulling into a parking spot. The car suddenly surged forward about three car lengths causing damage to the underside of the vehicle. We filed a complaint with NHTSA on January 30, 2010 (seenhtsa id number 10303355). For the 2010 incidence the car was towed to a Toyota dealer where repairs where made. …
My wife was backing into our garage. She pulled forward to realign car. When she placed gearshift back into reverse (autom. Xmsn) and perhaps had lightly touched the accelerator pedal, the throttle immediately went to very high setting. Car accelerated backward until stopped by firewood pile, furnace and rear wall of garage. Throttle continued at high setting for some time. Driven wheels kept spinning (as shown by skid marks on garage floor). Then throttle autonomously returned to idle. Firewood was scattered. Furnace was destroyed. Garage wall was displaced about one inch. Bumper, one rear light assembly and one quarter panel of car were damaged. (body shop inspection May reveal other damage.) my wife experienced neck discomfort, which has gone away. She is sure that she did not press accelerator pedal more than very lightly. …
Tl* the contact owned a 2002 Toyota Camry. While driving approximately 15 MPH, the front driver's side tire struck an object and burst. The vehicle drove into a ditch and crashed into a tree. The contact stated that there was approximately an inch of snow on the ground. The front air bags deployed. The front passenger seat belt unlatched and fractured into pieces. The rear driver's side seat belt unlatched. The front driver's seat belt did not unlatch and was cut off to free the driver. A police report was filed. The driver and the passenger sustained injuries that required medical attention. The vehicle was totaled and towed away by the insurance company. The dealer and manufacturer were not made aware of the failures. The failure mileage was approximately 122,000.
I had a wreck in jan., 7th, 2005. I was traveling below the speed limit and the lady in front of me was dead stopped and I cold not stop my car. I hit her stopped car, doing 45 MPH and my airbags did not deploy! Now the airbag on the passenger side, is not right. It has moved and separated as if it is about to pop open, since the wreck and the people that did the service on my car to fix the front end (via my insurance co. - usaa) have had it looked at and they will not do anything about it. The cover has moved even more, since my wreck in jan. 7th, 2015 and I am really scared. My 84 year old mother and my service dog ride in the passenger seat. Please help me before it deploys in her face!
I was coming out of my mechanic driveway and I let cars go by down a busy street> my foot was clearly on the brake and suddenly I heard a wining noise and my the accelerated on it's own and went across the road and hit a car in the middle of the street. I said to myself this car is causing me to have an accident. I had my mechanic check the brakes ABS and transmission no problem with that.
I had an accident with my Toyota while my husband was driving on a city street and I was sitting beside him. We hit a car when it stopped suddenly. The seat belt and air bags did not protect me. My head strongly hit the windshield.
My son was making a left turn off brown rd onto amber glen dr in charlotte, nc when the cars steering wheel locked up causing the car to go out of control. When he tried to press the brakes to stop the car it would not stop. The car hit a tree that cause major damage to the vehicle. Thank god no one was hurt/injured or killed. But my 2002 Toyota Camry is totaled and cannot be repaired. I just bought this car in April 2012 from the Toyota Scion dealership in huntersville, nc and was not made aware of any problems or recalls with the steering wheel locking up. This is a very serious issue that could have caused someone to lose their life. I feel like I have been mislead and cheated out of my money to purchase the vehicle. This car should not have been sold to anyone and why was the dealership not aware of the problem and made the customer aware or did they just not care. …
I was driving southbound on lakeshore dr when with no warning of a turn signal a tow truck driver cut me off and slowed almost to a complete stop. I had no choice but to brace for impact as I stomped down on my brakes. The entire front end of my car was totaled as the front right end of my car made impact with the left rear end of his tow truck. After the dist settled I looked around and realized that no airbags deployed. I found this realization extremely alarming, not only for the chest pain that I was experiencing on my right side which I felt was from my chest hitting the steering wheel (even thought I was indeed wearing my seatbelt) but because earlier this year Toyota had come out with a recall list, and when I called to find out if my car was on the recall list I was told no. I don't know how my car was looked over but this is a situation that should be immediately rectified. …
On November 13, 2009, I applied my brakes to turn in and park my car (my foot still pressing the brake). When my car unexpectedly accelerates about 15 feet and smacks into a building. A $10,000 claim was made against my insurance company. I informed the local Toyota dealership where I purchased the car since the responding officer urged me to get my vehicle checked out. Almost instantly after I began explaining the details of the incident over the phone, they informed me that the gas pedal wasn't the issue and that my car was not included in the recall. I feel like I have been passed over because my car wasn't brand new, even though it was one of the same year models that received an electronic throttle. I received a post card notifying me of a class action lawsuit against Toyota, however it does not pertain to property damage and I'm not sure which avenue to take.
I parked the car. After realizing that I was about 2 ft from the parking bump, I decided to move it forward and as I took the car off park the car took off and hit the bump and was stopped by a tree. The car climbed partially on the tree, leaving the passenger side wheels completely off the ground. I put the brake and shifted to neutral. Fortunately, no one was hurt, no airbags displayed. I took the car to the Toyota dealer to get an estimate on the repair of the front bumper. Toyota investigated and a month later delivered the "data" by mail from Bosch, without any useful information for me. I do not dare drive the car.
Body complaints in other Camry years
Frequently asked questions
How common are body problems on the 2002 Toyota Camry?
NHTSA has 56 complaints about the body & structure of the 2002 Toyota Camry, 6% of the model year's 953 complaints. The component named most often is body (21 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2002 Toyota Camry body problems?
No. NHTSA lists no body & structure recall for the 2002 Toyota Camry, though it has 4 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2002 Toyota Camry body problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 65,000 miles, and 25% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 13 crashes, 0 fires and 9 injuries to body & structure problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.