Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2003 Toyota Camry owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Odometer Fraud. The contact purchased a 2003 Toyota Camry. The contact stated that while attempting to register the vehicle, it was discovered that there was a mileage discrepancy. The vehicle was a private sale. At the time of purchase, the vehicle mileage was 127,888, and at the time of registration, it was discovered that the mileage was 165,064.
I started my car and began to back up, when the rear-view mirror burst into smoke, it began filling the car with smoke. I reached up and pulled the wires out of the mirror and the wires were arcing. After I pulled the wires out the smoke started subsiding. I opened the doors and aired out the car.
Today I pulled over to drop off child at school, was already to park and car accelerated and hit the car in front of me. My foot was clearly on brake as I was already going no more than 5 miles an hour to park. It was not driver error. That feeling of the car thrusting forward when my foot was on brake was something I never felt before. I called Toyota and checked the recall list the car is not listed. I am sending it tomorrow to Toyota for service. The impact was so hard, my body is completely tense even 5 hours later. The thrust was not driver error, thank god for the car in front of me that I hit or else would have been worse. All I could do out of panic was put the car in park but I think it stopped because I hit the car in front of me.
Car had been driven to get gas 1/2 mile down road. When returned from gas station we pulled onto property , turned off car and there were flames coming from the hood. Fire dept arrived and put out the fire. Total loss for car.
Takata inflators: every time I fix my vehicle individuals cause hate crimes damaging my vehicle as I go to sleep or when I am not viewing my vehicle they must know exactly when I go to sleep because I cant catch them even though I think I know who it is I can not prove it so this is why I am complaining I remember checking my tires in the night noticing nothing wrong with them then checked in the mourning and noticed nails nailed in the tires then I noticed dried turtle wax all over the body of the car messing up the paint wheel alignment out of line right door power window malfunction trunk open power switch broken power sun roof sliding window broken vehicle was stationary this happened on different date in combination to the damage between 06/16/06 to 04/21/17.
My 2003 Camry had been great since the date of purchase. Only had 2 problems with the car, one minor the other was major. I have 25000 miles on the car, and both the front tires were bare. I was able to see all the treads from the tires. The major problem I got was my Camry caught on fire and melted the entire engine. I'd pulled up to the parking lot at work, and 20 minutes later, I was notified that my engine was on fire. Spoke with fire department and they said it looks like faulty/malfunction wire/cables. Not sure if Toyota knows of this, but now I'm left w/o a car until m insurance figures everything out. Toyota should be notify in case there was a defect in the 2003 models.
2003 Toyota Camry xle 4-cyl with 79,000 miles. I was pulling into a parking space, car started revving. When I shifted into park, it revved out of control, jumped a curb and sidewalk, and crashed into a tree. That was the only thing that stopped the car. Bruised and shaken but no lasting injuries for me or passenger. Toyota claimed they never heard of sudden acceleration and closed my inquiry.
While driving the car, the engine and electrical components suddenly shut off. The first few times this happened, I was able to simply re-start the car with everything working again. I then brought the car to 3 different mechanics who could not find anything wrong with the battery or alternator (or anything else). The problem was erratic so it never occurred with the mechanics. Now the problem occurs occasionally when I turn the headlights or brights of the car on. The last time it happened (10/11/14) was while I was driving about 60 MPH. The engine shut out, the dash lights went off (as well as all the other electrical things: GPS, ac, radio, etc). Even the flashers would not turn on. Then, in a matter of moments, everything turned on again. The car's engine did not even need to be restarted. I was able to keep driving without incident for 20+ miles. …
I heard about the recall that Toyota had on or about Tuesday 10/9/2012 on the pwms drivers side last month I starting having this problem and all of a sudden there is a recall , so I e-mail Toyota to let them know that my Toyota was having the same problem and wasn't it included the auto button starting sticking and the window sometimes sticks trying to go down, they stated that my car was no longer in warranty I didn't think a recall had anything to do with a warranty,my 2003 means the same to me as a person who has a 2007 that May not still have a warranty. My window had not done this before this time stated,my last answer from ask Toyota stated that the 2003 is not included so I did ask them to let me know who the reporting agency was but I started to do a little research on my on and I found your agency. I paid for my Toyota the same as a person with a 2007 or 2009. …
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 Toyota Camry. While parked, the check engine light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for diagnostics where the technician replaced two oxygen sensors. After the repair the check engine light illuminated intermittently and the contact noticed that the interior lights, radio and the mileage on the instrument panel continued to illuminate after the key was removed from the ignition. The contact replaced the battery but the failure continued. On another occasion while driving approximately 10 MPH the vehicle stalled without warning. There were no further repairs performed to the vehicle. The approximate failure mileage was 139,000.
Electrical complaints in other Camry years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2003 Toyota Camry?
NHTSA has 20 complaints about the electrical system of the 2003 Toyota Camry, 3% of the model year's 782 complaints. The component named most often is 12v/24v/48v battery (2 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2003 Toyota Camry electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for the 2003 Toyota Camry, though it has 1 recall 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 2003 Toyota Camry electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 92,000 miles, and 7% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 3 crashes, 3 fires and 0 injuries to electrical system 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.