Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (struts, shocks, control arms, ball joints, springs).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2004 Toyota Camry owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
I bought a 2004 Camry about a month ago from my local Toyota used car dealer. A week later I told them front-end felt funny and needed to be checked. They said I needed an alignment. Had that done. Called them last week and said I still feel like there's some sort of front-end problem. My brake pedal is spongy and almost to the ground. Sometimes I'm not sure if I'm going to stop in time. Also told them my steering wheel was shimmying. I was told that the steering wheel was probably indicating a tire balance issue and they would charge me $50 to balance/rotate my tires. I decided to put the money toward new front tires instead hoping that would also reduce road noise. As for the brakes.... I was told that was standard for the Camry models and was a known design issue but no corrections were in place that they were aware of. Last weekend I was in a crash. My brakes failed! …
Tl*- the contact owns a 2004 Toyota Camry. While coming out of the car wash and switching the position gear from neutral to drive the vehicle accelerated to almost 50 MPH for about 20-30 seconds, causing it to crash into a pole. The contact tried to apply the brake, but could not stop the vehicle. Contact can provide pictures if needed. The current and failure mileage were both 26,190. The consumer stated that the vehicle was taken into performance and repaired. The vehicle would shake and veer to the right. Performance Dodge picked up vehicle for a 2nd repair and informed the consumer that a damp mount on right side of the vehicle was missing. The vehicle was delivered to consumer on 4/27/07 but consumer is still fearful to drive the vehicle. Updated 05/13/07
While driving on a city street at about 40 MPH I heard a loud bang under the car, like something hit the underside of the car. Then I heard rattling when I rode over bumps in the road. Took it to a service center right away and they found a broken coil spring on the front suspension. Fortunately, the spring broke close to an end of the spring, so the height of the car did not drop noticeably. If the break were in the middle of the spring, then the vehicle would have dropped significantly, perhaps resulting in a crash. The car's mileage was 114,990. The repair costs for two spring/strut assemblies, two stabilizer links and a wheel alignment was $920.
Vehicle pulls to left or right--mostly left. Vehilce will not drive straight without constant pressure on the steering wheel. I have complained and have taken it in for service and/or test driven a total of eight times. Four times have been in the last month. The springs have been replaced and a wheel alignment has been performed. Two service managers have driven with me from two different dealerships. They could feel the car pulling but said it was "normal." there is a technical service bulletin to repair the vehicle pull/drift but there has not been any improvement to my vehicle. I hear rattles in the driver window, the passenger window/door, and the dash. The windows were serviced once. The dash has been serviced twice. Servicemen replaced the seatbelt panel on the passenger side because they thought the noise existed there. The noise still exists. …
Power train: automatic transmission-I have owned this Toyota Camry for approximately five months. The transmission has a mind of its own. Occasionally it slips into the wrong gear. The worse problem I encountered was five weeks ago when I placed the vehicle into reverse and the vehicle wanted to go forward. I nearly hit the car parked in front of me. I am glad nobody was walking in front of the car when I placed the vehicle into the reverse gear. This car is dangerous and if I could I would return it back to the dealer. Suspension-when is raining the car is difficult to maneuver above 50mph. The rear of the car want to go right making the front of the car go left. The same thing happens when the car hits bumps on the road. Again, the car is unsafe and should be taken off the road.
I bought this car on 1/1/04. When I took it back a week later to have leather put on the seats, I told them it was pulling to the left. Supposedly they aligned the front end but they didn't put anything in the computer about it. They have rotated the tires, switched the tires, aligned the front end, put a new rack on it etc. Etc. The last time they told me there was nothing wrong with it and I should read the owners manual on how to operate it. I have dealt with this for 3 months and no satisfaction. I took it back to them and told them I wanted another car. They gave me one to see if I liked it and then pulled mine in to work on it again after I had told them no more. They called me today to tell me it was fixed. Right!!! I have called my lawyer.
I purchased my 2004 Toyota Camry limited edition in November of 2003. I began to notice that the car pulls to the left while I'm driving - especially at highway speeds. In addition the car is very sensetive to the road crown and wind. It is actually difficult to keep it in a straight line while on the highway at speeds of 65 MPH. It feels like you are constantly in some type of strong crosswind. The left pull is so noticeable that I consider it a safety issue. I'm surprised someone hasn't wrecked as a result of this. The dealership advises me that there is a flaw in the engineering of the automobile and that they get this complaint quite often. I consider this an unacceptable response thus I am filing this complaint.
I purchased a 2004 Toyota Camry limited edition. This car handles poorly, like driving in a windstorm. It has been back to 2 different dealers that haven't been able to fix it. The Toyota reps have looked at it and told me that there is nothing wrong. I filed for arbitration in 10/05. The arbitrator agreed that there is a problem and ordered Toyota to correct it. The Toyota reps have not yet been able to fix it. I am now seeking arbitration to have Toyota buy the car back.
The inner steering column shaft became detatched on my 2004 Toyota Camry 4 dr le sedan. It started making a noise and the complete steering column had to be replaced at a cost of $950.00. Toyota would do nothing because they said the car had 60,000 miles on it and it was out of warranty. Also the rear struts wore out at about 30,000 miles.
Car continuously pulls to the lift. This causes the car to want to turn accross the center line into the face of oncoming traffic. Toyota motors and Toyota service keeps staggering the tire pressure (2 1/2 pounds less on one side of the car then the other). This has me very concerned about my safety and the safety of others on the road.
Suspension complaints in other Camry years
Frequently asked questions
How common are suspension problems on the 2004 Toyota Camry?
NHTSA has 20 complaints about the suspension of the 2004 Toyota Camry, 3% of the model year's 638 complaints. The component named most often is front › springs › coil springs (2 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2004 Toyota Camry suspension problems?
No. NHTSA lists no suspension recall for the 2004 Toyota Camry, though it has 3 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 2004 Toyota Camry suspension problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 11,000 miles, and 69% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 2 crashes, 0 fires and 4 injuries to suspension 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.