question about struts: 97-01 camry

The strut mounts don't look any different from say a Monroe. But the internal metal/rubber configuration or material composition may be different or were badly made. TSBs were out for these mounts. When they go bad, the mounts may or may not take out the struts because they can't hold the struts straight as originally designed.

That's why I recommend Monroe mounts because they are easy to find, carry a lifetime warranty, and come with new bearings.

That's what happens when the lowest bidder without enough experience got into play. Your previous owner should have gotten them replaced for free under warranty.

If you think the problem is solved by the 2002 generation, wait till you own one of these. Go with Monroe mounts, I'd say.

SU001-06 REAR SUSPENSION THUMP NOISE

2/21/2006 - 2004 =96 2006 model year Toyota Camry LE and XLE vehicles (North American Produced).

SU002-06 REAR SUSPENSION THUMP NOISE

2/21/2006 - 2004 =96 2006 model year Toyota Solara vehicles.

SU004-05 FRONT SUSPENSION TICK NOISE

12/16/2005 - 2004, 2005, 2006 model year Toyota Sienna vehicles

My 91 went hard at 60000m , The Monroe Sensatrac I put on were defective, Rock hard at 10f, My bad luck.

What struts does Toyota put on its cars? KYB? McPherson? I like the feel of the ride on my '99 Camry, I just don't care for the squeak. What kind of strut would have the feel of the original struts on the '99 Camry?

I heard about Monroe Sensatrac production quality these days. The Reflex replaces these and for some reason is cheaper (see NAPA prices). But have not used them for a while. Monroes are on the soft side for me.

Try the new slightly stiffer Gabriel Ultras with 9 stages of damping that's inertia sensitive. See the G-Force story video on

But the Ultras are harder to find than Monroes but will work with Monroe strut mounts. Monroes are at every street corner.

Of course, older Camrys get to have the excellent Bilsteins. But these performance struts are pretty stiff for most drivers. These really don't cost that much more.

All Monroes and Gabriels have lifetime warranties. Good deals if you do your own work.

Toyotas nowadays should come with KYBs ("Keep Your Bilsteins'). KYBs GR2s are inexpensive struts and priced accordingly ($69-79, inserts $45). I don't care for these struts because they don't have advanced automatic inertia sensing valves as in the Ultra or Reflex.

By "older" do you mean '92-96 Camry? Are these the KYBs? Which model number / type?

I asked my wife which ride she likes better, and she said she likes the feel of our '96 camry, with 132k miles on it. Personally I like the stiffer feel of the '99 camry (with 66k miles on it)

I have put on 4 new Monroe sensa tracs, and they are working great... a bit harder ride than the old worn down stock ones. The problem with my 97 were front strut mounts. I replaced them with a revised Toyota design that fit the 97.

The M>My 91 went hard at 60000m , The Monroe Sensatrac I put on were

No, KYBs (jokingly called: "Keep Your Bilsteins" in the car enthusiasts circle) are low-end struts with simple valving. They have better AGX struts that are adjustable. But not much to be proud of.

Bilsteins struts are available as aftermarket replacements for Camrys. Toyota can't afford to put Bilsteins on at the factory, but Mercedes, BMW, and Audi do. These are made by ThyssenKrupp Bilstein, a world reknowned suspension parts maker: see

96 struts should be soft by now as after 50K miles, you'd loose much of the damping ability in a typical strut. The car turns to a "boat" with decreased pitch and lateral stability.

However, modern struts now use what's termed inertia or "velocity sensitive valve" and use multiple stages of valves (typically 9-10) to automatically adjust to different road conditions. With these "intelligent" struts, you'll get softer ride on local streets and precise handling, say cranking over to the highway exit (not that we recommend it). Examples are the Gabriel Ultras (2003 Editor's Award, Popular Mechanics) and Monroe Reflex (or the older Sensatracs ~1999).

Some companies try to pass orfice valves as velocity sensitive, because an orfice valve offers higher resistence as piston travels faster. But this is *not* what we mean by intelligent valving.

Check

the G-Force Story video under "Our Products".

Excerpt from an Advanced Auto Parts article:

Smart Valving For years, motorcycle front forks have moved either faster or slower based upon road conditions. Early automotive adaptations of this philosophy were electronically controlled "active" suspension systems in Formula 1 cars and exotic sports cars such as the Lotus Esprit. A more mass-marketable mutation was driver-controlled adjustable valving, such as the Rancho RS9000 off-road shock (see Photo 2). A dial allows five different levels of firmness to be selected.

Recent technological advancements now allow automotive shocks to automatically alter their valving to match road conditions. The two prominent ways of accomplishing this are through position-sensitivity or impact/inertia-activation. The Monroe and Rancho divisions of Tenneco Automotive are pioneers in these areas, and the Edelbrock IAS shock is another popular example of an impact- or inertia-sensitive shock.