98 Camry LE at 100K miles

I have a 98 Camry 6 cylinder (LE?), auto transmission. I got it when it had 70K miles. It just reached 100K, a psychological marker that made me wonder: what preventive maintenance should I be thinking about?

I have been good about oil, brakes, battery, tires, coolant, and

*visible* belts all along.

However, to be perfectly honest, we haven't worried about other fluids, transmission, suspension, hidden parts (timing belts, thermostat, pumps, etc), tune up...

The car is working just fine. I don't want to be paranoid and waste money, just be prudent. Any advice?

Reply to
Ajanta
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No such thing as a tune up any more. If you do ask for one - they will gradely bill ya. But it consists of changing the plugs. Its probably time to change the distributo cap and wires --- only use OEM ones. Think in that year the owners manual said 90k for timing belt. I would drain the trans and refill it (suspect its still Dextron 3 in 98). Don't waste $ on costly flush(unless it is black and dirty) - just drain and refill -- and do again in 6 months. Thermostat is cheap (if you can do yourself) and ensure your engine warms up quickly and runs efficiently. I like to change brake fluid every 3 years - a turkey baster cleans old out of reservior and bleeding the brakes flushes the lines. A new air filter is nice too.

Reply to
Wolfgang

Here are my thoughts... ALL fluids and filters need replacement if you havent done this yet. Cabin Air filter, fuel filter, engine air, transmission and oil, power steering fluid, brake fluid and radiator. If you didnt use distilled water for your radiator, change it NOW. Timing belt is a big thing, dont let this pass. Check your spare tire and fuses. give your engine a good cleaning, blow off with compressed air any dirt trapped your radiator, engine and underneath. I think, steering and suspension need not to be replaced if you dont feel anything wrong with it, but I suggest you tighten the nuts and bolts on your chassis and connections under your car. While your car is stopped check for excessive freeplay in the steering wheel. Inspect the rubber boots on your steering if deteriorated. Spark plug as earlier mentioned. If you dont hear any tapping noises on your engine then you dont really need to adjust your engine valve clearance. Add a bottle of fuel system cleaner on your next tank of gas.

Reply to
EdV

=========================== See the Factory Service Manual Maintenance section:

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I have found actually owning the paper bound version of the Factory Service Manual extremely helpful and use it frequently. That is your ultimate authority on proper service and repair procedures, so if you're doing your own work it lets you know how to do it correctly. Found mine on eBay after repeatedly searching over a period of time. Now that I know how useful it has become, I would probably be willing to pay retail price to get them. Common preventative maintenance items are timing belt. water pump, oil seals, fluids, but you'll probably find some more esoteric items in the FSM. For example I also found the Burrough's belt tension gauge on eBay so I can set the A/C belt tension to 130 lbs. +/- 10 as per the book, and have a smaller click type gauge to set the power steering belt 80 lbs. You might be surprised how easy it is to be off considerably by guessing from belt deflection. You can accumulate tools as you go. Really don't need many special tools, although an air compressor and air gun are very helpful. This assumes you want to keep the car a long time.

Reply to
Daniel

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