Abee wrote in news:hdGdncYnuuOooBbZnZ2dnUVZ snipped-for-privacy@comcast.com:
I have two teenage daughters and two '97 Camry LE's. The 97 was the first year for that body style. The first car I bought about two years ago for $4700 with 110K on it. It now has 127K without any mechanical problems. The second '97 I bought last August for $7K with 60K miles. It has been very reliable.
I purchased the Camry's after talking to my mechanic. I was spending way too much money on keeping a 90 Jetta on the road. He suggested either the '97 Camry or '98 Accord. He said that the Accord's were a little more sporting, but the maintenance was about 25% more costly than the Camary.
The only real things that my girls care about in the car other than reliability is that it has a good stereo :-) I put a JVC MP3 player ($125) in each car. The LE's come with airbags and anti-locks.
I would not be afraid of buying a '97 or newer Camry with 125K miles if it had been taken care of, and the price was in the $4-5K range
-Chris