Five problems related to brake disc rotor have been reported for the 1999 Toyota Camry. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
I am the original owner of a 1999 Toyota solara (purchased March 1999). Last month with 34,825 miles on it, I had to have the front rotors and brake pads replaced for the second time. The first time was in June 2001 with 22,125 miles on the vehicle. Both times, the dealer blames excessive rust and runout on the rotors as the cause of serious steering wheel vibration when braking. They claim I do not drive the car and use the brakes enough. The solara is garage kept and gets at least as much use as any other car I have owned and I have never had to have any brakes and rotors replaced for this reason and four of the cars I owned for a period of nine years each. Two of those sat outside their entire existence and averaged a grand total of three to four thousand miles/year. I have tried dealing with the dealer rep and he and the regional service manager tell me there is nothing they should do about it and I should expect to be doing this again every two years. This does not seem right to me and so far I have gotten the response from customer service that they stand behind the opinions of their dealer service techs. Even after repair, I get some vibration in pedal and steering wheel at times. Have also had problems with antilock brakes. Just today I had to avoid an accident as a car pulled out in front of me and antilock released braking causing a longer braking distance than necessary. One day when stopping at a traffic light in good weather conditions on a smooth surface, anti-lock kicked in and released braking power. I wound up with the whole front end of the car in the intersection. I was only going about 30-35 mph as I was in a residential area. I was lucky no one was coming. Any time you try to stop on a rough surface, it can be an adventure. You always have to remember to keep extra distance with this car. Anytime brought up to dealer, they said could not duplicate and this is the way antilock brakes are supposed to work.
Rotors broke off and went into front wheel, and wheel stopped moving, and consumer lost control of vehicle.
Four times in for premature brake wear, two times in for vibration at highway speeds and three times for warped rotors that seem to be happening every 8000 miles.
Rotors & brake pads were replaced.
We bought this vehicle as a Toyota certified user car. Since purchase we have replaced the entire brake system twice and and rotors/pads three times, due to grinding noises, pedal vibration and premature wear. In speaking the with service manager he indicates that there are no reported problems, but after visiting your site -- I'm convinced there is a real problem. Please help.