I have got some problems with my camry, and I was wondering if you guys could help me find out how to fix some if its possible.
1. Theres oil leaking from the engine manifold
2. Both the check engine light and the light sensor light are on
3. There is a constant noise comin from the front passenger side of the car. Its a kind of grinding screeching noise.
4. One of the headlights is fogging up.
5. The headlights arent aligned at all.
6. There is a really strong kick when shifting from neutral to drive when I start it in the morning.
Sorry for soundin like a newb but its my first post. Thanks a ton-
Surge

Well I think I can help with some of these problems. Let's see here, we've got oil leaking from the manifold, that is most likely cause by oil leaking past worn valve guides, you'll want to check the plugs and see if they're coated in oil, if they are, this is the culprit. "Check Engine" light is on, most commonly this is the oxygen sensor, but could be other sensors as well, you'll want to go to a shop somewhere or purchase the little computer that reads codes from your car. The constant grinding or screeching sound you're hearing is probably your shims on the brake pads, you'll want to also check the lining on the pads and see what condition they're in. If the pads are fine, you can take the shims off of the pads, because they are what's causing this noise. -- I had the same thing happen to my Camry. Since one of the headlights is fogging up, the seal is broken on the headlamp, or there is a crack somewhere in the case, you'll have to replace the assembly to correct this problem, usually the "fogging up" of the headlights doesn't do anything to your visibility at night, but it does make the car look like shit. As for the headlights not being aligned, you have two choices, you can take it to a dealer or a shop and have them do it for you, or you can do it yourself, in order to do it yourself you will need to park the car about 10 - 20 feet away from a brick wall, and use the wall as your guide. You can turn the adjustment screws on the lamps until they both are inline with eachother. This would be the most cheap choice, but some people choose not to mess with it. As for your shifting problems, when your car kicks gears really hard, this tells you something, you need to check your tranny fluid. If you've checked your fluid, and it's at the normal level, then what I strongly recommend is a filter change, tranny flush, fluid change in both the transmission and the differential. Hope this helps! Best of luck.

first things first. what year is it and is it a v6 or a 4 cyl???

I don't see how that would really make any difference in this case, I mean all the information I provided applies to both the I4 and the V6 Camry.

Hmm... I get the same kick when shifting into drive on high idle. Doesn't do it in reverse. I heard somewhere that there are little rubber balls stationed somewhere in the tranny that dislodge with old age. Once dislodged, shifting may be "jerky". Anyone else hear about that?

Also.. If anyone has experience on this jerky shift into drive at high idle, could you tell us whether it signifies impending failure or just a nuisence? By the way, I have a '92 2.2L XLE with 155,000 miles. Transmission filter was replaced last summer and the fluid changed (though not flushed, so only half was changed). The fluid was burnt (brownish color) befor eit was changed and I don't know if it was ever flushed. That's why I didn't have it flushed now. The fluid was pink with a brown tint after being changed and is still that way now and is at proper level.

While I'm at it, with my current milage and the brown tranny fluid I had last summer, does anyone have an opinion on how long my tranny may last? Except for the kick into drive on high idle, the transmission shifts smoothly and doesn't appear to have significant slippage.

thanks a lot u guys! its a 1996 Camry DX I4. I just wanted to fix it up a bit before i went to go trade it in. I dont kno wat the problem is about the oil leakin from the head gasket tho... thas wats worryin me the most. thanks again for the quick responses, u guys kno ur stuff ;)

does anyone have an opinion on how long my tranny may last?

Well I've got 277K on my transmission! Good luck.

JJ :naughty:

I have got some problems with my camry, and I was wondering if you guys could help me find out how to fix some if its possible.
1. Theres oil leaking from the engine manifold
2. Both the check engine light and the light sensor light are on
3. There is a constant noise comin from the front passenger side of the car. Its a kind of grinding screeching noise.
4. One of the headlights is fogging up.
5. The headlights arent aligned at all.
6. There is a really strong kick when shifting from neutral to drive when I start it in the morning.
Sorry for soundin like a newb but its my first post. Thanks a ton-
Surge

I had an oil leak that a shop said was coming from my heaqd gasket on my 95 camry 4 cyl. It turned out to be the O-ring on the distributer. When the oil leaks out it runs down the back side of the engine and drips right on the exhaust pipe. Sure was nice to save that $800. Even nicer that I found a mechanic that actually looked for the problem!!