smoking problem after idling

I recently bought a 96 Camry from a local dealer. Nice car, in great shape, drives smoother than any car I have owned. BUT, i have noticed some smoke at start up when cold and MUCH smoke after I have already driven it for quite a while, then idled like through a drive through restaurant, then when I accelerate onto the main streets again I leave a nice cloud of smoke. Scary to see coming from your car!!! Very stressfull and i am agonizing about how to fix the problem. My local Toyota dealer said I need a new engine of course, but other knowledgeable people have said it sound like a valve guide or seal issue which isn't major. HELP. Anyone of the thousands of Camry owners out there ever experience this? Thanks.

Smoke at start-up and not when hot usually indicates you need valve seals. If there is no smoke when you are cruising, you probably don't need rings (engine rebuild). Rings smoke all the time, and heavy.

The smoke on acceleration may just mean you have very bad valve seals. If you don't have a check-engine light on, it is probably just valve seals, but it is not clear.

Yeah, my 88 did this and a set of valve guide seals took care of
the smoking. It looks worse than it actually is, albeit embarassing.

JJ :uhoh:

Both my 87 and my 92 4-cyl. Camrys did this too. Valve guide seals did the trick on both. I think the repair cost was around $850 for each car. I talked to a former service writer for Toyota a few years ago and he stated that this condition is a built-in defect but Toyota would never own up to it due to the horrendous expense of repairing a few million Camrys.

Yu guys are right, i am a master technician, and this is wut i figure.But also make sure the engine hab been taken care of properly.I had a friend the had bought an 95 Camry from a dealer, anyway he took the car 2 meeh 2 inspect, the car ran very smooth for 168 thousand miles on it. but the engine mounts were all gone . 300 dollars was the cost for the torque bar mount and the front and rear engine mount. the afternoon i was at my friend and he showed up 2 show off his car, the car sat running in place for about 15 min and ran great, they then left 2 test drive it, as the took off i saw the car leav a mountanous amount of smoke, but none when they returned and not for the rest of the day. This made me feel funny , cause i fely this way when i first seen the car. The next morning he was 2 come to my house for me 2 change his steering wheel which had been in bad condition, and i get a calkl and he says the car had broken down.Anyway the funny thing was upon tear-down the 1 and cylinder 4 the rod bearings were nearly gone and the 2 and 3 were perfect condition, the crank had no wear even on the journals of 1 and 4. freaky huh.anyway car didnt make a nopise the day b4 but was wacked out the next day.hmmm.