Toyota Camry Problems

With a limited budget like yours I would suggest to go for a car with a good reliability record. While the Mercedes-Benz is a good car you are likely to be facing an expensive repair if anything should go wrong. Consider a Mitsubishi 380 or a Toyota Camry of around 2000-2003.

Both cars meet all of your requirements, they have 5-star safety, they're comfortable, have a large boot, and plenty of power for overtaking. Either one would be a good choice, but if I were to be making the selection it would be the Toyota for reliability and resale.

Without being able to hear the noises firsthand it's hard to say if they are normal or not, and what might be causing them. It's normal for the idle speed to be high when the engine is first started and then settle down once running is established. The second noise when accelerating through 2000 rpm is hard to diagnose. You won't get it when the engine is in Park or Neutral because the engine is not under load as it is when it's in Drive. Your best course of action is to have a mechanic listen to it.

The Camry is on run-out at the moment, which suggests there's an update coming soon. Next month would be on the cards. I wouldn't expect any big changes with it, after all Toyota is about to end local production in 2017. Waiting for the update depends on your needs, you might prefer the newer model, which will have a better resale when you sell than the current car, but Toyota has some deals on the outgoing model and it might be advantageous to snap one up now.

You have to anticipate that things will wear out and need replacing when the car gets to the sort of kilometres that yours has, but worn-out shocks and oil leaks are not what I would call major repairs. If the car were in good overall order I would have the work done. To keep driving it until it dies is not a great idea, and could be dangerous to you and other road users.

Toyota hasn't announced its future plans for the Aurion once local production ceases, but we expect the Aurion badge will be retired. The new imported Camry will be fitted with state-of-the-art safety technology.

The Camry Hybrid is a very good car that gets The Tick from me. On the battery front, companies don't talk about the cost because they are expected to last for the life of the car and they generally provide assistance if there are dramas. I know of Toyota Prius taxis in Queensland that have covered more than 350,000km on the original battery.

All of the cars you name meet your criteria of size, economy, performance and handling.

You could also add the Mazda3 and 6 to the list.

Of all of those I would nominate the Camry as the great all-rounder.

Two choices that get The Tick from me are the Toyota Camry sedan, which can be quite punchy with the 2.5-litre petrol engine and is great value, and the Kia Sportage SUV with turbo diesel.