I am looking into buying a Camry. I want something from the years of 1998-2000. I was wondering what the pros and cons of Camry's from these years are. Also what kind of price range have you found?

These cars are pretty much bulletproof. Their one major weak point was the 3.0 V6 tending to suffer from sludge buildup in the engine if you neglected the maintenance. Toyota actually issued extended warranties on these engines to the original owners. Other than that, you take care of them and they will take care of you very nicely. They do have little idiosyncracies like the front blinker lamps needing to be pulled and contacts cleaned when they start the little "fast blink" routine (quite common on the 4G Camrys), but the drivetrains are quite stout and reliable.

I had the good fortune to come into a '98 XLE almost 3 years ago - I got it from my (retired) parents when they bought a minivan. (I sometimes think they wished they would have kept the Camry, but that's another story). At 10 model years old and with 112K on the clock, I'll put the Camry up against a lot of newer cars. I fully expect to get 200K out of it with no major issues.

The only thing non-"routine" I had to do was replace the rack and pinion unit, which went out just before 100K. Also replaced the timing belt and water pump at 100K (this is considered routine - since you have to take the engine compartment down so far to replace the timing belt, just replace the water pump at the same time as a preventive measure. My mechanic has seen several cases of owners just replacing the timing belts, and then 3 months later having to pay for all the labor again to do the water pump because the tension of the new belt causes the water pump shaft seals to fail.)

I just ran Kelly Blue Book on mine, and it prices out between $5K and $6K. Expect an LE to go for a bit less, newer models to go for a bit more. But that should be a fair guideline.

Hope this is of some help.

My experience with a 99 and 2000 Camry. Generally highly reliable; both cars had terribly soft suspensions which I did not like at all. Overall handling is mediocre.
Brakes are satisfactory even though the rear are drum brakes.
My 2000 is developing some oil leaks at 125,000 which need to be addressed.

Gas Mileage has fallen off the 2000. It needs to be looked into.

Automatics on both cars have been reliable. I multiple changed automatic fluid in both cars with Mercon V which is supposed to be fairly stable even at 800 degrees F.

Frankly the 4 is one of the smoothest and most reliable 4 cylinder engines ever made. GM for a long time never came even close to making an engine of this quality. Performs well on snow and ice.

One of the few cars I know of where you can access the front of the engine easily and get to the oil filter easily.

Dome light is annoying, poorly designed. Off when it needs to be on. It is on when it needs to be off. Interior lighting on both the CE and LE are poor.

Some pulling back of interior plastics with time.

Quirky issue with the 99. When the battery terminal is removed and replaced, can be tricky to get the horn alarm to turn off.

Better visor lights like the Chevy S-10 pick up are needed. Cigarette outlets blow fuses easily if you use an inverter. Tire places break the wheel covers which are expensive to replace.

I've bought my 98 2.2 5 speed new. The car has been well maintained including oil changes every 3000 miles.

Valve seals needed at 90,000 (no sludge-no warranty). I'm glad I put it off because the connecting rod on Number 2 decided to exit the motor just below the oil filter.

Brakes have pulsed since new but I was so busy with check engine lights and transmission complaints that I never got around to having it fixed by the dealer.

The suspension is very soft, the car handles poorly.

I like Toyota vehicles, but not this one.

CON.................parts are expensive.
Pro..................It will run forever.