Hello
As the title states I am looking to buy a 07 Camry hybrid with 70K. I have owned 3 hybrids before (Mariner, Accord) and each one had its own quirks and issues and wondered what are some for this model?

 

Not much to look for really. It either works, or it doesn't. Be sure there are no warning lights and have the codes pulled to see what's in there (if anything). Go for a drive and listen for any horrible or out of place sounds. The car should be quiet and the hybrid drive should engage and disengage without too much clunking. Some are worse than others. I have been in 4 of them and they all are a little different. Besides the "regen sound", it should be relatively quiet.

ICE water pumps are a common failure on this car and you're going to have to do one soon with those miles. Look for pink coolant trails on the hood pad and around the inside of the water pump pulley.

Oil consumption is/was an issue on some of them and Toyota will rebuild the bottom end if it fails their "usage test". But, you won't know anything about that until you have owned it for a while.

The brakes can be a problem if they have not been regularly serviced. Because they get used so little, the slide pins can seize up and cause uneven pad wear and premature rotor wear. I have made it a routine to re-grease my slide pins and put anti-squeal on the backs of the pads every 30,000 miles to alleviate this problem. As a result I still have over 50% pad life left at over 245,000 miles on the "Original Rotors and Pads". They will easily make it to over 300,000 miles, maybe 400,000 before they need replacing.

There are several warranty extensions. The major one has to do with the "brake actuator" which can fail and is costly to replace out of pocket. Chances are, if it has not been replaced yet, its fine.

There are several recalls and campaigns to have things repaired, replaced or fixed. You can have a dealer run the VIN to see what has or has not been done.

Because of the age of the car, you can expect that you may have to replace either of the batteries. Don't buy the car if you are not prepared for these things to fail. Especially on a car that is almost 10 years old.

The AC is another area that can get expensive (as I have learned). My evaporator croaked last year and what you have to remove to get at it to replace it is mind boggling. I have been quoted anywhere from $2200 to $2400 to get if fixed including all the associated parts (Evap, drier, exp. valve, o-rings, freon, oil, etc...) I am learning that this is a fairly common problem on 2007-2011 Camry's. Lots of complaints about it.

I spent quite a bit of time fixing little squeaks and rattles in the console, center stack and rear deck. Common problem with these cars. Most of them are easy to fix.

Doing a search on here and TN will bring up lots of good reading for you.

Good luck! Great car...

 

Great synopsis, litespeed!

 

TN he means toyotanation Camry Hybrid forum.
Lite mostly covered it. Water pumps. Oil consumption that MAY be covered under warranty extension if car receives letter to have it done via consumption test. Mine had.
12V battery is likely next to be done.
Those years normally have a lot of squeaks from ill designed panel clips. U just turn volume up.
Struts likely will need to be done, pending how crappy are roads she drove on.
Is your J VIN?
Surely check if it was in any accidents and such.
Those are good cars. Several folks ran into over 200 000 miles on everything stock and no repairs.
Traction battery is a toss. SOME had issues but not statistically significant number.
There will be little in common between the other two hybrids you owned and Toyota. Far as I know, Accord Hybrid was a gas hog.
You should be, under proper driving techniques, and favorable terrain, somewhere around 40-41 mpg summer time.
That's about it. Good cars.
Circle back for user advice, as you WILL have questions.

 

Toyota Camry Hybrid is a very good option !