Mods for 2002 v6 Camry

[Mike2002]

Hi all,

Brand new on these forums!

I'm looking for modification ideas for my 2002 Camry Altise V6.

So far I have upgraded the exhaust to a custom made manifold back 2.5inch system with high flow 200 cat, and muffler with dual tips.
Made my own pod filter air intake. New 18inch wheels and 225 tyres. Cleaned out most of the engine to new condition.
Repainted most of the car, including underneath. New control arms and some bushings, but otherwise stock.
New rear 20mm whiteline sway bar and links are on the way, but not yet installed.
Other than this, just some minor upgrades here and there, as well as some weight reduction (including a lack of spare tyre).

As far as performance, while maintaining reliability goes, what are some other options for upgrades?
I'm not super experienced with cars, but I'm good at problem solving and engineering. (Coming from an aerospace background).

The car does look like it needs some lowering, so I'm guessing that would be a good place to start.
But I'm all ears for suggestions.
I'm also a part time pizza delivery driver with this car, so it gets thrashed quite a bit!

The car is white, with a blue accent theme if that helps. I have painted some of the interior, as well as the coils and callipers blue,
and changes some of the vac hoses to blue silicone. The custom air intake has a blue K and N pod, and some blue silicone 3 inch hosing.

 

[campbeam]

In a recent post, I added a link to a YouTube video about 5 best under-rated vehicle modifications. I had another search on YouTube and this following video may also be of interest to you. Interest that both videos mention upgrading the brake lines. Following link may not be for your specific vehicle so best to contact the seller and confirm.  https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/283865167243?hash=item4217aeb58b:g:FscAAOSw-sRe2NoN

 

[Mike2002]

Thanks Ashley!

I do plan on upgrading the brakes and lines eventually, but i'll wait till the pads need replacing.
The exhaust has been done right up to the manifolds, and it did add some noticeable power.
I also pulled out the intake manifold and cleaned the heck out of it recently, and gave it a slight port and polish.
I haven't done any tuning. I did call around to ask some tuners if they could do anything with the stock ECU, but all of them told me to get a haltech first.
That might be something id look at in the future, but it's too expensive to justify at this stage.
I had a look at some plug in units and flash tunes but I can't tell which are good, and which are just fake.
As for suspension, I have been calling around about coilovers (and lowering by about 1.5 inches), but there doesn't seem to be much available for the 2002-06 camry.
Pedders said they could do it for $2600. And a custom shop said they would make them for about $3000.
I tried Maxpeedingrods but they don't seem to have any for that year of camry.
If you have any suggestions for coilovers, I'm all ears!
I do have an aftermarket rear sway bar and links, and pulled out the front sway bar and refurbished it, as well as new front control arms.

Any suggestions on reducing the weight would be greatly appreciated too.

I've removed the spare wheel and tools, got larger but lighter wheels, removed some cabling and shaved some metal off behind the dash, got a lighter weight stereo system (I couldn't go without!), pulled out the old air intake and made my own custom pod filter intake with heat shroud which is overall lighter, got lighter front control arms, lighter exhaust, ported the intake manifold as well as shaved some of the exterior material from the intake, pulled off all the exhaust heat shields and made them lighter and more efficient (and added high temp rubber grommets to stop any vibration), and I'm in the process of scraping off all that horrible spray on rubber underneath the car, sanding down the areas and then putting a very light coat of chrome paint.

On low fuel I have the car down to 1441kg - which is somehow about the same as the advertised 1440kg curb weight despite removing a fair bit of weight.
But I'd like to get it down to about 1400kg.
I can probably shave off 5 to 10kg with coilovers, and I'm expecting to get another 2kg off with removing the rubber and sanding.
I've considered removing power steering, but after having a look, I wasn't sure exactly what to do.
I'm interested in light weight pulleys, but I haven't been able to find any the same size, only the underdriven versions, which I've heard bad things about.
 

Overall I'd like to keep the car fairly comfortable, and noise free in the cabin. As well as reliable.

Thanks for any suggestions!
 

[campbeam]

My only practical suggestion would be to look at the weight of the car battery.

https://www.power-sonic.com/blog/lithium-vs-lead-acid-batteries/

[jeffy]

damn, where were you a few months ago ! 

i had a buttload of parts for the gen5 camry !
 

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As for suspension, I have been calling around about coilovers (and lowering by about 1.5 inches), but there doesn't seem to be much available for the 2002-06 camry

i had Fortune Auto series coilovers made for the car, custom made the first run in the early 2010s pretty cheap too ! iirc  it was around $1400 almost the same as the entry level BC coils during that time, but much much comfier . PM me i think i still have some of the strut top measurements (which is needed if you were to get coils from other years) 

you will definitely have trouble with coils as the aussie gen 5 camrys (xv36 vs the normal xv30 chassis code - keep this in mind)  use the gen 4 chassis, (98-02) (xv20), so if you want coils, best look for those years, in fact even up to gen 3 (xv10) fit. 

 

Quote

I haven't done any tuning. I did call around to ask some tuners if they could do anything with the stock ECU, but all of them told me to get a haltech first.
 

stock toyota ECUs are tuners worst nightmare, they wont be able to do much to it. As mentioned yes, a full standalone ecu will open up the tuners options, but as you can see, it comes with a price tag. So if you were to do some ECU upgrades, you may as well go supercharger.

 

any further questions, dont hesitate to PM me, 

-jeffy

[Mike2002]

Hey, thanks for the replies!
I ended up getting the pedders racing coilovers, but managed to get them installed at another location for cheaper, total $2200.
They are being installed on Tuesday.
It should be roughly 1.5 to 2 inches lower overall.
I got the windows tinted last week, and took some weight off the underneath with sandpaper and a grinder!
I refurbished all the outer trimming and interior, as well as making the front headlights brand new again.
I also replaced the 2 front door speakers, as the driver side had become distorted.
I've been using that engine cleaner / octane increasing fuel additive lately, but I'm not sure if it even works.
A month or so ago, I pulled out the intake manifold and port + polished it a just a little, as well as removing all the carbon.
There is an annoying not so great noise from the exhaust while driving only (not in park) at 2800 revs to 3600 revs.
I thought it might have been an exhaust leak despite getting the exhaust custom made recently, so I tried to patch up all the joints, but it's still there.
Not sure what it is, but it sounds sad from 2.8k until 3600revs, then healthy to 4000, then angry and on steroids from 4k + with the intake.

Currently I'm looking for a cheap skirt kit. I tried a local toyota spare parts dealer, but apparently they go as soon as they get them.
I'm also in need of the clip to close the centre console, but debating if I should just remove the heavy lid and leave it open.

I've been looking at a replacement car battery. But annoyingly the battery has recently been replaced.. so I might wait till it needs replacing again first.
I did also make a custom air intake and enclosure, which includes the battery, so I'm pretty sure a lower profile battery would also mean slightly better airflow to the intake.
The battery will likely be the next thing I upgrade.

I'd also love to change the front seats over, but I don't really want to sacrifice comfort.
I'd also like to keep the back seats in place. I've heard that racing seats are the opposite of comfort, but do offer a significant weight reduction.
Are there any options for slight comfort loss, and slight weight reduction?

I've heard that changing the torque converter and also having some light weight pulleys could unlock some power, but no company has replied to me yet about this.

Supercharging / turbocharging is something ive been considering for a while, but I feel like it would significantly reduce the life of the car.
It's a weird goal, but i'm looking for something in between power, and longevity. 
I do put the car through tough conditions here and there, but at the same time, I keep it clean and maintained.
If it were to blow a head gasket for example, id get it fixed. Not look for a new engine.
 

[Mike2002]

[Mike2002]

Here is the car in it's current state, before lowering