Camry vs Mark x vs Accord

Lclolla · December 26, 2017

Merry christmas everyone .

Need some advice,

Planning to go for a used mid sized car. Trying to choose between camry, accord and mark x. Fuel economy is not a major concern. Looking for a reliable, comfortable car with decent driving experience. Budget is 4-5 mil. Anyone with experience using above vehicles? Any known technical issues?

Quiet · December 27, 2017

On 12/26/2017 at 6:47 AM, Lclolla said:

Merry christmas everyone .

Need some advice,

Planning to go for a used mid sized car. Trying to choose between camry, accord and mark x. Fuel economy is not a major concern. Looking for a reliable, comfortable car with decent driving experience. Budget is 4-5 mil. Anyone with experience using above vehicles? Any known technical issues?

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Mazda 6 is not in the list?

Supra_Natural · December 27, 2017

On 12/27/2017 at 3:09 AM, Quiet said:

Mazda 6 is not in the list?

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He said his budget is 4-5 mill, No 6s are available for anywhere near that.

MV-5 · December 27, 2017

iRage · December 27, 2017

I own a Mark X and have used a Camry...but I have not driven or used an Accord of the same era...so I will leave the Accord out. I am presuming you are looking at the V40 series Camry and the X120 series Mark X

Most people like to compare the Mark X and Camry but they are world's apart. The Mark X is marketed and positioned as an Executive sedan and the Camry as a family cruiser. As such the two have rather different personalities.

Performance...

Both cars weigh in around 1500kg (so no..the Mark X is NOT heavier as some seem to have suggested).

The Mark X comes with a 2.5L 4GR-FSE V6 direct injection engine with a 6 speed automatic (tiptronic) and has about 215 hp. There is also a 3.0L variant but I have not seen any in SL.

The Camry (variant in SL) has a 2.4L 2AZ-FE inline 4 engine with a CVT (EDIT: The V40 comes with a 5-speed ECT AT gearbox) with only about 160 hp. Also, you can find Hybrid variants which were imported from Australia and UK (Japan did not have the V40 series Hybrid Camry)

The numbers alone should tell you which one is actually nicer if you are a person who enjoys driving.

In addition the Mark X is RWD (Camry being FWD) so it does a lot better in the handling department.

The Mark X's suspension is a bit harder and sportier than in the Camry. So if you are looking for a soft pudgy ride then you might prefer the Camry.

I drive from Pelawatte to Bambalapitiya in heavy traffic and I get 6-7 kmpl from my Mark X. The Camry is also around that area so although the Mark X has a V6 it is not a heavy gas guzzler. On long runs to Matara and back I have averaged about 14kmpl as well.

Interior

The interior quality is completely different. The Camry feels like a typical plasticy Toyota...whilst in the Mark X you will get tons of leather wrapped stuff and everything hidden away behind wood grained (or brushed metal finished) panelling. Also, the interior bits are quite tightly fitted.

The mark X's sitting position is very sporty. You will feel like you are sunken and sitting in the car and the seats are very body hugging. The Camry has typical Toyota seats with highly ambiguous back support just like in the Allion or Premio

Due to the prop shaft tunnel and the shape of the car the mark X seems a bit smaller on the inside than in the Camry.

Features wise...

they are mostly identical apart from things like EBD and knee airbags coming standard in the mark X. With higher grades the Mark X gets even better with electronic suspension, automatic parking, etc...

Owning one...

At the end of the day the Mark X is a lot more inspiring to own and drive than the Camry. However, the Camry might be easier to own. Body parts for the Mark X are a bit hard to come by but mechanical parts are interchangeable with a few other models. Since the Camry is more popular there obviously would be more easily accessible parts around.

Both the V6 4GR-FSE and I4 2AZ-FE engines are pretty robust, however you do need to take care of them. Preferrably you should get a facelift Mark X with the updated 4GR-FSE (the first version of the 4GR-FSE had some issues with the crank). The 2AZ-FE..is also pretty robust.

The AT transmission is quite nice to have to compared to the CVT...easier to maintain (although the stupid service station guys insist on putting CVT fluid in the damn thing).

What should you get...?

If you love driving then get a Mark X. If you want a family transport pod..get a Camry.

Now here is the hard part....there are only about 30 - 40 known Mark Xs in Sri Lanka. 4 of them magically appeared out of car sale yards over the last year or so and have new registrations but most are K numbered. The rarity seems to keep the prices quite high. The V40 Camry on the other hand is a lot more common thus you do find specimens at a wider range of prices.

Edited July 29, 2020 by iRage

Tiss · June 5, 2020

A pretty good and detailed analysis above by iRage. I agree with it.

I have owned and driven a Toyota Mark X for 7-8 years. I have driven it from Singapore to Kuala Lumpur and back many times which is about 350-400kms one way. I have even driven from KL to Singapore, back to KL and to Singapore again in same day in Mark C and I never felt tired driving sitting position is very comfortable I used Bridgestone tyres which were comfortable too

I have also driven some other cars like Audi A4, A6, Lexus 250, BMW 523, Honda Accord, Subaru Legacy, Camry etc. But the car I enjoyed most was the Mark X. It’s a really enjoyable Car to drive if you enjoy driving.
All other cars I mentioned are pretty good to drive too but may be it’s me, I enjoyed Mark X the most.

Another Car I really love driving and enjoy much better is Audi A7.

Hope this helps.

Sadeepa Dilhara · July 29, 2020

On 12/27/2017 at 11:18 AM, iRage said:

he Camry (variant in SL) has a 2.4L 2AZ-FE inline 4 engine with a CVT gearbox with only about 160 hp

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Do you sure that XV40 camry came with CVT gearbox. According to Wikipedia it has a traditional automatic.

iRage · July 29, 2020

On 7/29/2020 at 7:05 AM, Sadeepa Dilhara said:

Do you sure that XV40 camry came with CVT gearbox. According to Wikipedia it has a traditional automatic.

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Actually you are right...it does have a 5-speed ECT automatic. Thanks for pointing that out. I don't know what lead me to say that. Could be because I was thinking of the RAV4 setup which has the same engine.

Sadeepa Dilhara · July 29, 2020

On 7/29/2020 at 7:17 AM, iRage said:

Actually you are right...it does have a 5-speed ECT automatic. Thanks for pointing that out. I don't know what lead me to say that. Could be because I was thinking of the RAV4 setup which has the same engine.

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I know that you're a RAV4 expert. ?. I'm looking for XV40 Camry with 2AZ-FE engine. I think you have experience with this engine in RAV4 s. There are hundreds of complaints all over the Internet about a oil burning issue of these 2az-fe engines. Do you have such experience with RAV4 s.

iRage · July 29, 2020

On 7/29/2020 at 8:02 AM, Sadeepa Dilhara said:

I know that you're a RAV4 expert. ?. I'm looking for XV40 Camry with 2AZ-FE engine. I think you have experience with this engine in RAV4 s. There are hundreds of complaints all over the Internet about a oil burning issue of these 2az-fe engines. Do you have such experience with RAV4 s.

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Well..what you call hundred of complaints is mainly a US centric host of complaints (about 95% are from State side..and in typical US fashion they sued Toyota for it ). The issue MAY arise in SOME cars and it pretty much applies to all 2AZ engines. You should know that percentage wise the number of cars that have experienced it has been quite small when compared to the total number of vehicles that should be effected by this.

I have not had any of the problems in any of the 2AZ engines cars I have had. Having said that...the likelihood of the problem emerging seems to be as the vehicle hits higher mileages and so far the current RAV4 we have has not hit that mark yet...and the old ones I had I sold them off at around 60K (change of country).

The exact cause of the issue seems not be not known either. The most likely cause seems to be the piston ring design which blocks oil flow and causes oil to burn in the chamber (bleed paths getting clogged, etc...) and then there are also references to block design itself...and then some to the actual seals used. For some reason it is not common outside of the US and the TSB is not universal either. So the likelihood could account to usage patterns and maintenance habits as well (lot of highway running....long maintenance intervals, etc...). There are no service advisories for 2AZ cars in Japan...and I have not heard of a lot of cases of RAV4s and Camries having significant oil burning issues in SL or in Africa...so no idea....

So is the 2AZ engine a good engine..yes....are any of the modern engines as robust as the engines found in the 80s and 90s ? No...with all the things the manufacturers have to do to make the car more efficient (reduction of weight..change of material...etc...) they have introduced other complexities.

Sadeepa Dilhara · July 29, 2020

On 7/29/2020 at 9:11 AM, iRage said:

Well..what you call hundred of complaints is mainly a US centric host of complaints (about 95% are from State side..and in typical US fashion they sued Toyota for it ). The issue MAY arise in SOME cars and it pretty much applies to all 2AZ engines. You should know that percentage wise the number of cars that have experienced it has been quite small when compared to the total number of vehicles that should be effected by this.

I have not had any of the problems in any of the 2AZ engines cars I have had. Having said that...the likelihood of the problem emerging seems to be as the vehicle hits higher mileages and so far the current RAV4 we have has not hit that mark yet...and the old ones I had I sold them off at around 60K (change of country).

The exact cause of the issue seems not be not known either. The most likely cause seems to be the piston ring design which blocks oil flow and causes oil to burn in the chamber (bleed paths getting clogged, etc...) and then there are also references to block design itself...and then some to the actual seals used. For some reason it is not common outside of the US and the TSB is not universal either. So the likelihood could account to usage patterns and maintenance habits as well (lot of highway running....long maintenance intervals, etc...). There are no service advisories for 2AZ cars in Japan...and I have not heard of a lot of cases of RAV4s and Camries having significant oil burning issues in SL or in Africa...so no idea....

So is the 2AZ engine a good engine..yes....are any of the modern engines as robust as the engines found in the 80s and 90s ? No...with all the things the manufacturers have to do to make the car more efficient (reduction of weight..change of material...etc...) they have introduced other complexities.

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