I recently purchased a 2001 Camry with a 2.2L 5speed 84k miles
I'm very excited since this is my first stick shift and my first toyota
Basically the only reason I bought it is because of their reliability.
Car had 2 owners: first a female for 6 years and 1 year her brother (if you believe the sellers story, i do, carfax checks out according)
He changed the clutch at 84k (200 miles ago) and teh car has been sitting for a couple of months.
1.)My question is: should i be concerned that the clutch was changed so soon? is that too soon? what is average (im not asking for people's longest lasting clutch records here, but what is it supposed to be changed at?) . Is there a way to make sure the Synchros are fine?
2.)Im also concerned about the timing belt; i read it needs to be done at 90k so i'll probably do it next summer. what should i expect for cost on that?
as a college student money is tight (to say the least)
3.) I read a lot about oil sludge/gelling. I couldn't see it in my car but is there a way to see any signs of it before its too late. I plan on using regular oil - or dino oil as i've seen it called on this forum - and changing it every 3k miles.

Asside from that I might tint the windows and maybe paint the tail lights black. for some reason i just imagine that would give it a very sleek look. did anybody try this already? my car is silver
no "Tuning" its a 4 door camry, i dont plan on finding how fast it is, although the 2.2 is surprisingly quick for the size of the car.

Thanks for reading, and any advice is appreciated.

 

Clutch life to a large extent depends on type of driving. Obviously 90% freeway driving results in longer life then 90% stop and go and trying to maneuver the hills of San Francisco. If all the required clutch parts were changed and flywheel serviced would not be concerned. The syncros can wear if the trans is raced but there is nothing you can do now if damage has occurred.

The recommended timing belt change is 90K miles but this does not mean the belt will break at 90K. Replacement cost depends on what shop you use, Toyota quotes around $500. Suggest calling around to shops, this type of job is routine and they should be able to quote you a price. If handy with tools and have a weekend to spare you can do the job yourself. A belt cost around $40.

The sludging engines were a little earlier. If concerned pull off the valve cover and look for signs of sludge, it will be obvious if present.

Regular oil is fine.

 

Thanks for the reply toyomoho.
Im pretty sure I was just paranoid about the synchros.