World's Easiest Camry Upgrade!

NORMAL NMS AUTOCROSS STUFF

Yes, the NMS team likes to drive cars, and that means either driving fast or driving fast cars. Yes, some of us also own other cars, like the best selling car in the US, the Toyota Camry, which should never be confused with a fast or exciting automobile. On our blog we've strayed from the autocross and track driving a few times to report on some minor work we've done on the Camry (mirror replacement, oil changes, spark plugs, etc.). However, today we're taking on a Camry upgrade that before yesterday I'd never even heard about or seen. I seriously doubt you're going to find this information on a blog, a forum, or a video anywhere else but right here, so let's jump in and get going on this WORLD'S EASIEST CAMRY UPGRADE NMS EXCLUSIVE!

It all started when I got some mail from the Toyota folks. Yes, it arrived in the regular old mail, in a white envelope with a Toyota return address! Not an email, not a voice mail, but in the real honest-to-goodness the-mailman-brought-it MAIL! Long story short, it seems that certain Toyotas have been developing either cracking or sticky plastic dashboards, and the fine folks at Toyota will replace any affected dashboards for free! Lucky for me our car doesn't have these issues, but still, who knows what the future may hold? I've read about older Ferraris suffering from the sticky-plastic-syndrome, so maybe Toyota has been copying an ancient Italian plastic recipe?

THE LETTER: SEEMS LEGIT!

Reading into the details, this is not a recall, but just a heads-up that IF this happens to my Camry, then I can take it to Toyota and they'll replace the sticky or cracking dash for free, as long as it wasn't damaged or caused by a crash. The letter said that high temperatures, high humidity, and lots of exposure to the sun may cause the sticky or cracking dash syndrome! We've had the Camry since 2010, with equal parts living in South Carolina and Virginia, so it's seen it's share of heat and humidity, but for the most part it slept in the garage and out of the sun in those states, so maybe that has kept it in good shape.

Anyway, now that we've brought this medical disorder to light, and considering that we can't fit the car in our garage in New York, what is the treatment? Well in my case, our Camry dashboard is fine, so the letter said to install the notification sticker into the owner's manual, so that if we or a follow on owner have the problem, they can read all about it and get it repaired by Toyota up to the year 2020. In the interests of being helpful, NMS will now walk you through this awesome procedure so you can see EXACTLY how to do it (install a sticker on the owner's manual that is, just in case you got confused about this incredible car upgrade!)

Feel free to try this at home, your mileage WON'T vary, and this is something that you could easily due while under the influence of alcohol, up to a point. Still, we can't be held responsible for any damages to your owners manual, accidental paper cuts, or any other earth shattering injuries that may be caused by this intricate and time consuming procedure.

STEP ONE, FOLLOW DIRECTIONS!

STEP TWO: FIND YOUR CAR
IF IT'S NOT IN THE GARAGE, LOOK OUTSIDE!

STEP THREE: FIND CAR, GAIN ACCESS

STEP FOUR: FIND CAR DOOR CLOSEST TO OWNERS MANUAL

STEP FIVE: OPEN THE GLOVE BOX

STEP SIX: EXTRACT THE OWNERS MANUAL

STEP SEVEN: REMOVE "LABEL" FROM "LETTER"

STEP EIGHT: AFFIX "LABEL" TO OWNERS MANUAL
WE RECOMMEND THE INSIDE BACK COVER
TO AVOID COVERING UP IMPORTANT "WORDS"

STEP NINE: (NORMALLY WE'D SAY "REASSEMBLY IS OPPOSITE OF INSTALLATION"
BUT WERE GOING TO SPELL OUT THE NEXT FEW STEPS!)
STEP NINE: REPLACE OWNERS MANUAL IN GLOVE BOX
*OPTIONAL STEP: PUT THE TOYOTA LETTER IN THE MANUAL TOO

STEP TEN: CLOSE GLOVE BOX

STEP ELEVEN: EXIT VEHICLE AND CLOSE DOOR

OK, there you have it, what must SURELY be the INTERNETS absolutely first and best set of instructions on how to upgrade your Camry!! You're welcome!