1989 Camry pwr option

[James Auchter]

Hi Everyone,

I own an 89 4wd Camry and I have a few questions

I am curious about the pwr button and if you can run it full time. My transmission seems to shift better with the button on. If I run it full time can that cause any damage to the car?

Second, Does the car run 4wd full time? Does the button lock the differential?

Thanks,

Jim

[white90dx]

The "PWR" button just changes the shift points and firmness of the transmission. You will get slightly better mileage in the "normal" position around town, but otherwise it is perfectly fine to leave it in the power mode all the time.

As for the center diff button - since you have the automatic trans, leave it in "auto" mode all the time. There should be a light that turns on above the glove compartement that says "auto". This will make it so the center diff locks when there is a large difference in speed between the front and rear axles (front or rear spinning), giving you better traction.

The manual trans alltracs should be left "unlocked" unless there is a reason to lock it (ie, the car is stuck in snow/ice, etc.).

-Charlie

[James Auchter]

Thanks for the info.

Jim

[Wangan]

Also if you're ever thinking about selling that car and its not a rust bucket please post in here first. 4wd camrys are hard to come by.lol

[Wangan]

Also if you're ever thinking about selling that car and its not a rust bucket please post in here first. 4wd camrys are hard to come by.lol

[James Auchter]

Hey,

Car is not a rust bucket, actually in mint condition. There is absolutely no rust and only had one owner till a week ago when I picked it up.

270,000 kms all lady driven in the Vancouver BC area

If I ever want to sell Ill put it up here but for now I am going to hang on to it.

Jim

[typesix]

The only time I found the PWR button to useful was in driving on San Francisco hills. I had a rental Camry and driving with button in Normal would bog down the car, using PWR, it felt much better.

[nuron]

Post pics of your Alltrac!

[mk2-1jz]

Originally Posted by James Auchter

Hi Everyone,

I own an 89 4wd Camry and I have a few questions

I am curious about the pwr button and if you can run it full time. My transmission seems to shift better with the button on. If I run it full time can that cause any damage to the car?

Second, Does the car run 4wd full time? Does the button lock the differential?

Thanks,

Jim

The PWR button is part of the electronically controlled system in the transmission. It allows the transmission to shift higher into the RPM band when under harder acceleration. It holds the lower gear for a longer period to benifit a little more from the power curve of the motor. Obviously this option is not intended for the economical savy driver, but is nice when you want a little bit more responce from your automatic transmission.

There is absolutly no problem leaving it in PWR as was mentioned, and the only sacrifice is MPG.

For your 4wd if you leave it in the automatic mode also as was mentioned the rear wheels will only engage if the computer senses 1 wheel turning at a higher rate in front or rear and it transfers power to conserve stability. Most of the time you should be running in front wheel drive unless there is a high demand for traction.

[stanno]

Originally Posted by mk2-1jz

The PWR button is part of the electronically controlled system in the transmission. It allows the transmission to shift higher into the RPM band when under harder acceleration. It holds the lower gear for a longer period to benifit a little more from the power curve of the motor. Obviously this option is not intended for the economical savy driver, but is nice when you want a little bit more responce from your automatic transmission.

There is absolutly no problem leaving it in PWR as was mentioned, and the only sacrifice is MPG.

For your 4wd if you leave it in the automatic mode also as was mentioned the rear wheels will only engage if the computer senses 1 wheel turning at a higher rate in front or rear and it transfers power to conserve stability. Most of the time you should be running in front wheel drive unless there is a high demand for traction.

Ok... Re: the part highlighted... With my JDM Lumiere model ...regardless of the degree of acceleration ... once it's in the power mode it still shifts higher in the rpm (around 3500)... which to my wife was a problem when cruising in traffic sometimes due to the fact that when it does upshift when cruising... it lunges forward more aggressively than in economy mode... I eventually had to put it back in "Manual Mode" (Which is the normal mode for JDM models) for her sake... Does this mean there's a problem with my tranny.. or related components ..? Cuz i was of the thought that it was normal to shift like that in PWR mode... regardless of engine load...

[zythr]

Power mode could hurt if you drive long distance on the highway. It locks out overdrive, so your engine RPM will be higher on the highway since the tranny will only be in 3rd gear.

[white90dx]

Originally Posted by zythr

Power mode could hurt if you drive long distance on the highway. It locks out overdrive, so your engine RPM will be higher on the highway since the tranny will only be in 3rd gear.

It does not lock out overdrive! There is a separate overdrive button on the shifter that does that function. Even then, highway cruising in 3rd gear would not hurt the transmission as it can lock up the torque converter in 3rd as well as overdrive. Your motor would wear out faster and you burn more gas, but the trans will be fine.

Under normal accelleration, it shifts around 500rpm later and under full throttle allows the motor to go closer to redline. It may also firm up the shifts, but it might just be firmer because of the higher RPM of the engine...

-Charlie

[stanno]

Originally Posted by white90dx

It does not lock out overdrive! There is a separate overdrive button on the shifter that does that function. Even then, highway cruising in 3rd gear would not hurt the transmission as it can lock up the torque converter in 3rd as well as overdrive. Your motor would wear out faster and you burn more gas, but the trans will be fine.

Under normal accelleration, it shifts around 500rpm later and under full throttle allows the motor to go closer to redline. It may also firm up the shifts, but it might just be firmer because of the higher RPM of the engine...

-Charlie

Something is def wrong with mine then... maybe one of the solenoids ... Cuz it never goes even close to redline under hard acceleration... it doesn't even past 3500rpm... unless i manually shift through the gears...

[stanno]

BTW... can someone help me with my overdrive button... i took it out to remove the shift lever knob and after replacing it just as i took it out... it's not sticking down... whenever i depress it ... it returns to the O/D off position... What did i do wrong..? Or what am i not doing..?

[mk2-1jz]

check the wiring that comes out of the transmission for any splits, it just seems that the tranny is not communicating with the ECU and for the heck of it check your fuse in the under hood fuse box