94 camry 4cyl. no start, no spark..... - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

bowlofturtle · 02-25-2007, 03:13 PM

Ok so the run down is 94XLE with aftermarket alarm installed with 139k, my dad's car maintence isn't really done up on it. No start, will turn over and crank crank crank. Its been raining and snowing here left and right.

I go to pull the plugs cylinder 1 is completely covered in oil, wire and plug, the other 3 are decent. this makes be believe that spark plug gasket is faulty. but even if that is the case 3 cylinders are good and should fire. i pulled out 3 wires and attempted to ground them on the exhaust manifold cover, had my dad crank it and it didn't spark at all. this was my way to test for spark. So it leaves me to believe that we have no spark. I wanted to go ahead and change the dizz but in the back of my mind i think its the alarm. but from my experiences most alarms cut off fuel as the immboilzer, but this one doesn't have spark.

Am i looking at this the right way by putting on a new dizzy.

Mike Gerber · 02-25-2007, 03:46 PM

I think that would be overkill. You could simply have a cracked distributor cap, a cracked distributor rotor, or a bad coil inside the distributor. You need to visually check the cap and rotor and then check the coil with a DVM and the specs from any manual. There is a generation 3 manual stickied at the top of the general Camry discussion forum that is available for free downloading. Also, I would identify the manufacturer of the alarm system and call them and ask them if their system cuts off fuel, spark or just grounds the starter to prevent starting. Also, what is their defalt if the system goes out.

The oil in the number one plug is an unrelated issue. Usually you can retorque the 4 large 30MM nuts on top of the cam cover, to resolve the oil getting down in the plug wells. Deal with that issue after you get the car running. It shouldn't prevent the car from starting.

Mike

bowlofturtle · 02-25-2007, 06:26 PM

So i got the manual and retested the spark according to the FSM. Still no spark. I looked up alarm, Prestiges APS-250 and it has a starter disable only.

So its something with the car, Haven't ohmed out the stuff yet, i looked over history and he got the T-belt, water pump,spark plugs, cap and rotor and all the other things wrong fixed summer of 06 so thats some new info

***toyomoho*** · 02-25-2007, 11:09 PM

The Toyota service manual has a detailed troubleshooting proceedure for this type of thing.

http://oregonstate.edu/~tongt/camry

bowlofturtle · 02-26-2007, 10:39 AM

how does the rotor come off... I have the cap off and i dont see the normal screw i tried pulling off by hand,didn't want to work dont wanna use screw driver and end up seeing a bolt or push tab.

seriousman · 02-26-2007, 10:58 AM

I recomend you get the valve cover gasket, tube seals, spark plugs and wires changed. Many times the tube seals go bad and oil gets thru (the seals are made out of rubber)

bowlofturtle · 02-26-2007, 11:16 AM

there was new valve cover gasket installed when he got the tune up. i think its just a tube seal at most, plugs as well.

Wires i just ohmed it out and it seems within specs.

I pryed off that rotor and well i broke it in 2. it was just a pull out type thing, it didn't come out easy for me but its i got it off. cheap part good enough. I ohmed out the coil and it looks to be the coil.

specs .38-.550 ACTUAL .8-.9 for primary coil

specs 9.0k - 15.4k ACTUAL 17.9k for 2ndary

obviously its out of specs but i was not too sure if i did it correctly (85% sure i did it right ) from the pictures my leads were in the same area. the + and - are just plain in your face just measure across and then for the 2ndary the postive to the random terminal in the middle of the gel block

edit..

Just got the new one. ohmed it at

.7 for primary and 12.4k for 2ndary. not sure if i got a bad pirmary coil on this one.

JamesBond · 02-26-2007, 09:51 PM

Search on the forum on how to read your codes. I had a no start issue that turned out to be a part of my distributor that wouldnt work when it was hot under the hood. I used a paperclip to connect the 2 terminals on the diagnostic port and counted the flashes of the check engine light. Sure enough, the car knew what was wrong with it. HTH
JamesBond

bowlofturtle · 02-26-2007, 10:27 PM

thanks. but my car will not start under any condition and i got the whole distributor right in my face right now and i'm compare the specs to the manual.

bowlofturtle · 02-27-2007, 01:14 PM

ok so i just replace the ign coil pack and put everything back together, went to fire it up and it cranks better then before but no start still.

what i mean by cranks better is that before it would just be the same type of tone and feel when you crank it. now when i crank it, it feels like it wants to start but its not.

I had to pull out the distrubtor to begin with cause the coil was mounted upside down and the rear 2 screws were impossible to get to. Put it back in, replaced the o-ring and everything went in great. I know i got to reset timing but the car wont start for that. I know i got fuel for sure, as i can smell it. I don't have another person with me right now to crank so i can check if we got spark now.

camryvibe · 02-27-2007, 01:40 PM

The timing could be far enough off to keep it from starting. If it seems like it's almost starting I would move the timing a little to one side and see if it gets better or worse. Then adjust some more until it starts and you can set it properly.

Mike Gerber · 02-27-2007, 01:58 PM

I agree with camryvibe. The timing could now be off enough to prevent the car from starting. Do what he says. Mark the position the distributor is currently in with a sharpie first (so you can always put it back where it is now) and then try turning the distributor a bit to each side. Then try starting the car. Once the car starts, let it warm up and then reset the timing to spec. A second person cranking the engine while you move the distributor would speed up the process. Next time you remove a distributor, mark it's position with relationship to the block and also remove the cap and note the position of the rotor, before you remove it from the engine.

If it still won't start, I would then remove and clean or replace the spark plugs. They could now all be gas fouled from all your attempts to start the car.

Good luck.

Mike

bowlofturtle · 02-27-2007, 11:36 PM

i got it to start up once. it was running really rough because i didn't have the intake box completely connected. but then it died shortly after running for about 3 seconds.

I noted the rotor alignment and got it to as close as i can on that part. I tired to note the dizzy but i marked the nut,washer to where the bolt went into but that wasn't my best. The plugs are really fouled up at this point.

I just had my dad go in the garage with me to check for spark, we NOW HAVE SPARK. It was a very slow and greenish spark rather then the sparking glowing red one i'm used to. I'm off to the store tomorrow to pick up a set of plugs, and i'll have my gf over to help me bump the car over a couple of times.

Just for shits and giggles while i was waiting for the gaskets i check for codes and it came up with 71 EGR fault. But that should be unrelated to what my starting issue is with since i got spark now and it did run. So timing adjustments and new plugs are on tomorrow's list.

94dsm · 02-28-2007, 12:24 AM

i had a very similar problem a few months back. same motor and all, and somehow one of the magnetic pickups in the distributor unraveled and wrapped up around the shaft.
if thats not it then im not sure

bowlofturtle · 02-28-2007, 11:55 AM

grrr.. the way i had it set up were its almost starting was the best i could of done. i played with the dizzy moving it but no go. i got new plugs in their and well the plugs are just getting soaked in fuel, i keep taking them off and blowing off the fuel off the electrode.

i pulled it out and check the spark. there is spark, but a very weak spark, it wants to start but it just won't