3rd & 4th Generation (1992–1996 & 1997–2001)Toyota Camry Discussion for years: 1992-1996 & 1997-2001
Topics of discussion range from fuel economy, safety, modifications, performance all involving America's favorite family car, the Toyota Camry.
I have a 1995 camry 2.2 automatic that shakes at idle.
I purchased the car used as a backup car for my family and cannot get the car to stop shaking at idle . It runs smooth and well at all other speeds. I have replaced: all the engine mounts (purchased from ebay but bought the better liquid filled $149.00 set of mounts). Intake manifold gasket and throttle body gasket (cleaned entire intake and throttle body while apart). Replaced cap wires plugs rotor and pcv valve. Inspected all vacuum lines and routing. Cleaned and checked egr valve. Engine compression is even at around 200 psi. I adjusted all intake and exhaust valves (several were a bit out of spec) I ran several tanks of fuel with techron thru the car. I love this car but the shaking is driving me crazy. car has around 176,000 miles and was originally fron texas so it has no rust on it at all. ( I live in Michigan so this means alot) Has anyone had this problem and if so what did you do to rectify it. I really want to repair this car Thank you. Jsn
wow you went the whole nine for fixing the idle. mounts is my best guess but you already did that. id say its the engine itself due to high miles...i could be wrong. check all belts? timing belt, etc, etc? misfire? spark plugs and wires? idk im just throwing more ideas that you could check
I replaced the shims under the camshafts with the proper thickness shims. (winzer products sells the shims in .002 inch increments. This required a special tool that I got from Snap on. (blue point brand.) The timing belt is fine and there is no misfire that I can tell. If I carefully remove plug wires one at a time at idle , the engine rpm drops very evenly for each cylinder. This car is driving me crazy.
I have a 95 Camry LE that I purchased brand new in 95. At times, it also shakes quite a bit at idle, but when in gear--like when you're stopped at a stop light with your foot on the brake. It seems like it justed started to do that at around 100K miles, and I thought the repair shop I was going to (not Toyota dealer) messed it up, so I spent big money to have all the engine mounts replaced and things cleaned, etc. like you did, only I had to pay to have it done. I'm no mechanic. Anyway, finally I called a Toyota service mgr. in a nearby larger city, and he told me there is basically nothing you can do about it. He said that with wear, over time, the engines in this generation camry just get out of balance and that it was corrected in later generations. Sorry I don't have all the terminology down pat, but it's not my thing. He said there is a package or something Toyota came out with to address the problem, but it doesn't work very well and he knows because he's tried several times; so he recommended I either learn to live with it or sell the car. The car runs like a top 96% of the time, so I'm living with it--kept it for my winter beater, and bought a lightly used Lexus for summer. I'd like to get it fixed too, but it's a 13 yr old car. It's not worth it, unless of course you can fix it yourself somehow. Hope this helps.
If I am not mistaken (and i might be) these engines have a balance shaft.... if they do and are driven by the timing belt, which they should be, could it be possible that if someone previously changed the belt that the balance shaft could be off a tooth or more causing the vibration? Since it appears that you have done everything else, it might be worth pulling the timing cover off completely and checking to make sure that every timing mark lines up.
You did purchase the car with the shake correct?
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This sounds like a vacuum leak .
spray a little brake cleaner spray around the intake where it bolts to the head to see if it is sucking air around the intake gasket. if not, pinch the pcv hose and the brake booster hose shut and see if it smooths out. sometimes the guts of the pcv valve will come out or the brake booster will have a small leak and cause problems like this.
Is there any difference when the engine is idling hot or idling cold?
... Also, it might not be too much trouble to remove the top cap of the vacuum modulator for the EGR .... and clean the filter .... replace with coarse side up.
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98 Camry LE, 2.2L, automatic
50k miles, drop in K&N A/F recent timing belt, water pump
Please do a search! These cars vibrate at idle because it is a 4cyl. Mine shook when new and has gotten worse with age. I have replaced all 4 mounts with OEM parts and it helped some. The big problem is that you cannot adj. the idle speed on the 5sfe, it is controlled by the ECM. If it is making you nuts, shift it into N when at a stop light.
The trans engages in 2nd gear and shifts into 1st, so it doesn't stress the drivetrain.
Bear
If I am not mistaken (and i might be) these engines have a balance shaft.... if they do and are driven by the timing belt, which they should be, could it be possible that if someone previously changed the belt that the balance shaft could be off a tooth or more causing the vibration? Since it appears that you have done everything else, it might be worth pulling the timing cover off completely and checking to make sure that every timing mark lines up.
You did purchase the car with the shake correct?
For the record, the 5S-FE does have balance shafts, but they are driven by the crank shaft, not the timing belt.
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Please do a search! These cars vibrate at idle because it is a 4cyl. Mine shook when new and has gotten worse with age. I have replaced all 4 mounts with OEM parts and it helped some. The big problem is that you cannot adj. the idle speed on the 5sfe, it is controlled by the ECM. If it is making you nuts, shift it into N when at a stop light.
The trans engages in 2nd gear and shifts into 1st, so it doesn't stress the drivetrain.
Bear
10-4 on shifting into N at stop lights. I do that once in a while if the vibration is particularly bad. The problem is the balance shaft, but if you could adjust the idle speed up as you suggest, that would remedy the vibration. I submitted my initial post because I thought it might help prevent someone else from wasting a lot of money like I did. However, to be honest, I wouldn't have believed that nothing could be done about it, even if I had these posts to read before I spent a dime. Replacing engine mounts etc., does help a little--very little, but if people think it's going to eliminate the vibration, they're going to be very disappointed. These are great cars, but if I could do it all over again. I would sell it.
10-4 on shifting into N at stop lights. I do that once in a while if the vibration is particularly bad. The problem is the balance shaft, but if you could adjust the idle speed up as you suggest, that would remedy the vibration. I submitted my initial post because I thought it might help prevent someone else from wasting a lot of money like I did. However, to be honest, I wouldn't have believed that nothing could be done about it, even if I had these posts to read before I spent a dime. Replacing engine mounts etc., does help a little--very little, but if people think it's going to eliminate the vibration, they're going to be very disappointed. These are great cars, but if I could do it all over again. I would sell it.
Lexster....I thought about looking for a gen 3.5 v6 because they are so smooth, but my neighbor has one and has always complained about the MPG in city driving and what a bitch it is to work on (no space in engine bay). Now that gas is around $3.00 I am keeping the 4cyl.
Thanks for help informing other new owners about this vibrating. These are damn good motors and will last 250,000 and more with proper care.
Bear
Thanks for all the information everyone. Has anyone ot there actually solved the vibration issue on one of these cars by replacing the balance shafts or by any other means?? It seems strange that the engine would go out of balance from normal wear. A friend has the exact same car with 179000 miles-- mine has 176000 and his doesn't vibrate at all. I have been a certified mechanic for 29 years and have never had a car stump me like this cars shake at idle has. If you have had a car like this and had something done that repaired this problem, PLEASE let me know.
Thank you--- JSN
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