Constant Flashing ECL - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

rowskey · 02-16-2008, 09:35 PM

I have a Toyota Camry sdv10 93 model that wet swimming the other day and got water through the air intake.I Have cleaned out the Throttlebody and changed plugs, airfilter, oil & filter ( and the fuel filter cause i was in the mood). When i turn the ignition on The Engine Check Light Constantly Flashes and doesn't stop. The engine starts but runs at close to 1100 - 1200 rpm...little rough but sounds ok.
Has anyone got a sugestion?

dc_98_cam · 02-16-2008, 10:37 PM

sdv10

What is US equivalent? Do you have I4 engine or V6? Do you have a distributor on your engine?

rowskey · 02-17-2008, 03:05 AM

The Motor is A 5S-FE MOTOR 2.2LTR 4Cyl. yes it does have a distributor on the engine

dc_98_cam · 02-17-2008, 03:19 AM

Difficult to pinpoint the cause...You will probably have to try a few things until you find the problem.
One possibility is a filter element ...located in the vacuum modulator...maybe it soaked up water and is inhibiting the EGR. Locate the vacuum modulator, next to the EGR, and remove the top cap...think it is plastic. Remove the filter, clean and dry, and replace with the coarse side up.
So ... what happened to get the engine wet? How much of the engine was submerged?
Were you trying to drive across a river or something?

rowskey · 02-17-2008, 03:50 AM

woke up to rain and went to work not knowing that it'd been raining for 2 hours b4 i woke, and ended up getting 22inches of rain in 5 hours...half way to work i came across water in the main street of town(bit over a foot high)
. High tide didn't help..so i turned the car for home but the Air filter choked and she stalled.
anyway...will look at the and let you know how i go...Thanks for the advice

rowskey · 02-19-2008, 02:30 AM

OK. UPDATE:

CRC'd every Electrical thing in site under the bonnett to remove/Disperse water and left it for 24hrs to work its magic. Started the car and still the same thing.
I got the engine to normal operating temperature and waited with no result. While doing this i Realised the O/D Switch on the Gear Shifter was Off so i turned it on, and now its flashes in time with the ECL. So I'm assuming its possibly a gearbox fault.

If anyone has a sugestion ( besides a funeral service and burial) let me know. I appreciate any help

dc_98_cam · 02-19-2008, 07:34 AM

One recurrent problem in these cars seems to be the ignition coil. Sometimes it is heat, other times vibration or just moisture or humidity. The usual fix is to replace the ignition coil with a new one...diagnosis using continuity tests is not always successful.
CRC or similar products would not affect the coil...just replace. Is your coil old or new?
Are your plug wires new or old?...Seems like they might also be affected by moisture.

Kep · 02-19-2008, 11:24 AM

OK, what is the code? If the CEL is flashing there should be a fault code stored shouldn't there?

Also, did the ECU itself possibly get wet?

Kep

Luckynumber5 · 02-19-2008, 12:06 PM

Check the intake air temperature sensor, blinking cel can mean multiple cylinder misfires and can go hand in hand with the erratic idle when the sensor gets wet. A wet temperature sensor will send crazy information to the ecu causing all sorts of fueling and timing problems.

rowskey · 02-22-2008, 09:52 PM

ECL has no code stored..I tried to read and the light just keeps flashing (2 per second with no pause). I think i solved the problem. I drained the gear box without thinkin the stall converter was still full. the Transaxle and box still have traces of water in them.

So its to the Engine hoist i go. Removing engine when i get a chance and stripping the transanxle and gearbox to clean it. Hopefully it'll be good after that

.

dc_98_cam · 02-22-2008, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rowskey

ECL has no code stored..I tried to read and the light just keeps flashing (2 per second with no pause). I think i solved the problem. I drained the gear box without thinkin the stall converter was still full. the Transaxle and box still have traces of water in them.

So its to the Engine hoist i go. Removing engine when i get a chance and stripping the transanxle and gearbox to clean it. Hopefully it'll be good after that

.

That is a big step ... a lot of effort involved.
What if you could somehow get the engine up to operating temperature for a while... does the car drive, even with the CEL light? Unless there is a large volume of water inside the engine, it ought to evaporate if it warms up.

rowskey · 02-22-2008, 10:11 PM

well. is it safe?..the engine is fine, started after work this morning and no lights came on the dash until the engine warmed up. its just the gearbox i'm worried about
Car drives but very sluggish. I moved it from the carport to the open drive way to let the sun bake the interior dry. and it struggled in all gears ( drive and Reverse). I even idles rough once operating temp rises
I'm just afraid that it might damage the gear box if it has had water in the oil. is this not the case?

Luckynumber5 · 02-22-2008, 11:33 PM

Is the O/D light still flashing? Several wires could have been corroded or still be wet causing it to run bad or tripping the O/D light (means there is a shift solenoid problem.)

Have you replaced the distributor cap and rotor yet? A wet cap and rotor will corrode quickly and cause a massive loss of power like you are describing.

dc_98_cam · 02-23-2008, 04:15 AM

^ ... Check the inside of the distributor cap...inspect the electrodes for any kind of oxidation or corrosion. This would produce some sort of problem with the engine warm/hot, but less so when cold.... I would even question whether the spark plug wires might somehow have absorbed some moisture...maybe at the wire ends, where the flexible boots are located.

If you have driven the car a short distance, then it might be worth draining and refilling
the transmission pan again...Examine the drained fluid...water is heavier ...it might be pooling on the bottom of the drain pan. If you could inspect the drained fluid by putting it in a glass or transparent container...let it settle, this might give you a better idea as to whether there is any water in it.

After 2 or 3 cycles of driving/draining/and refilling the transmission pan, you will have changed out 90% or so of the original transmission fluid for new fluid. If you change the engine oil...put some in a glass container...allow to settle, and inspect for any unusual globules or evidence of water.

It is difficult to say whether driving it will damage it ... If you can get the engine to sound like it is working right...reasonable RPMs ...even when warm...I would give it a try. ... What you're describing as transmission problems might actually be caused by the engine not producing enough power...maybe spark or combustion related.

dc_98_cam · 02-23-2008, 04:37 AM

If you look at p. AX1–47 ... in the I4 Automatic transmission section of the repair manual...there is a diagnostic test for the throttle position sensor, as well as the gear shift position...All you need is a volt meter with high internal impedance ... like a digital meter...A confirmation of the Throttle Position Sensor voltage might be worthwhile ...not too much effort involved to do this.
... Just wondering if the TPS might have absorbed some water.