1992 Camry LE Cold Weather Drive Problem

[nitelifeguy]

Hello all,
New to the group and I am trying to figure out my 92' Camry problem.Just bought about a month ago..4 cyl LE 2.2 Engine..148,000 miles..Real nice shape for a 16 year old vehicle..Couldn't believe how well it drove on the day of the test drive..Very solid car overall..

Haven't noticed any issues since I first bought it except for when the weather recentley turned colder over the course of the past 3 weeks..Until one day when I first started the car and drove for about a mile or two, I noticed the temperature guage kept bouncing to the middle point and then back down a bit above the 'C' point..It did it a few times on the highway..like these sudden bounces up and then slow back downward..When I got to my destination, I parked and turned it off. When I got back in a little while later, and started off again, the guage seemed to behave normal and stay around the low-middle position. Thinking that I might be low on antifreeze, Later on that day, I checked the coolant overfill reservoir and opened up the radiator cap and the levels were filled at both points and there were no leaks present.

But with each cold start since then, I usually wait until the fast idle comes down to around 800 RPM before putting it in gear (the fast idle starts around 2500 in the morning when it's been in the 30's out) Then I put in in drive and there usually is a slight hesitation before the trans grabs an begins to move foward..But once the engine is warm enough..It usually is fine..Until today when I tried to pull out in drive when it was still cold and the engine just revved up to 3000 RPM and it would hardly move..So i put it back in park, waited for it to warm up a bit then put it back in drive..it chugged a bit and then the trans engaged and it was good..And it's good during normal engine temps as well..Only in the morning upon the first cold start she seems like she doesn't want to go until warmed up good about 10 min or so.

Just wondering what I might be up against.Hopefully not a serious trans problem or head gasket starting to go.I noticed a slight bit of water coming out of the tailpipe this morning along with a foul smell from the exhaust but again, only at the first start of the day.

Thanks for reading..

[toyomoho]

Welcome to TN!

Suggest a TN search as both of your concerns of head gasket and trans lagging have been discussed

You may have several issues.

Operate the engine up to temp with the radiator cap off and look for bubbles in the coolant. The Camry cooling system is very good, variations in gauge temp could be a defective thermostat.

Does the exhaust smell like rotten eggs, if so this could be a defective catalytic converter.

Have you checked the fluid level in the trans and condition. The fluid should be red or reddish, if black it needs changing. The problem could also be internal if trans fluid level and condition are OK. Something like a forward clutch.

[Stillrunning]

I doubt you got service records, if there were any. First thing I'd do is change the thermostat and have the trans fluid completely flushed and replaced. Both you can do yourself if you do a search but not expensive if someone else does it. Buy a Haynes manual if you expect to do any DIY service. When I buy a used car I always change every fluid in the car. It is a 92 after all, hopefully the mileage is accurate.