93 camry 2.2 loss of power and stalls

[skewe]

I had an oil pan changed recently and once it came back, the sound of the engine was louder.
That was 3 months ago.

This weekend, it was a loss of power where if you hit the accelerator, it would not move or accelerate. not talking about lead foot.

On Sunday, if you give it gas, it would die and the RMP meter would hover or jump between 600 and 700 rmp. Literally jump.

I check the spark plug wires and the first tube to the far left, there was oil in it which I assume that when the shop poured oil, it missed the oil crank case. Wipe that off the spark plug and also the chamber, that did not help.

Any thoughts?

The spark plug wires are about 2-3 yrs and looks new still. Spark plug are around that time too. Distributor Rotors and distributor cap were changed at that time too.

What puzzles me is the engine vibrating between 600 and 700 RPM, where you can see the meter moving up and down, like somebody is chocking the air or gas + loss of power.

Any help is greatly appreciated. TIA

[skewe]

bump.. anybody?

[chronoti]

is it throwing any codes?

[skewe]

Originally Posted by chronoti

is it throwing any codes?

nope

[Mike Gerber]

"The spark plug wires are about 2-3 yrs and looks new still."

Were they OEM plug wires? I have seen some of the cheap aftermarket wires fail in as little as 1 year or 20,000 miles. Did you get a lifetime warranty on these? If so, take them back and get a new set, if for nothing more then a test.

Also that oil is most likely coming from the top of the spark plug tube seals, not from spilling the oil when it is poured in the engine. Try cleaning the oil out of that tube and then retightening all the 30MM spark plug tube nuts to 17 ft. lbs. in 3 even passes. The oil down in the tube could have damaged that plug wire, causing your problem.

Mike

[skewe]

Thanks Mike.

I bought the spark plug wires from one of the online stores, it was something that came highly recommended on TN, Had that on my car for 1 -2 year and the same brand on my 2000 camry. Been running w/o problems.

On the 93camry, it has less than 5k on it and it commutes < 1 mile per day.

I have cleaned the tubes and bought new plugs, I will put them in to see if this will work and keep everybody posted.

[skewe]

ok.. spark plugs are not the issue.

i was runnign denso spark plugs and NGK wires.
tested those and replaced it with new ones.

It looking like the engine is vibrating like one of Doc's machine from back to the future...

Anybody..???

[JustinC25]

Is this an intermittent, or consistent issue ?
Does it idle ok ?
Have you checked for vacuum leaks ? (especially around the egr valve)
Does it happen more often when Hot ? or Cold ?
Any running problem will eventually boil down to 1 of 3 things. Air, Fuel, or Spark.
I would do a cylinder balance test, to try and determine which cylinder is causing you the greef.
This is a simple test to do.
Let me know if you need help with this.

Justin

[JustinC25]

Here is a video of how to do the cylinder balance test :

You Tube

You Tube

[Mike Gerber]

"I bought the spark plug wires from one of the online stores, it was something that came highly recommended on TN, Had that on my car for 1 -2 year and the same brand on my 2000 camry. Been running w/o problems."

Are the wires identical on the 2000 Camry? Can you switch them to the 93 as a test? If that checks out OK, I would next test the coil. For that test you will need a digital volt/ohmeter and the specs from any manual. Also inspect it visually for cracks.

Mike

[skewe]

Thanks Justin and Mike.

Really appreciate your input!


Q: Is this an intermittent, or consistent issue ?
Consistent. When I hit the gas and it is in gear, it will crawl a few inches. I feel like I am ridding a FORD MODEL T and this is really puzzling. It is hard for me to get the car over 1000-1200 RPM even if it is in Neutral. Not sure if this is a RED Flag.

Q: Does it idle ok ?
Not really. It feels like the car is going through a seafoam cleansing. I have not done that in years and I don't plan to do so cos the last time I did it, my charcoal canister busted in my Gen4. Might be luck or just about time but no more seafoam for me.
It feels like the engine is short of air or sputtering.

Q: Have you checked for vacuum leaks ? (especially around the egr valve)
Not really. I looked and I do not see anything.

Q: Does it happen more often when Hot ? or Cold ?
Both

Q: Any running problem will eventually boil down to 1 of 3 things. Air, Fuel, or Spark.
Can't agree with you more. But what is causing it? I did the spark plugs and will look into the cylinder balance test.

I would do a cylinder balance test, to try and determine which cylinder is causing you the greef.
This is a simple test to do.
Let me know if you need help with this.

Q: Are the wires identical on the 2000 Camry? Can you switch them to the 93 as a test? If that checks out OK, I would next test the coil. For that test you will need a digital volt/ohmeter and the specs from any manual. Also inspect it visually for cracks.
No. Gen4 does not have an rotor and cap on the distributor.
I will try to borrow a volt meter or have somebody help me with it.

FYI: cylinder balance test
http://www.corral.net/tech/maintenan...t-balance.html
Reading over it, it would be hard to push it to 1k RPM as I am not able to get the engine up to that RPM

[96paseo]

Originally Posted by skewe

ok.. spark plugs are not the issue.

i was runnign denso spark plugs and NGK wires.
tested those and replaced it with new ones.

It looking like the engine is vibrating like one of Doc's machine from back to the future...

Anybody..???

What was the condition of the old plugs? Any plug that looks different than the others would indicate a problem with that particular cylinder. Check NGK's website for a burn color diagram. For example, dry and black usually means weak spark. Wet would indicate either oil or gas on the plug. You can tell the difference with your nose. Check your distributor and rotor for excessive wear or cracks. Check that the rotor button and spring are intact and there is no arcing(black soot and sometimes melted plastic are the result). As MikeGerber advised, check the coil while your in there. Also check the large rubber intake pipe that goes from the air filter box to the throttle body. I have seen a few of these crack causing a large vacuum leak. Usually results in a high idle but just in case. How many miles are on it? Have you Seafoamed and cleaned the TB and IAC port?

[skewe]

Plugs are new, so it should be OK. Distributor and rotor, those were replaced about a year or so ago and they look good. There is nothing wrong with the air intake and I even removed it. Idle speed is like 200-400RPM and it seems like the engine is choacking.

I got somebody to come see the car before I drag it to the shop.
They say that it could be due to the "Catalatic converter".
What do you guys think? Can a catalatic converter cause this?

If so, it is going to be an expensive job...

[96paseo]

Originally Posted by skewe

Plugs are new, so it should be OK. Distributor and rotor, those were replaced about a year or so ago and they look good. There is nothing wrong with the air intake and I even removed it. Idle speed is like 200-400RPM and it seems like the engine is choacking.

I got somebody to come see the car before I drag it to the shop.
They say that it could be due to the "Catalatic converter".
What do you guys think? Can a catalatic converter cause this?

If so, it is going to be an expensive job...

Its not impossible for the converter to be plugged. Unlikely though. I'm thinking your problem is either ignition coil or fuel injector related unless you've tested them already. Anyways, good luck with the shop. Hopefully its not the cat. Maybe a bad coil or injector?