HELP! 01 Camry will not start

[texastiger07]

I am at my wits end. My 01 Camry (4 cyl 5 spd) died suddenly on the way to work at the end of December. I went through the usual diagnostics and discovred that the fuel pump was not pumping. I applied power directly to the pump and could hear it run. I disconnected the fuel line at the bottom of the fuel filter and no fuel would come out when the pump was running. I replaced the fuel pump and tested it before reconnecting the fuel line. Fuel came out of the line as was expected. So thinking that my problem was solved I tried starting the car and I can not get it to fire up.

I have done the following checks:

Pulled plugs: Plugs were wet with fuel and plugs would spark when engine was cranked.

Pulled up valve cover and looked to see if the the cams were rotating when the engine was cranked. The cams rotated so the timing belt is still connected.

Checked engine compression. This might provide a clue since all 4 cylinders show a max compression of 95-100 psi. The 99 camry manual that I acessed online shows a 170 psi nominal pressure and a 142 psi minimum pressure. Based on this fact my dad suggest that possibly the timing belt has slipped a notch or two and even though it is still driving the cams timing has been lost and valves are partially open during the compression stroke.

My question to the resident experts is:
Is it possible for the belt to still be connected but slip enough for the engine to be out of time so much that the engine will not start? I need to replace the belt anyway since I have about 124 K on the vehicle and the belt has never been replaced.

Any help or guidance would be appreciated.

Thanks
Douglas

[hill8570]

Originally Posted by texastiger07

Pulled plugs: Plugs were wet with fuel and plugs would spark when engine was cranked.

Big, blue spark or little wimpy yellow spark?

Originally Posted by texastiger07

Checked engine compression. This might provide a clue since all 4 cylinders show a max compression of 95-100 psi. The 99 camry manual that I acessed online shows a 170 psi nominal pressure and a 142 psi minimum pressure. Based on this fact my dad suggest that possibly the timing belt has slipped a notch or two and even though it is still driving the cams timing has been lost and valves are partially open during the compression stroke.

Are you holding the throttle valve open while you do the compression check? You'll see real low readings like that if you're not allowing the engine to "breathe" while you do the compression check.

Originally Posted by texastiger07

Is it possible for the belt to still be connected but slip enough for the engine to be out of time so much that the engine will not start? I need to replace the belt anyway since I have about 124 K on the vehicle and the belt has never been replaced.

Possible, but not particularly likely.

Have you tried to check timing while someone's cranking the engine? While it's not a great check, it should show you if you're getting firing even close to correct. If you're w-a-a-a-a-y off from 10 degrees BTDC, then it's time to start asking why...

[texastiger07]

The plugs give a blue spark.

I did hold the throttle open. I made the mistake of not doing that on the first readings.

I will try to check the timing will cranking the engine.

Thanks

[hill8570]

Originally Posted by texastiger07

I did hold the throttle open. I made the mistake of not doing that on the first readings.

OK, if all cylinders are getting 95-100psi compression with the throttle held open, I'd say your dad's on the right track -- I doubt that's enough compression to even come close to sustaining a burn. You could try some starting fluid (which isn't nearly as sensitive about the F/A mixture), but all you'd probably get would be some impressive backfires.

Forget checking timing -- time to open 'er up and check the timing belt. There are some excellent DIYs here for that operation -- have you seen them?

[texastiger07]

Originally Posted by hill8570

OK, if all cylinders are getting 95-100psi compression with the throttle held open, I'd say your dad's on the right track -- I doubt that's enough compression to even come close to sustaining a burn.

Forget checking timing -- time to open 'er up and check the timing belt. There are some excellent DIYs here for that operation -- have you seen them?

The low compression on all 4 cylinders seems to favor my dads theory. I have heard it is possible for the timing belt to either stretch enough or jump a tooth and mess up the timing.

Do you happen to know how many teeth are on the timing belt pulleys? The crank to cam ratio is 2:1 correct? For arguments sake if there are 36 teeth on the crank pulley and the belt jumped one tooth then there would be a 10 degree difference in timing? Would a 10 degree difference cause the engine not to start?

I have seen the DIY on replacing the belt. It is very well done and eases my mind about tackling this myself.

Thank you very much on your input.

[hill8570]

Originally Posted by texastiger07

Do you happen to know how many teeth are on the timing belt pulleys? The crank to cam ratio is 2:1 correct? For arguments sake if there are 36 teeth on the crank pulley and the belt jumped one tooth then there would be a 10 degree difference in timing? Would a 10 degree difference cause the engine not to start?

correct, crank-to-cam revolution ratio is 2:1

'fraid I don't remember the number of teeth on the pullys. I do know the engine will still run one tooth off, just not well. More than one tooth off and you're pretty much screwed.

[texastiger07]

I counted the teeth shown on the crankshaft timing pulley that was shown in the diy thread. Looks like 24 teeth so each tooth is equal to 15 degrees of timing.

Looks like Ill be diving into a timing belt change soon. Just have to install a new clutch master cylinder in my Ford truck. Had problems with it for the last week or so and this morning it finally gave up. If my luck wasnt bad I wouldnt have any luck at all!