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.
94 Camry LE 5 cylinder/auto. Lately the past month or so the car has been stalling after a cold start. So i've just been having to start it and rev it to 2.5-3k RPM until it sort of warms up sufficently and I can put in the reverse safely and drive out wherever. Only seems to have the stalling issue on cold starts.
However tonight I got off work @ 9:30pm (it was about 66 Fahrenheit if that matters). I started it up and just held it at around 2.5k RPM for about 30 seconds and thought that would be fine, but when I put it in drive it rolled forward a couple feet and stalled. Then when I tried to turn it over again it would not even engage, I just heard a semi-loud kind of click, like the engine engaged for about half a second then just went quiet. I took the key out and then turned it all the way again and it literally did nothing, no sound just didn't respond. This happened probably 5 times. So I took the key out, put it back in and turned it almost all the way then pressed the break in and changed gears from Park to N and D, waited 15 seconds then put it back in Park then tried to turn it over and it kind of made a click again, I timed it and pressed the gas but it didn't do anything. So I did this gear changing about 5-10 times and finally it turned over and I let it idle around 3K for about 5 whole minutes then I could drive home safely.
Probably a year or so ago I had a new starter installed as well as a new battery so I know it's not an issue with that. About 2 months ago I had a tune up w/ new spark plugs and a couple other small things. I was thinking the bad idle would need a new Idle-air control valve would that likely fix that?
However the problem with it not starting at all where I turn the key has kind of happened like once every 6-8 weeks for the past year or so. My normal mechanic which mostly specializes in toyotas has been unable to figure it out, another local mechanic took a look at it and couldn't conclude anything. Back in January I drove it too a walmart, and then when I went to leave it wouldn't start at all even when I changed gears with it turned off, so I thought it was a dead battery or something and called AAA, they came out and tested the battery/alternator and it was fine, after changing gears a couple times it just sort of magically turned back on and didn't do it for another 2 months or so, really random.
I'm wondering if anyone else has had this happen where the car wouldn't turn it on at all or even try and turn over, but then changed gears and it did? and what did you do to solve it?? I'm not sure if this is a transmission related because the only way to get it to turn over is if I press the break and change gears, kind of odd?
94 Camry LE 5 cylinder/auto. Lately the past month or so the car has been stalling after a cold start. So i've just been having to start it and rev it to 2.5-3k RPM until it sort of warms up sufficently and I can put in the reverse safely and drive out wherever. Only seems to have the stalling issue on cold starts.
However tonight I got off work @ 9:30pm (it was about 66 Fahrenheit if that matters). I started it up and just held it at around 2.5k RPM for about 30 seconds and thought that would be fine, but when I put it in drive it rolled forward a couple feet and stalled. Then when I tried to turn it over again it would not even engage, I just heard a semi-loud kind of click, like the engine engaged for about half a second then just went quiet. I took the key out and then turned it all the way again and it literally did nothing, no sound just didn't respond. This happened probably 5 times. So I took the key out, put it back in and turned it almost all the way then pressed the break in and changed gears from Park to N and D, waited 15 seconds then put it back in Park then tried to turn it over and it kind of made a click again, I timed it and pressed the gas but it didn't do anything. So I did this gear changing about 5-10 times and finally it turned over and I let it idle around 3K for about 5 whole minutes then I could drive home safely.
Probably a year or so ago I had a new starter installed as well as a new battery so I know it's not an issue with that. About 2 months ago I had a tune up w/ new spark plugs and a couple other small things. I was thinking the bad idle would need a new Idle-air control valve would that likely fix that?
However the problem with it not starting at all where I turn the key has kind of happened like once every 6-8 weeks for the past year or so. My normal mechanic which mostly specializes in toyotas has been unable to figure it out, another local mechanic took a look at it and couldn't conclude anything. Back in January I drove it too a walmart, and then when I went to leave it wouldn't start at all even when I changed gears with it turned off, so I thought it was a dead battery or something and called AAA, they came out and tested the battery/alternator and it was fine, after changing gears a couple times it just sort of magically turned back on and didn't do it for another 2 months or so, really random.
I'm wondering if anyone else has had this happen where the car wouldn't turn it on at all or even try and turn over, but then changed gears and it did? and what did you do to solve it?? I'm not sure if this is a transmission related because the only way to get it to turn over is if I press the break and change gears, kind of odd?
There are a few things that cause a no-start/no-crank situation as far as the ignition system.
1.) Faulty contacts on Ignition Switch
2.) Faulty Contacts on Neutral Safety Switch
3.) Faulty Contacts on Starter Solenoids
4.) Frayed or Bad wiring between the Ignition switch, NSS, or Starter
That's odd that you have to change the gears to get it to work.. The only thing that I can think is that your Park / Neutral Switch is not detecting Neutral or Park, so by moving the gears a few revolutions, the contacts finally engage allowing the power to go from the NSS to the starter. Either that or your shift linkage is bumping the wiring, allowing the wires to gain contact again to start the car.
The no start issues can be sometimes very difficult to trace down. I recommend grabbing a Repair Manual and going over the Step-By-Step Diagnostics for a no-start situation. They tell you exactly what to check, how to check, and usually have pictures.
Thanks a lot for your post Mr Perkins! appreciate it a lot
So last monday my Dad said to take the car to pepboys for a full evaluation, I heard a lot of negative things about them online but decided to just go with it. They examined the car and told me Cylinder #2 compression ratio is bad, like 30 or 60, and that the other cylinders were fine. They said they wouldn't be able to replace just that cylinder and instead I would need to look into replacing the whole engine.
So fast forward to today, I took it my mechanic today for an oil change (who also has handled it probably 98% of my ownership). I first asked him about the bad cylinder and if I needed to replace the engine, he said that I don't need to do that since it only has 178K on it(is that a lot or little for a camry?), he mentioned they could do a valve job to fix it for $95. Is the valve the same thing as the cylinder? and does this sound correct?
On the no start issue - right when they finished the oil change, the mechanic who worked on the car came over and asked me if the car had not been starting, he said the key was turning but it wouldn't start when he took it down, he checked it out and said he found a lose battery cable and tightened it up. So I guess the random no-start issue might be solved but I'll have to wait another month or two before I can really be sure. I'm guessing pepboys didn't notice this wtf?
Valves and cylinder are not the same thing. Although if a leak down test was performed after the compression test, a bad or leaking valve can cause it to seem like low compression.
As far as the loose battery terminal. Definitely can cause a no start situation.
If you ask your regular mechanic how he determined the valves were needing replacing and he says a leak down test, I would believe him. If he determined it from a compression test I would be a little weary.
I've seen cars with 150000 miles on them have weak compression in one cylinder. So the mechanic assuming that can't be a possibility is incorrect. Good luck with the repair and keep us posted!
Is he just going to replace the valve seal or the valve, b/c 95 dollars sounds awful cheap for replacing a valve...just too much works. Ask what you're getting for a the "valve job"
Took it to my mechanic today(that basically specializes in toyotas) to get it examined for compression to see if the cylinder and valves are ok. Also earlier this week the breaks started to slip, I would press the pedal all the way down and get what felt like a break pad as thick as a penny, I literally had the break pedal on the floor just to slow down and stop. brake fluid looked normal too.
They ran a leak down test and checked out of the engine block and head and the whole 9 and everything is normal, they recommended a new IAC valve since the car is only stalling out from the first cold start of the day. they also saw that the break pedal was very weak and mushy like I explained, so they took the front wheels off and checked out the whole break system and found the break master cylinder was bad.
Ended up just getting a new break master cylinder put in to fix the breaks so they're back to normal. the IAC valve quote was something like $400 so I'm just going to wait and maybe get a few more quotes on that and wait until the future when the idle gets really really shitty before replacing. For now I can just idle the car for a minute or two.
Or you can try cleaning the throttle body and idle air control valve yourself right on the car for just the few dollars cost of a spray can of cleaner. Use spray throttle body cleaner or O2 safe carb cleaner. You can do this yourself using the folowing DIY. It's for your 5SFE engine. Many times this cures the stalling problem you are experiencing;
yeah I cleaned the throttle body a couple months ago, I could probably try that again since I still have the throttle cleaner somewhere around....
Make sure you spray the cleaner liberally down in to the port in the base of the throttle body that leads to the idle air control valve. Let the cleaner soak for 15 or 20 minutes down there before you try to start the car.
If cleaning the TB (and especially giving the IAC holes on either side of the throttle plate a good soak) doesn't fix the cold start issue, the coolant temp sensor (the one on the engine outlet, not the one on the radiator) might be reading too "hot", which would cause your engine to run too lean on cold start.
Also, before I'd replace the IAC, I'd first pull it off the TB and give it a good off-vehicle cleaning and test it for operation. IAC do occasionally fail, but it's way more likely that they get gunked up really badly.
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95 Camry
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