1994 I4 Distributor o-ring replacement - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

NapalmFTW · 10-30-2011, 08:41 PM

Hi folks,

I intend on doing a DIY for this as I go along, but before that - does anyone have any tips?

Haynes says make marks on the block, cap and rotor (I think, need to double check).

I have oil pissing out at a fairly alarming rate sometimes with this leak, so needs to be done ASAP.

(then I just have to tackle my timing belt).

NapalmFTW · 11-01-2011, 06:26 PM

So I replaced the O-ring, and removed a crap ton of RTV that the previous owners had put on there...

I don't know if it fixed the oil leak yet.

HOWEVER... my timing is now messed up. I have a timing light, set the thing as per haynes (useless) so used the under the hood numbers.

Set the jumpers, had the flashes of the CEL and O/D off light. CEL flashed twice, paused, flashed twice. Is that normal?

Anyway - set timing 10 deg BTDC, removed the jumper, car idles like crap. Sounds like its pinging almost...? The timing light has the timing around 5 BTDC when I remove the jumper.

So for now, until I get a response here I set the timing by not using the jumper - bad move? Probably, but he car idles better now I did that.

So what's the deal? What was I doing wrong?

NapalmFTW · 11-02-2011, 12:29 PM

Update on this.

Went out in the daylight. The code I'm getting appears to be "22". two flashes, a long pause, two flashes, ad nauseam.

Tried to get the timing right as per all the instructions - car runs like crap, still. It seems to be missfiring too. Idle speed is down to around 700 or so RPM when out of diagnostics mode. Checked spark plug wires, seem fine. Aside from my plugs being "white" on the ends they look alright. Would they cause a miss?

Any ideas folks? I pulled the dizzy cap and checked for oil or any crap on the rotor and found nothing. Could cleaning the dizzy yesterday (just the outside of it) cause it to go tits up?

hardtopte72 · 11-02-2011, 01:22 PM

Sounds like it is just way off timing. Did you not mark the distributor before you removed it. You might be close to being off a cylinder on your firing order. You should have marked the distributor shaft location from the distributor body and cam cap so they line up when reinstalled.

Make sure you are in the correct cylinder when you redo the timing process. If it is try replacing the cap and rotor. And checking your wires.

NapalmFTW · 11-02-2011, 02:00 PM

Marked the body of the dis, marked the head, marked the rotor and the body in relation to it. Everything lines up like is supposed to.

I put #1 cyl to TDC as per instructions in Haynes before I made the marks too. Just took the car out for a drive, seemed ok.

I did a little test, and I don';t know how accurate it is. Clamped the timing light probe onto each spark plug wire. 1-3 flashed as I would expect. 4 was flashing intermittantly. I think this points to a dodgy spark on #4.

***BMR*** · 11-02-2011, 02:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by NapalmFTW

Update on this.

Went out in the daylight. The code I'm getting appears to be "22". two flashes, a long pause, two flashes, ad nauseam.

Tried to get the timing right as per all the instructions - car runs like crap, still. It seems to be missfiring too. Idle speed is down to around 700 or so RPM when out of diagnostics mode. Checked spark plug wires, seem fine. Aside from my plugs being "white" on the ends they look alright. Would they cause a miss?

Any ideas folks? I pulled the dizzy cap and checked for oil or any crap on the rotor and found nothing. Could cleaning the dizzy yesterday (just the outside of it) cause it to go tits up?

Code 22 = Water temperature sensor circuit fault

So it was running fine before you replaced the o-ring? The poor running you're seeing sure sounds like an ignition problem. How old are the plugs/wires? Sometimes it's hard to tell by their appearance whether they're good or bad. I don't remember, is the ignition coil on this engine under the disty cap?... could be the coil? Try ohm'ing it out.

NapalmFTW · 11-02-2011, 02:11 PM

The wires are probably as old as the last 'service'. The previous owners took it to a local shop for the work. The garage had put a sticker in the windshield for a service at 172,350 - right when they sold it to me. I changed the oil but nothing else.

The plugs are all jacked up and white and I think that comes from the hole in the intake hose which I've now fixed, and the IAT sensor being out of the air box.

There has been oil inside the dizzy cap which I think means I need to rebuild it. I just took the car on a test drive around the neighbourhood and it felt fine... I mean its rough on idle but then again these cars are a little. It wasn't lacking power as far as I can tell.

Plugs and wires I think need changing anyway and the air filter looks dirty.

hardtopte72 · 11-02-2011, 02:52 PM

I would start with plugs and wires as well a cap and rotor. Also check the coil as oil soaked coils will crack. It usually cause it to die when it heats up. Also check your coolant temp sensor. I have seen people break them when doing distributor repairs and the car will have trouble starting and idling when it's cold. This is because with no sensor the car thinks it is warm and does not put the extra fuel and air needed when cold. The sensor should on the water outlet on the rear of the engine.

NapalmFTW · 11-02-2011, 02:57 PM

Where is the coolant temp sensor? Is that the thing on the radiator hose next to the crank position senso(and another one)r? I removed those two when I was doing the dizzy job, but couldn't work out how to safely remove the other sensor that sits on the radiator hose.

I didn't notice any damage to the wires or the sensors itself, but if the car is throwing a code for it maybe I did damage it.

Someone at some point has spliced the wires leading to the igniter (coil?) and it's all wrapped in electrical tape.... ? The car had a bulldog remote start installed but its been disabled before I got the car, and I removed it completely from under the dash. Maybe something to do with that.

The car ran nicely before I did the distributor job which means I probably broke something or the cap is dirty... :/

I'd just cleaned the IAC and TB and it was idling nice and smooth around 800/1000 RPM (which I know is too high for these engines).

***BMR*** · 11-02-2011, 05:03 PM

I swiped this from elsewhere on TN...

NapalmFTW · 11-02-2011, 05:16 PM

Ok, that looks about right. The fans come on as they should and as far as I can tell the car isn't overheating or anything. But that could account for my hot spark plugs I guess, that and a vacuum leak which I'm sure I have - I can hear hissing from somewhere near the intake manifold. Any ideas how to track that one down?

Intending on getting new plugs and wires and possibly a new dizzy cap (this one doesn't ahve a seal between the body of the diz and the cap.

NapalmFTW · 11-04-2011, 11:06 AM

Feels like I have a slight misfire on #4 still. Driving around I don't seem to have as much power as usual. I'll take the cap off again today and see if the post is bad in the cap. Failing that I'll price up a new dis cap, wires and plugs.

hardtopte72 · 11-04-2011, 05:47 PM

A vacuum leak could cause rough running. Usually you just get some carb cleaner and with the car running spray around the intake and manifold. If the idle changes you have a leak. As for the harness it could definitely be that if it was bumped when doing the distributor. Did you replace the plugs and wires yet? Still could be a number of things but the igniter is a definite red flag.

NapalmFTW · 11-04-2011, 08:17 PM

Haven't replaced the plug and wires yet. I'll check the igniter too - I'm not sure why someone has spliced wires on that. It's kinda worrying.

I'll check for vacuum leaks once I've got #4 firing properly.

I can hear a hissing noise somewhere near the intake manifold/TB (hard to pin it down).

As well as my water pump on its way out.

NapalmFTW · 11-06-2011, 01:53 PM

The hissing I can hear appears to come from the intake hose from the air filter. It had a crack in it which I sealed with aluminum tape. Apparently not well enough.

I cleared the code 22 from the ECU and the idle seems to be better... but not great. We'll see once I've driven it.

I have another problem now though - when I took the dash off to replace the bulbs on the tach I left the key in the ignition and hence now I have an airbag light. I followed the proceedure to reset the light but no joy (TC and AB grounding etc.).

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t16839.html

Any thoughts?

EDIT: Fixed the airbag light. I grounded to the ignition key while I was sitting in the drivers seat. It worked pretty well. STOP doing the cycle when you see the airbag light go nuts flickering like crazy....