2007 le 4 cyl pinging - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

lmwcpw · 08-30-2008, 08:08 PM

I just brought my 07 Camry 4 cyl(with only 19,000 miles)into the dealer because of a issue with it pinging under light to moderate accleratiton when warm/hot. Needless to ay the vehicle is covered under the factory warranty. They said they checked everything and could find no problems. (Although they did verify the problem). They suggested using a higher grade fuel. The vehicle is designed for 87 octane and I don't believe that I should have to pay more for gas to bandage a problem. Anyone else had a similiar issue with the 4 cylinders pinging?? Any suggestions of fixes?? At this point I am going to bring it to another dealer for a second opinion. Thanks for reading.

njerald · 08-30-2008, 08:19 PM

No problem here with 30,000 miles.

Always use 87 octane from 5 or 6 different gas stations.

Was there a trouble code set in the engine management system?

Was it just one tank of possibly bad gas? Have you tried 87 octane from another oil company?

holimont · 08-30-2008, 09:40 PM

Try a tank of 89 and see what happens.

touringcamry · 08-30-2008, 10:23 PM

I had one instance where my car was pinging. I put in a few gal of 89 or 91 even though I still had some fuel in the tank. The issue went away right afterwards. The pinging only started at a certain place even though I was running on the same fuel previously.

The only time I've had pinging recently is due to bad shifting.

Detonation..

Asteroid · 08-30-2008, 10:44 PM

Yes try a different fuel. The trouble is not the octane rating of the fuel, but rather the quality of the fuel. The lowest grade of fuel is made to be as cheap as possible with all the drawbacks. In my 2004 4 cyl I tried a "premium" 95 octane for the last tank instead of the cut price 91 (our regular) I was using before. It seems noticeably better and looks to be getting much better economy, although I am unsure if it's able to take advantage of the higher octane rating.

Mike Gerber · 08-31-2008, 12:33 PM

Your car is designed to run on 87 octane, as you said. It should run just fine on it. However, sometimes you do get a bad tank of gas; possibly even water in the fuel from condensation from the gas station's underground storage tank. It happens from time to time. Run the tank down as far as you can and then try another tank of 87 octane from another station and see if that helps. You could also put a bottle of gas line antifreeze or water absorber in the current tank to help absorb any moisture, if indeed there is moisture present. If the pinging continues, then there is a problem with the car. Take it to another dealer or call Toyota corporate customer service at 1-800-331-4331 and discuss the problem with them.

Mike

***new echo owner*** · 08-31-2008, 01:13 PM

The pump might say 87 Octane but sometimes that might not be what you are getting. Trying a few different gas station is always a good idea; the one that gives you the best and most consistent performance is the one you should stick with.

N.E.O.

TRD VVTi · 08-31-2008, 01:21 PM

I agree with trying a different station. Try to buy your gas at a high volume station.

The previous owner may have been running a higher octane fuel which isn't a good idea. The higher octane will burn slower and can leave more deposits (carbon) which can result in pre-ignition.

Try SeaFoaming your vehicle to help clean up the deposits. It may help. Even if you don't notice a difference it's great preventative maintenance. If you want to try it, see the stickies at the top of the forum or do a search.