V6 Only seems to run on 3 cyls fuel smell smoke out of exhaust

[burnu2]

I have a 99 Camry with a 1mz-fe and it has sputtered at idle sometimes and under steady acceleration, around 4k rpms it stoped though... The check engine light would come on while it sputtered like this and when I checked it it read missfire in 5. I usually blamed it on the plugs and changed them then the car is better but it started doing it really bad last week and I changed the plugs and it didn't get better at all, then I changed the wires and changed one of the coils and it didn't get better at all, now it seems to run on 3cyls insted of the 5, I have absolutely no power at all and it smokes way more then usual.

The only thing I havn't done is check the compression and that is next... A friend of mine was saying something about the ignition control module and I was going to try to check it but it costs 900 dollars =( I could get another turbo for my MR2 for that.

I really miss my camry and I hate driving my MR2T back and forth to work, anyone have any ideas that could help or has this ever happened to anyone here?

[5spd V6 ClrTail]

How does an almost new car get like that. I abuse my 92 all the time, and the engine is still smoother than smooth. My car only had 1 tune up within it's 13 year life. I change the oil every 6 months. So how does a 99 engine become like that?

[Tommy]

I would think that if it were the ingnition control that all 6cyl wouldnt work.

[Toysrme]

Let us know how the compression test goes. That'll let us know about your rings, valves, head gaskets ect.

[burnu2]

Ok sorry things took so long but I actually just took it to a shop but they are even more confused then I am.

Basically, they tested everything. They did a compression test and my compression is perfect, I have fuel flow and I have spark, the fuel flow the guy was saying was fluxuating for some reason to like +/- 15 or whatever, I have no idea what he was saying. They pulled off the cat to make sure there was no blockage and there was nothing wrong there. My 02 Sensors don't seem to be working at all but that could be because I am only running on 3cyls and that burnt them out or because my ECU took a crap.

Any ideas? =) Repair bill is at 440 right now without figuring out the problem, they said they were going to take the valve cover off and check that but they said I have tons of sludge in my engine (makes no sense cause I do a oil change every 3000-3500 miles along with my two and I'm heavy on the pedal whichs keeps carbon in the low.

Thanks and sorry for the long post.

[Mikey21]

Did you take it to the dealer or a local repair shop???

[deekay140]

If the motor is sludged. Take it to the dealer, they put out a service bulletin for sludged engines which extends the factory warranty.. I hope you have oil change reciepts. Dont bother diagnosing the running problem, the motor needs rebuilding.

[burnu2]

Took it to a local repair shop (a very very good one) and I do my own oil changes so I don't have any receipts...

Why would the engine need rebuilding if it is just dirty? I was thinking maybe a can of seafoam into the engine may help.

[Mikey21]

Originally posted by burnu2
Any ideas? =) Repair bill is at 440 right now without figuring out the problem, they said they were going to take the valve cover off and check that but they said I have tons of sludge in my engine (makes no sense cause I do a oil change every 3000-3500 miles along with my two and I'm heavy on the pedal whichs keeps carbon in the low.

Here's something I found.

Numerous late-model piston engines from many manufacturers have suffered from failures due to oil sludge contamination. These problems happen when fine engine oil passages become clogged with sludge, and often result in catastrophic failure of the engine. 3.3 million Toyota Toyota Motor Corp. engines were affected, as were 426,000 from Volkswagen Volkswagen (VW) and an unknown number from Chrysler. Fixes include changing to synthetic oil, inspection, and even engine replacement.

Engines affected with oil sludge problems:

1998-2002 Chrysler 2.7 L LH V6
1998-2002 Dodge Stratus /Chrysler Sebring
1998-2002 Dodge Intrepid /Chrysler Concorde
1996-2001 Toyota 3.0 L 1MZ V6
August 1996-July 2001 Toyota Camry
June 1998-May 2001 Toyota Camry Solara
July 1997-May 2001 Toyota Sienna
July 1996-May 2001 Toyota Avalon
November 2000-July 2001 Toyota Highlander
August 1998-July 2001 Lexus ES300
January 1998-July 2001 Lexus RX300
1996-2001 Toyota 5SFE I4
August 1996-July 2001 Toyota Camry
June 1998-May 2001 Toyota Camry Solara
August 1996-April 1999 Toyota Celica
1997-2004 Volkswagen
1997-2004 Audi A4 1.8t
1998-2004 Volkswagen Passat 1.8t

[burnu2]

I just talked to the shop a few minutes ago and they said they are going to try swapping something with the fuel and then after that he is giving me the car back so I can try replacing the ECU. I am also going to run a can of seafoam through it, worked awesome on my MR2... I put some in a cup and let my T-Body vac line suck it up and the exhaust pipe shot out so much smoke that I could barely see the car, worked great. Stopped a noisy lifter, and overall the engine seemed to run better...

He said something about a factory recall on the injectors but I have no idea, you guys know anything about it?

And one more question... If there was some sort of piston failure then the compression would be shot correct? I know I have a dirty engine but my compression test checked out great.

[deekay140]

The inside of the valve cover baffles get clogged with sludge, causing pressure build up on the crankcase, this will cause alot of leaks, The problem is the sludge builds up and burns into the oil rings on the pistons, they loose the ability to seal and cause heavy blow by,, the plugs will foul out in very fast. the sludge will block the oil passages in the cams and starve the motor of lubrication. If u have it rebuilt, replace the valve covers, the pcv, the oil pump, and send the heads out for a pressure test, cleaning and valve job.

[deekay140]

the only recall on that car is for a cruise control cable,, there is a service bulletin for injectors,, You can try to replace the injectors,

as far as the sludge, run a can of kerosene through the motor for about 10 mins at 2500rpm,, then start changing the oil every 1000 miles for a few months,, it really depends on the extent of the sludge.

[burnu2]

I just hope I can get the car up to the point that I can run kerosene through it. I hope whatever he is replacing is going to fix it.

The plugs were wearing out really fast, but with the good compression I am just crossing my fingers that whatever he replaces just gets the engine running again so I can clean it out throughly.

So if it came to having the engine rebuilt, I should replace both valve covers, PCV, oil pump, and send out the heads... Ok, so the bottom end would be alright you think?

[yotacam98]

Wow that sucks, I would guess and say it may be either faulty injectors, PCM, or maybe that sludge condition
If you want a cheap way to try and clean your engine, several techs I know use ATF (tranny fluid) You just add about 1 qt to your engine(draining some oil if necessary) and run for about 5 minutes or so @ idle/part throttle. ATF has a VERY high level of detergents and a high enough level of viscosity not to harm your engine(for short durations) This really does work, I have seen it done several times. You can just rub some ATF on an old dirty peice of iron, steel, or aluminum and see how well it cleans.

[deekay140]

gotta chk the bearings, i dont know the extent of the sludge