Engine Cleaning, Lotsa Questions.

[kf4zra]

I recently bought a Certified (supposedly, but that is another story) 2001 Camry, and the engine is covered in dirt stuck to it. mainly its where someone was sloppy when filling the oil. is there any chemical better than another? is there any parts to avoid getting wet?

should i worry about flushing the inside of the engine with anything, or just keep the oil changed regularly. i have 48k mi on it now.

the coolant is green currently with a hint of brown, is it gonna hurt anything to change it now? should i use red or green?

is it too soon to clean my injectors?

i know im being paranoid, but i want this car to run well for a long time.

thanks for the answers, this is my first of many posts here

John

[islandboy57]

Welcome to TN! From what I've read, if the car came with green, stick to it. Not a good idea to go green <<>> red (either way) - mine is green as well.

Off topic but how much did you pay for that Camry? I'm going used car shopping with a friend of mine and a 2001 Camry would be sweet. One lot had FIVE but sold it within the past few days.

[Calvin327]

Just do a MAJOR tune up. Change all the spark plugs/spark plugs wires, Distributor cap/rotor, flush the cooling system, flush the transmission, change the oil, clean throttle body plate, clean pcv valve and throw in a bottle offuel injection cleaner into your gas tank it should be running like new. The answer to your question of removing the dirt and oil off the engine, the best way to do it if it is completely stuck is to have it steam cleaned.

Good Luck,
Calvin

[karugs]

Simple Green is a good, multi-purpose degreaser that cleans engines well once done properly (instructions, as always, are at the back of the bottle). Just don't spray the engine with cold water after a long drive--avoid cracks from the quick changing temperatures. Let it cool down first while you wash the car's body or vacuum the interior. Cover the electrical components with plastic (grocery plastic bags work fine). Then hose it down to rinse. Squirt Simple Green in hard to reach places. Then let sit for around a minute. And rinse off. Works well for me.

[zenerman]

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t19193.html

It's a little bit large, but it can help

[jhbhatia]

I'd do an coolant flush, replace sparts and ignition wire and do a tranny flush as well. As far as dirt on the engine compartment, take it to one of the detail shops that does steam cleaning for engines. For 40-60 bucks, you can have em steam clean your car soo clean you can PRACTICALLY eat off your engine! After that you can do your yearly simple green and tooth brush to do the cleaning.

[04sev6camry]

just to let u know, u can go from green to red coolant BUT u have to make sure u flush your system first before u do it. i had an older volvo that came with green coolant and i flushed the sytem with a lot of water and filled it with extended life antifreeze

Tip
If you decide to replace your existing antifreeze/coolant with Prestone® Extended Life 5/150 Antifreeze/Coolant, make sure you completely drain and flush the cooling system first in order to gain the full benefits of the longer-lasting formula. Also, if you are currently using Prestone Extended Life 5/150 Antifreeze/Coolant in your car's cooling system, and you add a conventional antifreeze/coolant, you will lose the extended protection

that is directly off of prestone's site talking about their extended life coolant.

i would also recomend the plugs and wires getting changed. u might wanna take the car to the shop to have them clean the injectors. they have the best stuff to do it. also, depending on mileage u might wanna look at the O2 sensors.

[Toysrme]

Pick up a couple cans of Seafoam. They only $4-5$ a can and you use the stuff to clean the inside of the motor(via oil), the intake(via pouring it in vacuum lines), and the fuel system (via dumping a can or more in the tank).

Use any normal green antifreeze. You shouldn't put toyota red where toyota red didn't come from the factory.

To clean the outside of the motor 303 Aerospace Cleaner Industrial Concentrate is the greatest stuff ever.

[kf4zra]

several people mentioned changing plugs and wires, at 48k mi is this too soon? only curious

i paid $12,400 for the car. its a white 2001 Camry CE with leather, spoiler, gold pkg, 42k mi, new tires, toyoguard. i worked at the dealer at the time and looked up the previous owners, they were in their 60's and 70's and traded it in on an identical 2005 model.

it was supposed to be certified, but the tires didnt match, i found out later that the wrong wheels were on it (rubbing on the struts), i had to have the paint clayed, and a few other things that i later found out are supposed to be done on a certified yota.

[jhbhatia]

Originally Posted by kf4zra

several people mentioned changing plugs and wires, at 48k mi is this too soon? only curious

For the plugs+Wires, you can wait out the process as well till your 60K miles...for me, whenever i get my hands on a second hand car (used car) i just do this preventive maint!

[Toysrme]

The first wire in my set that went bad, it took 12 years. I don't see why people would waste the money changing them if they are still electrically OK.
If your car has descent performance, and pretty good gas mileage, the entire ignition system should be fine.

I say other than routine oil, coolant and A/T fluid changes, leave everything be until 60,000m. Some of the mechanical things @ 60,000m you can put off until 90-100m if you feel like it. Timing belt being one of them.

Then you can change the plugs, actually have the coolant, brake A/T & powersteering fluids flushed out (instead of just changed). Change the differential fluid & oil. Check the R134a level for the A/C (add some if you need to, it's like $5-10 a can) Change the timing belt if it suites you. Put a timing light on the motor, and make sure it's still in good time...


You should have 0 need for a new distributor cap and wires until you more than double your current mileage.

[wontonjohnny]

a lil off topic ... but if my car still runs fine, will putting on a new distrubutor cap improve performance??? do the caps wear out gradually or is it a work or nowork part???

[amerikim]

If you pull your distributor cap (careful with the screws), check both the rotor arm and the cap itself. Scrape the electrodes inside the cap to remove buildup. If too deeply scoured, need to replace cap. Look at rotor, clean it with very fine sandpaper if it needs it, only the outer most part of it - the part that will arc on the cap.
Any cracks or knicks, do not repair - replace. If you have never done it before, there will be increase in all round performance. Clean it all before you put it back and don't mess the wires up.

As far as plug wires go, they are like any other wire - you replace if they short or are broken. They do not expire or wear out. Wrong handling after the rubber gets brittle from years of heat can break or crack them. Do not repair - replace with quality items. Use stock Toyota or NGK specifically for your model.

Plugs you look at, if they are platinums or iridiums it is not recommended to regap them. So if they are excessively worn, replace. Regular plugs are cheapo to replace anyways. Change them all and at the same time. Minimum recommended are platinums.

[kf4zra]

i havent looked that closely at my engine, but doesnt a 2001 camry have electronic ignition, thus no need for rotor and cap?