Did you pull the egr modulator filter and clean it? Replacing the modulator is the easiest of the three and often the issue. Too often I've seen people follow Haynes troubleshooting on this showing that the part works when it actually didn't. Anyway I changed mod and vsv, and problem was solved after hours of wasted reading.

 

I checked the filter on the egr modulator and the bottom part was hard, really hard so i ripped the bottom portion off thinking that should be the problem because its not letting air in/through but turns out it wasn't. and air was blowing through the egr modulator when i checked it, well except one hole. the modulator has p,q,r port and i held p and r and put air in q, well one hole didn't have air coming out of it but i looked at it and that p port leads nowhere. but i could be wrong.
I no it is not the egr valve or the vsv because i checked it and the car died, and i also went to the junk yard and replaced it and didn't work. The car runs fine no bad mileage, wasted gas, car problems, or bad smog smell.

 

did you try resetting it?

 

Yeah, i reset it a couple of times, but the next day when i warm up the car and drive around 40 miles per hour, the light comes back up

 

you say you replaced the vsv and the egr with junk yard parts and still didn't work? did you try another modulator?

also possibly:
-vacuum leak. Use a propane tank to hear the engine reving up to find the leak.
-dirty egr
-new pcv valve
-examine and clean throttle body
-check air filter
-if air blows through bottom tube of modulator, I think it is bad

 

Yeah, i believe air was blowing from the bottom of the modulator. i remember putting my hand on the bottom to prevent air from coming out from the bottom as well as port p and r. So i think it is either the modulator, most likely, or dirty throttle body.

 

i read in some places that you can also apply vacuum to the bottom port of the egr modulator, and if it doesn't hold a vacuum, the diaphram is broken inside. Can anyone confirm that or know if that is true? The books do not say anything about that.
I think air is supposed to come from the bottom of the port when you blow air into the q port, not not positive.

 

i read in some places that you can also apply vacuum to the bottom port of the egr modulator, and if it doesn't hold a vacuum, the diaphram is broken inside. Can anyone confirm that or know if that is true? The books do not say anything about that.

Yes, I can confirm that. Most likely, your EGR modulator is bad.

 

are the passages clear?

 

They are clear, it is just when i blow air into port q, i feel air coming from the bottom port of the modulator. i do not know if that means the diaphram is broken which leads to air coming out of the bottom port.
I will check the modulator to see if it is broken or not again to make sure.

 

i just checked the egr modulator. I removed it and applied vacuum on the bottom port of the modulator. The result is: It does not hold vacuum. If i cover ports p,q,r and the port inside the air filter area, then it will hold vacuum. It looks like you need to cover the ports in order to check the bottom port, but i could be wrong. Can anyone tell me if the modulator is good or not?

 

No everything is fine. And also car runs fine, no wasting gas, no bad smog or smog smell, speeds up really well, and drives well at high speeds.
Before I buy a new egr modulator, can anyone tell me if the modulator is indeed broken? I posted my result a few days ago, do not want to waste money like i did with the egr valve and vsv, but luckily it was a junk yard part. And I got 2 of each and still did not work just in case the one I got was a defective one.

 

Ok i kind of confirmed that my egr vacuum modulator is broken. I said earlier, when I applied vacuum to the bottom port of egr modulator, it did not hold any vacuum at all, it goes out from the ports, and can only be held if I covered all of the ports with my fingers. I checked out my dads car, its a 96 camry, its the same year and make, but different model but i do not think it makes any difference because it should all work the same. Anyways, i applied vacuum to the bottom port, and it held vacuum!, but slowly, the gauge went down. I think my dad needs a new modulator but not now because its a small leak and it should not harm the car or the egr emissions yet.