[timebuilder]

Let's review.

It started, ran, and quit.

It will start again, and then quit again.

I would begin by pulling codes.

Have you ever changed the fuel filter?

 

[timebuilder]

Codes:

http://oregonstate.edu/~tongt/camry/

Click on the link for the car (top link)

Scroll down to "EFI"

Scroll to page 23 of the pdf file.

In the same online manual, there is a process for checking fuel pressure. I always check fuel volume as well, looking for a minimum of one pint of fuel pumped in a maximum of 30 seconds.

Do you have a consistent, strong spark?

Read some of the posts here on the site in the general camry discussion and the Gen 1&2 forums concerning starting and running.

 

[timebuilder]

If the car still starts sometimes, I'd have doubts about the problem being a bad igniter. Usually they fail 100% and never come back.

Just follow the procedure in the online manual, and for following up on any codes.

Take an old plug and ground the shell of the plug to the engine block while connected to one of the spark plug wires. Have someone crank the motor, and make sure you have a good strong spark.

 

[timebuilder]

Yes, there are always exceptions. My Supra had a few, too.

That said, much of diagnositics is to look for the usual first, and when the usual does not reveal the cause, then shift to the unusual.

In this case, checking and finding a good spark on a car that won't start pretty much would eliminate the igniter as a causal factor.

 

[timebuilder]

Yikes, I just realized your data block says "Denver."

Watch out for those avalanches!

 

[timebuilder]

Pages 26 and 27 will help you narrow it down.

 

[timebuilder]

Good.

I would stop for a minute and determine if you are getting a good strong spark when the engine is failing to start. Use the wire from one cylinder.

 

[timebuilder]

There is no more challenging failure than an intermittent failure.

Sometimes, throubleshooting the problem means installing an exhaust hose on the tailpipe (carbon monoxide kills) and warming the engine until the problem returns. Sometimes, it's a test drive.

There is some anecdotal evidence about coil failures on the Gen 2 camry, but you can't count on that right now. Just run the diags from the manuals and see what results you get after you re-create the failure.

 

[timebuilder]

If your engine cranks well, I don't see a reason for changing the starter. It's only function is to rotate the engine.

I'd also do more testing before deciding to buy a coil. You could have a different problem.

 

[timebuilder]

Many starters get replaced when all they need are some new contacts.

http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/t27312.html

As you will see in some of the pictures, it is possible to put in a contact that is intended for another starter. When I have done this procedure, I match the contact design to the kind being removed.

 

[timebuilder]

Most people use the expression "wants to start" to indicate that there are brief periods during cranking when the crank speed increases as the engine fires a cylinder partially and inefficiently, as opposed to an unchanging sound of even cranking with no sense of producing any power in the cylinders.

Does that help?

It's like referring to airplanes and ships as "she," a typical anthropomorphizing of an inanimate object.

 

[timebuilder]

I think my camry is suicidal, as well. It has begun drinking (oil) and is unmotivated.

 

[timebuilder]

Sure, it could be that.

I keep my tank as full as I can in the winter months. Try keeping the level higher, and see.

 

[timebuilder]

That's a good observation from Doctor J.

Just as carpenters say to "measure twice, and cut once," you want to be extra careful whenever you do a repair in the tank, since today's fuel pumps live in that difficult to access place. It's great that some cars let you pull out the backseat and get right to the assmebly easily, but not everyone does that.

The easiest method for you to approach this problem (based on occam's razor) is to first make sure that you have enough fuel in the tank from which to draw. I also like to open the fuel line up front and make sure the pump can deliver that one pint minimum in thirty seconds, maximum. That check would be secondary to the fuel level assurance.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Occam's_Razor

 

[timebuilder]

Maybe Chevron will start to make "Techron, now with with Prozac."

 

[timebuilder]

If you put in an inline pump, and you have the hose problem mentioned above, you won't get a good draw inh the tank, and you may also not get a good draw through the old pump.

Sorry. :sosad:

 

[timebuilder]

I'm confused. Did you install the in-line or the in-tank pump?

 

[timebuilder]

Generally, I agree. The OE pump is usually better, AND quieter, than a Napa/pepboys/autozone/ etc pump.

However, my sister had an OE chevy pump installed in her astro van, and it was noisier than the original pump. Sometimes, it's the installation that allows for more noise to be heard, as well as the quality of the pump itself.

 

[timebuilder]

I'd drive the car as much as possible for 30 days and then think about the experience. How difficult is it to start the car? Have you looked at all of your maintenance items? Have you replaced your fuel filter in the last 100 k miles? Checked the cold start injector according to the online manual?

Try to determine the "what" and "where" of the noise; don't assume. And, don't be bummed out now. Working on your own car is a journey of discovery. Some of the lessons cost a little money and time, and some of the things you will do yourself will save some of both.

You made a diagnosis and you took action. At least you sought out some opinions before you acted, so you increased your chances of success. You can feel good about that.

Now, pay attention, and look to whatever else needs to be done to make the car run like it should. And, enjoy it. :thumbup:

 

[timebuilder]

I just re-read the whole thread. Let me stop for a moment and take an overview, and offer some professional advice.

First, what did you do in terms of following up on your codes?

Did you do the fuel pump volume test before declaring it "bad?"

Did you determine that you had a good spark when the car was failing to start?

I ask these questions because I discourage people from going down the road of parts replacement in place of good diagnostics. It's an added expense, and not a good as finding the root cause and making a workmanlike repair.

Before replacing anything else (outside of a known needed maintenance item, like a fuel filter that's due for replacement) make sure that it is a causal factor and not just a good guess.