94 Camry sputtering

Asked by Rainmanxxb Jan 06, 2015 at 01:06 AM about the 1994 Toyota Camry LE

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

My 94 Camry has 212,000 miles and until the other day ran perfect.I crossed some rough railroad tracks and it immediately started sputtering. My first order of business  was to check the spark plug wires which are a year old. I had another distributor, tried it to no avail. I installed new plugs.Check the ground wires to the engine. Still the same. I drove the car around trying to get it to throw a code. No check engine light and no codes stored, just a blinking 1 pause1 12.  I checked every connection, every vacuum line and the exhaust for damage. Now I'm thinking about the fuel system but this is a 94 and doesn't have a shrader valve to check the pressure that I can find and an online manual says to check it at the filter. How? Do they make a banjo for a standard pressure tester?  Another thing I noticed is when cold, it will run great for about 30 seconds and the RPM drops and the sputter starts. I think this is due to the cold start injector turning off. It seems to be running worse, the less gas it has in it,(1/4 tank) Or is it just further degrading? Did I knock the sock off of the pump? I wonder.  Do I have a loose connector somewhere. I thought about the timing belt only to dismiss it because it does have brief busts of power before sputtering again. Can someone give me some guidance on this?

5 Answers

102,645

Try unplugging your line to the EGR. See if it runs better. Check for any vacuum leaks. Make sure your gas cap is on tight. You may have a bad purge solenoid in your EVAP. That usually throws a code though. You could try to tear your IAC valve off and clean it. If they get built up with carbon, it will make your car run poorly. Here is a detailed video on it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsP2-HKz7vE

4 people found this helpful.
102,645

Also, replace your radiator temp sensor. That will also cause the symptoms you are experiencing......

1 people found this helpful.
102,645

Do you mean sputtering or the engine is skipping? If you think it is skipping due to a spark issue, take a spray bottle and mist your coil. If you hear snapping, you have found your issue........

3 people found this helpful.

Change the Engine coolant temperature sensor $15 it will do the trick

10

Did you ever figure this out I have same circumstances. Sudden change, runs perfectly when first started then sounds like it's missing. It definitely trying too run too rich and has no power. I got the exhaust manifold glowing trying to get up a hill. I've tried the ECM and coolant sensor, cap and rotor. To no avail

1 people found this helpful.

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