Just recently bought this car, 96 Camry 2.2L Auto, 83K miles. The previous owner seems to have taken good care of the car, the service book is filled in to at least 60K. Car runs great, and good MPG. I pulled the plugs, they look old, there is metal deposited on the ground electrode. All other service items look OK. Not sure if the valves have been adjusted, but they sound good. My problem is at idle, in gear, the car seems to vibrate and shake more than I would expect. This is based on how the car feels at idle, in park. Any suggestions on this? Any known problems with engine/trans mounts? Could one of the upper mounts been installed backwards when the timing belt was changed?
My 4 cyl tacoma was like that.....idled rough...shook a bit.
On mine; the idle speed is adjustable...just upping the speed ever so slightly took care of it.
Changing the plugs and just doing a general tune-up as needed usually helps as well. You might take a look at night and see if any of your spark plug wires are arcing anywhere.
============================= This is a longstanding and known problem. I've got the '94 with the same engine and 150,000 miles. There are several things you might do. First, recognize that the four cylinder engine configuration means there is a power stroke every 180 degrees of crankshaft rotation, and the balance shafts don't have an effect at idle. I should say I have been able to quell the idle roughness in gear substantially. Do check the "dog bone" upper engine mount, the "engine moving control rod" for cracks in the rubber and replace if needed. By catching it early, you help preserve the other engine mounts. If your prior owner was like mine, they may have driven conservatively and there can be some accumulation of carbon in the combustion chambers. This is just my theory, but seems to have worked. There's an old mechanic's trick of using water injection. Sorry I don't remember the chemistry, one of the byproducts created is CO. I used a low pressure garden type plastic spray bottle and nozzle, filled with one quart of distilled water and slowly sprayed into the throttle body of a hot engine at fast idle. I also use Redline SI-1 complete fuel system cleaner. Used continuously over time it removes deposits from the intake valves and emission control components which enhance a smoother idle. Also, sometimes the idle air control valve (aka IAC) sticks a little. The best cure seems to be to remove the hose clamp at the air intake, spray some Tri-Flow lubricant in the rectangular hole at the bottom of the throttle body and let it soak in, over night if possible. The Teflon seems to do a great job of freeing the rotating internal drum so the computer controlled idle speed works more smoothly. The idle on your engine is not manually adjustable. Also check spark plug wires for resistance. I found two with infinite resistance, and one spark plug shorting to ground inside the spark plug tube. If you change the wires change the cap and rotor also. Toyota parts only. I also use Mobil 1 synthetic lubricants throughout, with 20% Lucas in the motor oil to eliminate the valve guide seepage over night, and three tablespoons Lucas transmission fix with the Mobil 1 ATF in the power steering fluid when draining the reservoir with a battery bulb. Transmission gets 8 ozs. with fluid change, Mobil 1 ATF. The differential runs pure Mobil 1 ATF - and I noticed an immediate increase in power after changing that fluid. Plus the easy, quick, simple and free, way to eliminate vibration at idle is just to move the shift lever into neutral. There is a lock out for Reverse, so you just push the lever up, then back down into Drive. Couple of days ago, I did this and honestly could not tell if the engine was running. It was so smooth I had to look at the instrument panel. There was a factory service bulletin that included replacing the upper radiator mounts, which I did, but not sure that made any difference. '96 four cylinder Camry is a great car. Enjoy.
Reading plugs tells alot about a motors condition, there are photos in most any manual. If what you say is metal is true you are melting the plug or piston and your motor is history. Melting would means excessive heat, is plug white and carbonless, or are the deposits carbon and its black, if so it could be burning oil. Replace your plugs and read them. running rough usualy means a tune up is necessary.
I believe the other is H2, so the oxygen in H2O combines with the carbon in the combustion chamber releasing CO and H2 (carbon monoxide and hydrogen gas).
That should read three tablespoons of the power steering product
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