Some details of the 2AZ-FE engine

Gonna write this stuff down and post it so I don't lose it. Had to wade through a lot of pages to find it. The 5th Generation Camry's

2AZ-FE engine (an advanced powerplant, by the way) is the same engine that was used in the '01 Highlander SUV. 5th Generation Camrys cover Model Years '02 - '06.

The cylinder block is made of aluminum alloy. It uses aluminum pistons, high-strength steel connecting rods and caps, forged steel crankshaft, and, IIRC aluminum camshafts. The VVT-i only works on the intake camshaft, not the exhaust camshaft. It varies the timing of the intake valves. There are two intake valves per cylinder and two exhaust valves per cylinder. Having two of each increases the total port area, so more air can flow into and out of the combustion chamber. As the manual's authors write, "Intake and exhaust efficiency has been increased due to the larger total port areas."

The cylinder head cover (not to be confused with the cylinder head) is made of magnesium alloy for lighter weight. I think cylinder head cover is synonymous with "valve cover," but the Camry manual refers to it as the "cylinder head cover."

Since the manual doesn't mention what the cylinder head, itself, is made of, I will assume iron, but just an assumption.

The cylinder head gasket, used between the aluminum engine block and the (iron?) cylinder head is a steel-laminate type of material. Any concern about electrolysis taking place between the steel-laminate and aluminum?

When the service and repair manual says the dry weight of the engine is 267 pounds, does that include the crankcase, crank, cylinder head, and valve head with camshafts--or does the weight only include the engine block without crankcase and cyclinder head, etc.?

The crankshaft and camshafts are connected by a timing chain, not a belt.

The oil pump is located behind the timing chain cover at the front bottom of the engine, even lower than the crankshaft. The oil pump has its own short section of chain that's connected to the crankshaft. Couldn't tell from the picture if this is a second, dedicated chain, or just part of the larger chain that ascends to the camshafts. Double overhead cams, don't ya know (DOHC) :-)

If I had to guess, I'd say the oil pump has its own dedicated short chain that's separate from the timing chain, ie., camshaft chain..

Reply to
Built_Well
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Advanced, in what way? Lots of comparable engines from many manufacturers. I have a hard time thinking of any engine that requires routine valve adjustment as "advanced." But I guess that is also a trend these days. And since most people ignore the routine valve clearance checks, I guess it is irrelevant. I was shocked when I found out my Nissan Frontier requires valve adjustment. You have to love the chutzpa of the Nissan engineers. The engine in my Frontier requires valve adjustment only when the valve noise is objectionable. It is going to be damn loud before I'll spend hundreds (maybe thousands) to have the valves adjusted. I assume the engineers at Nissan (and Toyota) have designed the valve system so that the valve clearance increases with wear - else you run the risk of burning valves if the clearance goes too low (learned from sad experience on older engines).

It is still used today in Camrys, RAV4s, and ?

Nope, it is aluminum.

Nope, but be sure to use the recommended coolant.

Everything that makes up the main engine assembly (block, pistons, heads, cams, etc.) but no oil or water. Probably does not include accesorries (alternator, starter). May or may not include intake system. Probably includes intake to the throttle body.

Common practice these days. Cam belts are mostly on the way out for modern engines.

Completely separate chain (referred to as the No. 2 Chain Sub-assembly).

Correct.

Ed

Reply to
Ed White

Well, the manual, or something I read, said it was "advanced." I don't think it was a case of self-promotion by the manual ;-)

You wrote, "I have a hard time thinking of any engine that requires routine valve adjustment as advanced."

Well, it's not exactly routine. The scheduled maintenance guide says to inspect the valve clearance after 120,000 miles or 12 years. 12 years is a long time.

When they say valve clearance, I guess they mean the gap between the top of the valve stem and the bottom of the lifter and/or tappet?

Anyone know if "lifter" and "tappet" are the same thing?

By the way, it's a shimless system.

Yes, the 2AZ-FE is still used today. I saw an '07 or or '08 Solara with the 2AZ-FE, and the '08 Camry owner's manual I bought off Ebay says the '08 Camry also uses the 2AZ-FE. It's a very good engine. Toyota's not gonna junk it anytime soon, I would guess.

By the way, that '08 Camry manual I got off Ebay says the engine's drain-and-fill oil capacity with filter is

4.5 quarts. That's a whole 0.5 quarts more than my '06 Camry manual says to use (4 quarts).

I thought maybe the new Camry might be using a bigger filter, but without the filter the '08 Camry manual says to use 4.3 quarts, again a half-quart more than the 3.8 quarts called for in my '06 manual without filter.

Does anyone know why the two Toyota manuals recommend different oil amounts for the same 2AZ-FE engine? That's a big half-quart difference.

I have always put in 4.25 quarts, instead of the 4.0 quarts recommended in my manual, but do you think I should increase it to 4.5 quarts, which would equal the amount recommended in the new '08 manual?

Frothing probably wouldn't be a problem with that small amount extra, but you never know.

Reply to
Built_Well

Solid lifters = less reciprocating mass, and higher RPM potential because the lifters won't pump up. The reduction in reciprocating mass allows the use of lighter valve springs for less friction. Doing away with the need for oil feed to the lifters reduces the required capacity of the oil pump and therefore pumping losses.

With careful design and material selection, the required valve adjustment intervals can be quite long. I don't think I ever adjusted the valves on my old Scirocco; by the time I'd collected the required tools and shims I realized that the darn thing would just keep running indefinitely whether I adjusted them or not. (for some inexplicable reason, VW went to hydraulics anyway.) I did have the valve cover gasket replaced once while it was in my care but I can't even remember if I asked the mechanic to check the valve clearances or not. (don't remember why I didn't do it myself.)

nate

Reply to
Nate Nagel

Did I say frothing? I meant foaming--oil foaming.

The 2AZ-FE engine in both the '06 and '08 Camrys is 2.4 liters.

Reply to
Built_Well

This stuff is interesting if you have an initerest and understanding of engines, but otherwise, it is not that helpful for the average do-it-yourselfer.

Toyota calls valve covers "cylinder head covers."

The head is also made of aluminum alloy.

No concerns about electrolysis taking place between the head gasket and aluminum, but you should stick with genuine Toyota coolant.

As Ed mentioned, "dry" means without fluids like oil and coolant. The weight is for the long block, which is basically the entire engine minus PS pump, AC compressor, & alternator.

Toyota has started to go back to timing chains on new engines.

This is a common arrangement for Toyotas.

The oil

F.Y.I., an engine with 4 camshafts like a Toyota V6 or V8 is also referred to as double overhead cams, or DOHC because the nomenclature refers to the cams over each head.

Some older Toyota engines (and current domestic engines) have a single overhead cam, or SOHC.

Reply to
Ray O

The different oil capacities can be due to different capacities in the oil pans, which are due to different shapes.

No. Stick to the recommended amount in your manual.

It depends on how excided you get when you add the extra oil.

The oil is not going to foam with an extra half quart.

Reply to
Ray O

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Single overhead cam (SOHC)!!!! Well, I guess that's better than using pushrods and rollers.

Reply to
Built_Well

WHY? Push rod engines have been around a LONG time. Toyota even agrees as they built more than a few. (take a look under the Tundra V8s hood)

Reply to
Steve W.

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Yeah, from what I've read online from reliable sources, an extra 1/2 quart won't induce foaming, but a quart or more is pushing it.

Reply to
Built_Well

The production Tundra's 4.7 and 5.7 liter V8's are both DOHC designs. The NASCAR Craftsman Series "Tundras" use pushrod engines ;-)

AFAIK, Toyota does not sell any pushrod engines in North America any more.

People have probably spent millions of hours debating the benefits of pushrods vs OHC engines, and IMHO, each style has benefits over the other in certain applications.

Reply to
Ray O

I have a 1998 with KA24DE engine. How can a valve adjustment with this type of engine be so expensive? Are they charging that much for the shim disks?

Reply to
larry moe 'n curly

Of course, you could've just written it down in a text document and saved it rather than posted it, assuming the actual purpose was to not lose it.

Reply to
JoeSpareBedroom

I have the V6 in my Frontier. To replace the shims you have to remove the cams - 4 of them. Hopefully I'll never need to have it done. I guess things are much better now. Years ago I had a Jensen-Healey with a DOHC 4 cylinder engine. Adjusting the valves was a nightmare - but still easier than for the Frontier V-6.

Ed

Reply to
C. E. White

Actually Vegas had aluminum blocks and cast iron heads! One of the stangest combinations ever. The original Vega block was the linerless aluminum type and was die case with an open top deck. The aluminum alloy had a lot of silicon in it .The theory was that the aluminunm would wear away slightly, exposing the silicon surface, which would prevent (or at least slow down) further bore wear. The block was very light and not particulalry stiff which is why they used a cast iron cylinder head to provide the stiffness absent from the block. I suppose the test engines all worked well. Unfortunately, in the real world, things did not work so well. The whimpy blocks couldn't take any "normal" abuse. The slightest overheating would lead to rapid bore wear and significant oil consumption. Hard driving would cause block distortions which also led to rapid bore wear and significant oil consumption. Poor maintenance practices led to rapid bore wear and significant oil consumption. Etc. Essentially driving the car led to rapid bore wear and significant oil consumption. But it often was not much of a problem since rust usually ate the body away before oil consumption was too bad. Body rustwas not a problem restricted to Vegas by the way. Toyotas of the era were at least as prone to rusting away.

BTW, Porsche and Mercedes use the linerless aluminum blocks that GM tried on he Vega. But even today, you don't want to overheat an engine using that technology.

Ed

Reply to
C. E. White

Joey, you should take a hint from Jeff Strickland. He's much more polite and together than you.

Reply to
Built_Well

IIRC it was backwards... the Vega had an aluminum block with an iron head. This was back in the day before the Nikasil and similar processes were perfected, and I am guessing that simple piston/bore wear was the cause of most of the mosquito fogging action that the Vegas were famous for. I remember when I was a kid the neighbors across the street had one and it would lay one heck of a smokescreen. Was an attractively styled little car but the engines were definitely a weak link.

I believe that John DeLorean addressed some of the engineering mishaps in the Vega's development in his book, but it's been years since I read it so I'm a little furry on the details.

nate

Reply to
N8N

Thanks for confirming that my memory isn't completely shot :)

FWIW the all-aluminum engine in my 944 leaks more oil than it burns AFAICT. I seem to have a penchant for attracting vehicles that aren't known for gasket integrity :(

Rust seems to be a common theme with cars from the mid-70s and older. The same neighbors that had the Vega also had a Volare wagon, the front fenders were rusted through in only a couple of years. My dad's Oldsmobile fared a little better, but it still had rusty fenders, possibly because of some collision repair early in its life (was sideswiped in a snowstorm on a windy country road by another driver who lost control of her car) Once the Germans started using galvanized body panels and that waxy undercoating the problems pretty much went away (my mom's Golf lasted almost 20 years in semi-rural PA before any significant corrosion showed up) I don't know about newer American cars but I would assume that they've taken similar measures.

nate

Reply to
N8N

The main advantage to a pushrod engine is packaging. I believe that was one of the reasons given for GM for sticking with a pushrod design for their newest small-block V-8s; they needed them to fit under the low hoodline of a Corvette.

nate

Reply to
N8N

N8N, sometime you ought to read Joey's long political rantings on alt.autos.TOYOTA . It seems all Joey does all day is post politics in a Toyota newsgroup and attack Jeff.

Reply to
Built_Well

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