John, I think I have encountered the same problem. 98 Avalon with same drivetrain as far as I know. Seems to happen while on level ground around 50 mph when I'm in that zone between applying throttle and letting off throttle, jus t maintaining speed. My car has about 35K on it. I run straight regular 87 octane. It was doing it to the extent that it felt like I was on a wavy road or I had a wheel balance problem. I did not notice it at highway speeds of 70 or so, just that 45-50 range. I ran a can of STP fuel injector cleaner through the gas tank on several tankfuls, and it seems to have cleared up the problem or minimized it to a point that I don't notice it. May want to try it. Bill
Hi all.
>
> I have a 1998 Camry LE V6, 81k miles in reasonable / good condition. >
> Recently I noticed that during normal operation (i.e. on highway with
> cruise control set) every now and then I see/feel a small "blip" and see
> the engine RPM change a bit. The car jerks a bit when it happens. It
> happens maybe once or twice during a 20 - 40 minute trip, it's not
> constantly doing it.
>
> I would suspect knocking, but I'm using Premium 91 grade octane gas from
> Chevron (it's not "cheapo brand"). I also recently had the timing belt
> and the other two belts changed (at 79k pre-emptive since I may get busy
> when it reaches 90k), so they should be in good shape. Oil is due for
> the 6k mi change at 84k mi.
>
> At 60kmi the air filter was replaced and I think the spark plugs were
> too. I haven't yet pulled the plugs out to see if they're good or not. >
> Any ideas here?
>
> Does the Camry's on-board engine computer log these errors? I.e. Could I
> goto the dealer and ask them to run the diagnostics to see if the car
> knows what's wrong?
>
> The only other idea I can come up with is the throttle body is slightly
> sticking or maybe the mass air sensor is on it's way out.
>
> Oh, the oxygen sensor was replaced at 45k mi.
>
> Your ideas and suggestions would be appreciated.
>
> Thanks,
> John.
>