Questions and Answers

Celica Ignition Timing Q. Hey Vincent, I just bought a 1986 Toyota Celica with a manual transmission, 2.0 liter DOHC (recently rebuilt), EFI, 141,000 miles, P/S, cruise, and A/C. I recently received advice from you about the car running lean. You suggested changing fuel injector seals and that fixed the problem. Now I have another problem.

While driving the car, it just up and dies. Usually at high speeds (50 mph +). At first it accelerates fine and drives fine but after it warms up it just cuts out. It does it every time I drive it, but not after at the same amount of time. It could be 5 miles or 10 miles.

If I let it sit there for 2-3 minutes it will start back up and drive for a little bit then die again. I've replaced the wires, rotor, and cap (cap was cracked in two places) but that didn't help. I'm changing the fuel filter tomorrow and hope that solves it but I was wondering what else could be causing it?

Also the timing seems to off. I put a light on it and it was about 20° BTDC and idles about 2,000 rpm, so I put it at the manufacturers timing of 10° BTDC and it idled down but when I step on the gas it dies. What's an easy to check the camshafts and crank to make sure they're lined up right?

Robert

A. I'm glad I was able to help you with your vacuum problem and it worked out for you. I hope I can be as helpful this time around.

When it dies, what you need to do is check for spark. I suspect you will find you have none. These symptoms are classic bad ignition module symptoms. Sometimes you can duplicate the problem by letting the car run for about 30 minutes with the hood closed and then tapping the module. If the engine dies, then you definitely have a bad ignition module.

As for the timing, you can't just put a light on the engine and set the timing. There are specific procedures for setting the engine timing. These procedures vary from engine to engine so the best way to get the proper procedure is to look at the engine specifications decal under the hood to find out what has to be done to get an accurate reading.

In this case to adjust the timing you need to:

1. Connect a timing light to the engine.
2. Start the engine and let it idle.
3. Short terminals T and E1 of the check connector.
4. Using the timing light, slowly turn the distributor until the timing mark on the crank pulley is aligned with the 10° BTDC mark. Torque distributor bolts to 39 Nm (29 ft.lbs) and check that timing is still at spec.
5. Remove jumper wire from check connector.
6. Check that ignition timing advances to approx. 14° - 19° BTDC

To check the base timing you would need to set the timing mark on 0° TDC on the compression stroke. Then see that the camshaft mark is aligned and that the distributor rotor is pointing to the number one tower of the distributor cap.

Additional Information provided courtesy of ALLDATA