My dad has a '96 5SFE. I think it;s a 1 year only for OBD2 as there is no adjustment for it, while on others I have seen it where you can adjust the timing.

 

Thanks, sometimes figuring out the right question to ask is the most difficult part of things.

From your post I was led to this: http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/1...3-3rd-4th-generation-1992-1996-1997-2001/415015-need-5sfe-3sfe-engine-guru.html

"Any pre 1995 engine is going to be OBD1 so thats guaranteed to have a different wiring harness than an OBD2 motor. The 5S-FE became the standard 4-banger for the camry in 1992. This was the second generation of the motor however, since they put the first gen in the celica starting in 1990. Once you get to the OBD2 threshold, 1995 and up, there will be external coil distributors and coil packs to throw on the mix. 1992 -1995 has internal coil distributor. The 1996 has an external coil distributor. 1997-2001 has a distributor-less ignition with twin coil packs. Crank and cam position sensors were also added in 1997"

 

Ah nice. Thats a good bit of info.

 

I don't want to confuse people, but I have a 1996, and it has a crank position sensor AND a camshaft position sensor, the latter which is located inside the distributor...although this camshaft sensor is very "primitive" and part of the distributor. Also, whether the ignition coil is internal/external seems to depend whether or not the car is for California or Federal emissions (just like how some parts/compatibility is specific for cali/federal emissions). This business about external/internal ignition coils is talked about in Haynes as well as the FSM...also suggesting a link between Cali/Federal emission....

 

It crossed my mind about the link btwn Cali vs. Fed emissions in regard to the type of dist used also. Going to talk to the dealer parts dept to see what, if any, info can be had from them.

 

Looking up 5SFE/3SFE distributor part numbers, OBD1 and OBD2 distributors are different. The Celica 5S, camry 5S, and Rav4 3S share the same ones as well

 

While at the dealer this am getting some ATF for the Highlander a chance meeting with a seemingly knowledgeable and helpful Asst Parts Mgr gave me some ideas.

First, the reason I'm doing all this is due to a vibration at idle after a timing belt replacement.

So, the parts guy says the motor may still be running on logic stored over time in the computer. He further stated that this logic may cause issues due to operating on the previously stored logic and since the timing belt has been replaced.

He went on to suggest that doing a reset of the computer by means of diagnostic could result in problems going away.

In a way, what he was saying made sense to me but, as always with dealer situations, they are trying to generate sales. Therefore I'm cautious about heeding his advice.

 

I doubt it. But it won't hurt anything to try. Pull and reseat the EFI fuse in the box under the hood, rearward of the battery. That'll clear the ECU back to default settings for everything. Sorta like rebooting a PC.


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Hmmm, re-seating of EFI fuse caused an initial drop of idle down to about 650 or so. No other effects were detectable.

This'll probably have to be left hanging. Got a state exam coming up to review for.

Plus it'd likely be better to get the planned tuneup out of the way first and maybe the idle problem might get corrected from doing that.