Self-diagnosis of the engine
Content
During the operation of Toyota cars in Russia in difficult climatic conditions, various problems with the engine often occur. These can be either serious breakdowns, which will be quite difficult to fix and it will be easier to install a contract engine, or failure of any sensors. If your “Check Engine” indicator lights up, do not rush to get upset right away. First you need to conduct a simple self-diagnosis of the Toyota engine. This procedure will not take much time and will help you identify problems in the engine.
Why carry out a self-test of the engine
When buying a used car, you need to be very careful. Often, unscrupulous sellers hide engine problems from you, which will later have to be eliminated, sometimes spending a lot of money on it. An excellent solution when examining such a car would be to diagnose the engine with your own hands, so as not to buy a "pig in a poke".
Self-diagnosis is also necessary for the prevention of the car. For some errors, the Check Engine indicator may not light up, although a malfunction will be present. This can threaten with increased gas mileage or other problems.
What needs to be done before diagnostics
Before self-checking the engine, make sure that all indicators on the dashboard are working correctly. The bulbs may not be lit or may be powered by others, which gives the appearance of their work. To save yourself from unnecessary actions and not disassemble anything, you can make a visual inspection.
Fasten your seat belt, close the doors (so that unnecessary lamps do not distract), insert the key into the lock and turn on the ignition (DO NOT start the engine). The indicators "Check Engine", "ABS", "AirBag", "battery charge", "oil pressure", "O / D Off" will light up (If the button on the automatic transmission selector is depressed).
- the "ABS" lamp lights up when the ignition is switched on and should go out after 3 seconds;
- the "AirBag" lamp comes on when the ignition is switched on and goes out after self-diagnosis of the security system, after about 5 seconds.
Important: if you turn off and on the ignition without removing the key from the lock, the "AirBag" lamp will not light up again! The system will be re-diagnosed only if the key is pulled out and reinserted.
- if the "O / D Off" lamp is off, press the button on the automatic transmission selector, the indicator should light up. And vice versa.
Next, start the engine:
- the "Check Engine" lamp should be on constantly when the ignition is switched on and go out immediately after the engine is started;
- the battery charge lamp behaves similarly;
- the oil pressure lamp lights up when the ignition is turned on and goes out 1-2 seconds after the engine is started.
If all of these indicators behave as described above, then the dashboard is in good order and you can carry out a self-test of the engine. Otherwise, you must first troubleshoot any indicator problems.
How to perform a self test
To carry out a simple self-diagnosis of the Toyota engine, you just need an ordinary paper clip in order to bridge the necessary contacts.
The self-diagnosis mode can be turned on by closing the contacts "TE1" - "E1" in the DLC1 connector, which is located under the hood on the left in the direction of the car, or by closing the contacts "TC (13)" - "CG (4)" in the DLC3 connector, under the dashboard.
Location of the diagnostic connector DLC1 in the vehicle.
Location of the diagnostic connector DLC3 in the vehicle.
How to read error codes
After closing these contacts, we sit in the car and turn on the ignition (the engine does NOT need to be started). The error codes can be read by counting the number of flashes of the "Check Engine" indicator.
If there are no errors in memory, the indicator will blink at intervals of 0,25 seconds. If there are any problems with the engine, the light will flash differently.
- Every 0,5 seconds, the indicator will first display tens, then, after a pause of 1,5 seconds, units in 0,5 seconds.
- If the memory contains more than one error, then the pause between them will be 2,5 seconds.
- After the system displays all errors, they will start repeating in 4,5 seconds.
Example.
Symbols:
0 - light blinking;
1 - pause for 1,5 seconds;
2 - pause for 2,5 seconds;
3 - pause 4,5 seconds.
The code issued by the system:
0
Decoding the code:
Self-diagnosis gives error codes 24 and error 52.
With the result that
You can decipher the error codes received using the Toyota engine fault code table. Having learned which sensors are faulty, you can make a further decision: either eliminate the cause of the breakdown yourself, or contact a specialized car service.
