3Fe diagnosed, camshaft messed up?

[Phillip K]

Hello landcruiser family, I am a 19 year old from Washougal Washington, right next to Portland Oregon. New to ih8mud as someone suggested I post my problem here and I would love some input on my baby 1991 Toyota Land Cruiser with the 3fe engine. Long story short, I took it to the sand dunes, and while I was driving, the car gave out on me. It sounded like it misfired a few times and just gave out. The truck will now crank, but won’t start. I stayed a few extra nights at the dunes and checked fuel lines, replaced the fuel pump, checked the maf sensor, checked relays, checked the fuse link, and after 2 days of almost ripping my hair out I decided to just tow it back home. I had a mechanic take a look at it and he tested it, the codes came up as airflow meter and manifold pressure sensor. But he said these codes won’t stop a car from starting so those can’t be the problem. He basically told me the cam shaft is cooked. He didn’t tell me much other than that. Now I’m in a pickle and I have no idea what next steps to make. I bought the truck because I heard the engine is bullet proof… and 2 weeks into owning it it gave out on me. It was driving perfectly fine like a charm and then just broke down. It’s at 199500 miles, original engine and everything. If anyone can provide any help at all or just give me advice I would greatly greatly appreciate it. I’m not at all in the financial place to completely rebuild the engine, and I have zero experience with engines so replacing the camshaft would be a fun project, but how can I even know that’s for sure the problem before I go taking apart my 3fe? I appreciate yall in advance.

 

[PIP]

Hey Godwin, when you have a second can you checkout this video and give me a second opinion on if you think that might be the case on my camshaft? Thank you

You can see the gear on the camshaft spinning in your video.

Why did you take the distributor out?

 

[Phillip K]

You can see the gear on the camshaft spinning in your video.

Why did you take the distributor out?

The distributor is still in there, where did you get that I took it out?

 

[PIP]

The distributor is still in there, where did you get that I took it out?

Your video shows an empty hole where the distributor should be. You can see the top of the oil pump and the cam gear that drives it spinning when you crank the engine.

Not sure what to say here. What you're saying makes little sense.

 

[Phillip K]

Your video shows an empty hole where the distributor should be. You can see the top of the oil pump and the cam gear that drives it spinning when you crank the engine.

Not sure what to say here. What you're saying makes little sense.

So you’re saying if I put the distributor back on it should start?

I’m sorry I took it to a mechanic and these videos is what he has been sending me, I’m not very educated on this car at all

 

[Phillip K]

Your video shows an empty hole where the distributor should be. You can see the top of the oil pump and the cam gear that drives it spinning when you crank the engine.

Not sure what to say here. What you're saying makes little sense.

Can you help me on how I can plug the distributor back in?

 

[PIP]

So you’re saying if I put the distributor back on it should start?

I’m sorry I took it to a mechanic and these videos is what he has been sending me, I’m not very educated on this car at all

We learn by watching and doing and messing up.

I think if you don't know what a distributor is you're going to need some in-person help to show you the ropes and get you on the right track. I am not saying if you put the distributor in it will run.

When you're troubleshooting something like this it's important to approach it systematically, sequentially.

Got Fuel? Got Spark?

ECM happy? what inputs is it not seeing and why?

Try not to throw parts at things. That's a very expensive way to troubleshoot.

 

[Phillip K]

We learn by watching and doing and messing up.

I think if you don't know what a distributor is you're going to need some in-person help to show you the ropes and get you on the right track. I am not saying if you put the distributor in it will run.

When you're troubleshooting something like this it's important to approach it systematically, sequentially.

Got Fuel? Got Spark?

ECM happy? what inputs is it not seeing and why?

Try not to throw parts at things. That's a very expensive way to troubleshoot.

Thank you for your help so far man I really appreciate it. I understand completely what you are saying. The only thing is I’m very confused because I put that video on the forum and some people say the gear that’s spinning is for the oil pump, some say it’s for the camshaft gear. I’m very confused.

Is there any way I could like call you or something and explain? I understand completely if that’s not something you wanna do but I really want to learn as much as I can before going in with zero knowledge

 

[AussieHJCruza]

Get a new mechanic.

Basic explanation
The gear is on the camshaft. The distributor engages with the gear, and a tang on the end of the distributor shaft drives the oil pump.

If the gear is turning, the camshaft is turning (unless there's been some sort of catastrophic failure and the cam has snapped which is extremely unlikely)

If you want to learn, that's great, however I think I speak for most members when I say we won't spoon feed you. Download the FSM (available for free on the forum) and start to get familiar with basic engine terminology, and search forum threads, look at pictures, read questions etc.

You can learn a lot from many members here who have a lot of experience and if you're prepared to put the time in and learn you'll save a massive amount of money, get better quality work done and get it done when you want it done. Most mechanics aren't familiar with cruisers and won't be much use.

 

[Phillip K]

Get a new mechanic.

Basic explanation
The gear is on the camshaft. The distributor engages with the gear, and a tang on the end of the distributor shaft drives the oil pump.

If the gear is turning, the camshaft is turning (unless there's been some sort of catastrophic failure and the cam has snapped which is extremely unlikely)

If you want to learn, that's great, however I think I speak for most members when I say we won't spoon feed you. Download the FSM (available for free on the forum) and start to get familiar with basic engine terminology, and search forum threads, look at pictures, read questions etc.

You can learn a lot from many members here who have a lot of experience and if you're prepared to put the time in and learn you'll save a massive amount of money, get better quality work done and get it done when you want it done. Most mechanics aren't familiar with cruisers and won't be much use.

Hey, if you watched the video of the gear I put previously, can that not be an issue of that gear being chipped and Messing the timing up? It might not be grabbing onto what it’s supposed to be, the distributor stays on the other cylinder causing a massive misfire, what do you think?

 

[AussieHJCruza]

Hey, if you watched the video of the gear I put previously, can that not be an issue of that gear being chipped and Messing the timing up? It might not be grabbing onto what it’s supposed to be, the distributor stays on the other cylinder causing a massive misfire, what do you think?

No, I don't think so. I did watch the video.

 

[jonheld]

Really not trying to give you a hard time here, but you're asking for help and you still haven't answered any questions that were asked.

You seem to be determined to pull apart this engine without performing even the most basic diagnostics, and you're listening to a mechanic that no one here would trust to change the oil.

Maybe the cam is toast. Maybe it's just fine. We won't know until we get more information.

 

[Phillip K]

Really not trying to give you a hard time here, but you're asking for help and you still haven't answered any questions that were asked.

You seem to be determined to pull apart this engine without performing even the most basic diagnostics, and you're listening to a mechanic that no one here would trust to change the oil.

Maybe the cam is toast. Maybe it's just fine. We won't know until we get more information.

Hey man,

I’ve tried to ask what questions in particular you need answered and I tried answering to the best of my knowledge, when you put all those post #’s I don’t understand what you’re asking, I’m brand new to this forum and website, which isn’t an excuse but I don’t know how to respond when you asked for post #’s haha. But you’re right I need to run diagnostic and let you guys know what I find

 

[george_tlc]

Post number is right there on the right top of each post. This is common with most forums. E.g. below is an example - the post you just made above this one is #32.

cheers,
george.

 

[jonheld]

Post #3: @Fj80oregon "Download the diagnostic from the resources section and start reading.
Learn to fix this thing yourself. You can do it this forum is here to help. Ask questions after you have tried it once or twice. https://forum.ih8mud.com/resources/3fe-efi-diagnostics.89/reviews"

Did you download and read the 3FE EFI diagnostic?

Post #4: @ajax1 "Got spark? Did the ignitor lead come off?

Do you have spark?

Post #7 @AussieHJCruza :Basic questions/checks:1) is the check engine light illuminated with the ignition in the 'on' position? 2) easy way to see if the cam is doing remotely what it should: remove the rocker cover and turn the engine over. If all the valves open and close in what looks like a logical sequence given the firing order, it's probably good enough for it to run. 3) Pull the oil filter and cut it open, if it's full of shavings something has gone south internally.4) Do you have a factory service manual? If not you can download one for free in the 'resources' section of this website. This will have some troubleshooting sequences to go through

Answer all questions please.

Post #9 I said "Pop the cap off the dissy and crank the starter. If the rotor spins, things look promising."

Did you do this??

Post #10: @MissahPapaJ "pull the cap and have someone crank it over make sure the rotors spinning 360 with no hiccups during that test.

Same idea. Did you do this?