Toyota carburetor

[dragonflyspit]

i made the mistake of running some carburetor cleaner through my 83 toyota's carb. It was running okay before this except the idle had stuck on high yesterday while I was out. So, like an idiot, I tried to clean it a little.

Turns out that previous owners had probably been adjusting the carb for years to compensate for crud buildup, and now the thing barely runs since I removed a bit of it. It idles so slowly I have to keep feathering the gas to keep it running, and it's idling very rough.

I only know enough about cars to be a little dangerous, and I'm very poor. I know the carb needs some adjustment now, and I should finish cleaning the goo out of it, but I'm unsure what adjustments to make to which screws, and how best to clean the carb (not allowed to work on cars here, so I can't crawl under it, take the carb off, etc.). Should I turn the idle up? Is that clockwise? What about choke? Where are the adjustments on a Toyota carb? I've always had American vehicles.

I can spend all of about $30 on it. I'm disabled, and I just don't have the money for a shop. Any helpful information, websites, etc. would be very welcome. I am entirely on my own with this old thing.

Thanks guys.

[dragonflyspit]

Hey guys, just wanted to let you all know that it is fixed. I kept putting off because I hate working on cars, and I don't drive much. I did drive it short distances just a few times, and after a few trips it just fixed itself. I was driving in 2nd often to keep it running. I am about 99.99% convinced it must've been too on the plugs. I'm also very glad I didn't have to do anything but drive it!

Thanks much for the advice guys!

[John_Joey]

Easy and cheap, go to Wal-Mart and buy their cheap carb spray. Lightly mist around the carb while the engine is running. If the motor speeds up, then there is an air leak like TucsonJim said.

If it does not speed up, then very lightly mist over the carb if it speeds up the fuel mixture is too lean. I'm betting the cleaner made it too rich, because the prior owner just kept turning the mixture screw out over the years. If that is the case then turn the screw in a 1/4 turn and see if it speeds up the engine. If yes, keep turning until you get a good sounding engine. Mist lightly again to see if you leaned it out too much.

As far as the spark plugs, you can do what we would call an Italian tune-up. Get it on the highway and run her up to 70-80mph and see if that cleans the plugs.

Good luck.

[Teeton]

Ok first if you have to crawl under it to work on the carb.. Don't touch it!! lol. You most likely have a 2 bbl non computer controlled carb on a r22 engine. Am I right? First I'd check the fuel Fuel Shut-off Solenoid. Check to see if it clicks when the key is turned to the run position. You can grab it and feel it chick or hear it click. If it does not click, check for 12v/power with a test light or meter. Vacuum leaks can cause no idle That saying that all else is working fine. There is many of other things that can cause this. But this is just a place to start. Carbs are not an easy thing to work on. It's best to let some one that knows what they are going look at it. If you were in Northeast Pa I could tell you right where to take it.

[wnjj]

MEXICOWANDERER wrote:
Tucson Jim,
I'll bet between using your information and my tips he gets his ride going again. I plumb forgot about those screws. Berryman's Chemtool. I wonder if it's still around? Ahh, the days of the 5-gallon pail of carburetor soak and that little basket. Bet that stuff's gone the way of the Stegosaurus as well. I used plumber's heat-wrap to heat the solution to around 110 degrees, popped in the carb pieces and let them soak overnight. Then immersion in a pail of boiling hot water with air agitating it. I made my own set of air blasting rubber tip passage cleaners. Weighed floats on a balance beam gram scale.

I got pretty good with Rochester Quadrajets. Used to de-stake the butterflies, remove the shaft bore the worn throttle shaft bores, and slip in new bushings with an arbor press. Those were the days of insanely crazy incorrect distributor advance curves. I wanted a Sun distributor machine so bad I could taste it. But I had to settle for a Triplett 30 volt battery meter and started rebuilding alternators.

A mechanic knows he's long in the tooth when teenagers started asking "Hey Dad, I keep hearing about carburetors..."

It's now all about Throttle Position and Mass Airflow sensors.

You forgot about epoxying the leaky plugs below the float bowl. I've got a Quadrajet on my 68 Camaro that I built out of three $15 wrecking yard carbs back in the early 90's.

[dragonflyspit]

TicsonJim, thanks so much for that tip! Never occurred to me that screws might be loose. I will check that tomorrow too. I'm so glad to have some help with this, guys. I think we'll get the little monster back on its feet. I (almost) look forward to messing with it tomorrow (but not really).

[MEXICOWANDERER]

Tucson Jim,
I'll bet between using your information and my tips he gets his ride going again. I plumb forgot about those screws. Berryman's Chemtool. I wonder if it's still around? Ahh, the days of the 5-gallon pail of carburetor soak and that little basket. Bet that stuff's gone the way of the Stegosaurus as well. I used plumber's heat-wrap to heat the solution to around 110 degrees, popped in the carb pieces and let them soak overnight. Then immersion in a pail of boiling hot water with air agitating it. I made my own set of air blasting rubber tip passage cleaners. Weighed floats on a balance beam gram scale.

I got pretty good with Rochester Quadrajets. Used to de-stake the butterflies, remove the shaft bore the worn throttle shaft bores, and slip in new bushings with an arbor press. Those were the days of insanely crazy incorrect distributor advance curves. I wanted a Sun distributor machine so bad I could taste it. But I had to settle for a Triplett 30 volt battery meter and started rebuilding alternators.

A mechanic knows he's long in the tooth when teenagers started asking "Hey Dad, I keep hearing about carburetors..."

It's now all about Throttle Position and Mass Airflow sensors.

[TucsonJim]

Dragonflyspit - I used to rebuild those carbs for a living. I'd be happy to take a look at it for you if you're ever near Tucson.

One of the biggest problems I've seen on that particular carburetor are loose screws between the mid body and upper portion of the carb. When you spray cleaner down the carb, it allows air to enter the carb between the two sections because the old varnish was keeping it sealed. It's very easy to check to see if this is the problem. Remove the air cleaner and grab the top of the carb. Try to turn it left and right. If you notice any movement at all, you can pop off the carb and access the screws at the base to tighten it up.

Jim

[dragonflyspit]

Thank you MexicoWanderer! (For the advice, and the laugh.) Why didn't I think about the plugs getting covered in carb goo? I can change plugs. There's one on it that's a devil to get to, but I'll do it in the NAPA parking lot so maybe I can get a hand if needed.

I might need clarification once I'm in there, but I think I understand what you're saying. I will take your advice and see what happens. I appreciate that very much.

To the rest of you, thanks for your cautions and concerns, but when I say I don't have the money for a mechanic, I really mean it. I live alone on $700/month. I really have no choice but to tackle it myself. I'm intelligent enough, and the truck was worth only a few hundred dollars before I cleaned the carb, so im really risking little.

I'll keep you posted! Thanks!

[MEXICOWANDERER]

That's quite a busy looking carburetor isn't it? It's got more diaphragms than a regional planned-parenthood rally.

OK you washed down the inside of the carburetor. Gook, gunk, snot, pieces of pedestrians, all got sucked into the engine.

And scorched themselves right on what used to be sparking plugs (now they're just plugs - nearly inert, I gather...)

You're savvy enough to remove the spark plugs without getting their wires crossed,right? Remove the plugs and look at the inside the engine part of the plugs. There is supposed to be a well tanned porcelain tower in the bottom. With a steel tip inside that. If the porcelain isn't tan colored but shiny black you found your problem, At least you found the first one. Don't bother trying to clean them. That's as pathetic a waste of time as trying to rebuild a light bulb.

Go to the auto parts store. Purchase new spark plugs and...and...and...

A two foot length of very cheap to buy vacuum hose. You'll know it's the right size if you can push it over the spark plug wire tip nipple.

Go change your spark plugs.

That carburetor as mentioned has A LOT of diaphragms. Look closely and you'll see the steel barrel nipples sticking out of the carburetor that the rubber vacuum hose plugs into. The hose other end plugs into (you guessed it) a diaphragm. Disconnect that hose there and not the carburetor nipple end. Plug in your new hose. Aren't you glad you got two feet instead of two inches?

The hose is plugged into a diaphragm. Suck on the free end of the two foot hose. Do you feel the suction air choking off? That diaphragm does not have a leak. Remove the test hose, plug in the original hose after checking to make sure the outside doesn't have any holes or cracks and has not gotten hard like plastic. If it has, shorten the length of your new hose and plug in the new hose.

Move to the next diaphragm and repeat. There should be no air leaks. Tight vacuum in all the diaphragms. If you run into a bad one, take a picture of it with a camera or phone and take it to the auto parts and get a new one.

Are we at thirty dollars yet?

Good hunting and report back. I have the notoriety of squeezing every peso so tight the Aztec farts.

[westend]

Even a certified Toyota tech is going to have to know the year, make, and model of the vehicle and the engine. Toyota has probably had over a thousand different carburetor configurations over the years. If you know the engine number that would be a good start too.

The way I'm seeing this is that you will need to get the vehicle over to a talented friend or a shop to have the carb serviced. Cleaning and adjusting carburetors is not that hard but if you have no experience it's best to seek help.

[amxpress]

It really sounds like your carburetor is ready to be rebuilt. However, here's a link that might help:
http://www.toyotanation.com/forum/81-pre-88-toyota-pickup-hilux/290247-22r-carb-help-me-identify-adj...
I've replaced a number of auxiliary accelerator pumps on these carburetors as they leak and cause all kinds of driveability problems.
Be careful spraying the carburetor down.

[ScottG]

This may not be the kind of thing to tinker with. If you adjust it incorrectly you can end up with burnt valves and seats or even cylinder damage. Adjusting it wrong the other direction can lead to damaged emissions equip or washed down cyl walls.
I would get a shop to adjust it per the original specs. It will run at its best and be reliable.
If you go at it yourself you at least need a tach and a vacuum gauge. Then study up on how to do it.

Good luck,
Scott