95 Corolla pinging and some oil consumption

My 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE with 100k miles has been pinging when going
uphills for quite a while. It used to ping on hot days only.
The pinging is getting progressively worse and now it pings also in
cooler weather. Oil consumption is 1 quart per 3k miles.
Could these be related?
I considered replacing the (original) distributor cap due to a slight
miss at idle. Is it possible it will solve the pinging problem?
Any other ideas what could cause the pinging?
Thanks.

Dan > wrote:
>My 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE with 100k miles has been pinging when going
>uphills for quite a while. It used to ping on hot days only.
>The pinging is getting progressively worse and now it pings also in
>cooler weather. Oil consumption is 1 quart per 3k miles.
>Could these be related?

Probably not.

>I considered replacing the (original) distributor cap due to a slight
>miss at idle. Is it possible it will solve the pinging problem?
>Any other ideas what could cause the pinging?

Either the ignition timing is off, or the engine compression has increased,
or the gasoline you are using is too low octane.

The engine compression can increase when the cylinder volume decreases,
due to a build up of carbon junk on piston and head.

If the distributor cap has 100k miles on it, it's probably time to replace
it anyway, but I would also check the detonation sensor on the engine too,
because it should be causing the computer to retard the spark automatically
when the engine pings.

A scanner will allow you to see where the computer has set the spark timing,
and once you know that you'll know where to start looking. If it's already
as far back as it will get and the engine is still pinging, I'd look in
the cylinder with a borescope and see how nasty it is in there.

You can try some of the cleaning products out there that claim to remove
carbon buildup. I don't know how any of them work, but pulling the head
and scraping it out by hand is not a fun job so I'd try them all first
once you have looked with a borescope and seen crap in there.
--scott
--
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

"Dan" > wrote in message
...
> My 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE with 100k miles has been pinging when going
> uphills for quite a while. It used to ping on hot days only.
> The pinging is getting progressively worse and now it pings also in
> cooler weather. Oil consumption is 1 quart per 3k miles.
> Could these be related?
> I considered replacing the (original) distributor cap due to a slight
> miss at idle. Is it possible it will solve the pinging problem?
> Any other ideas what could cause the pinging?
> Thanks.

I think they could be related. As you burn more oil, the deposits on your
spark plugs
can build up more. This can cause a situation of preignition which may be
your
pinging source.

If you pull the plugs and take a look, you can see if this might be the
case.

Dan wrote:
> My 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE with 100k miles has been pinging when going
> uphills for quite a while. It used to ping on hot days only.
> The pinging is getting progressively worse and now it pings also in
> cooler weather. Oil consumption is 1 quart per 3k miles.
> Could these be related?
> I considered replacing the (original) distributor cap due to a slight
> miss at idle. Is it possible it will solve the pinging problem?
> Any other ideas what could cause the pinging?
> Thanks.

Could be as a result of carbon building up in the engine from the
burning oil. That can cause hot spots and higher compression in the
cylinders. Those can cause pinging.

Go get a can of top cylinder cleaner from GM or a can of Sea Foam
cleaner from a parts store and follow the directions regarding top
cylinder cleaning. (Basically you find a vacuum line and use it to draw
in the cleaner, then you dump in enough to stall the engine. Let it set
for 20-30 minutes and then start it back up. Make sure you do this
OUTSIDE and not in a place where the smoke will not draw attention. It
WILL SMOKE LIKE CRAZY once you start it up again.) This will clean up
the carbon and crud in the cylinders. The next step is to change the oil
after you warm the engine up. The cleaner will get through the rings and
dilute the oil some. This may also improve your oil use if it is due to
sticking oil control rings.

Be sure to post back the results.

--
Steve W.

On Fri, 27 Feb 2009 17:51:59 -0500, "Steve W." >
wrote:

>Dan wrote:
>> My 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE with 100k miles has been pinging when going
>> uphills for quite a while. It used to ping on hot days only.
>> The pinging is getting progressively worse and now it pings also in
>> cooler weather. Oil consumption is 1 quart per 3k miles.
>> Could these be related?
>> I considered replacing the (original) distributor cap due to a slight
>> miss at idle. Is it possible it will solve the pinging problem?
>> Any other ideas what could cause the pinging?
>> Thanks.
>
>Could be as a result of carbon building up in the engine from the
>burning oil. That can cause hot spots and higher compression in the
>cylinders. Those can cause pinging.
>

In addition to the above a malfunctioning EGR system can also cause
pinging problems.

Steve B.

> My 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE with 100k miles has been pinging when going
> uphills for quite a while. It used to ping on hot days only.
> The pinging is getting progressively worse and now it pings also in
> cooler weather. Oil consumption is 1 quart per 3k miles.
> Could these be related?

Your oil usage sounds okay to me. I'd make sure the EGR passages/
valves are working, if they get plugged or restricted you won't have
sufficient EGR, combustion chamber temperatures get too high and
you'll start hearing the pinging. Get it fixed before you punch a
hole in a piston....

As for the 'slight miss at idle', when was the last time you changed
the plugs, cleaned the cap and rotor, and checked the plug wires?

Chris

There's no EGR on this model.
Is it possible the pinging is caused by a bad thermostat? Or a bad
radiator cap?
The engine takes quite a bit to warm up, however, when warm, the
temperature gauge stays in the middle
(more or less).
I read some posts that mentioned spraying water into the TB.
Any idea if it may cure the pinging?

On Feb 28, 4:47*am, Hal > wrote:
> > My 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE with 100k miles has been pinging when going
> > uphills for quite a while. It used to ping on hot days only.
> > The pinging is getting progressively worse and now it pings also in
> > cooler weather. Oil consumption is 1 quart per 3k miles.
> > Could these be related?
>
> Your oil usage sounds okay to me. I'd make sure the EGR passages/
> valves are working, if they get plugged or restricted you won't have
> sufficient EGR, combustion chamber temperatures get too high and
> you'll start hearing the pinging. *Get it fixed before you punch a
> hole in a piston....
>
> As for the 'slight miss at idle', when was the last time you changed
> the plugs, cleaned the cap and rotor, and checked the plug wires?
>
> Chris

wrote:

> There's no EGR on this model.

That maybe explains your problem.


>
> Is it possible the pinging is caused by a bad thermostat? Or a bad
> radiator cap?
> The engine takes quite a bit to warm up, however, when warm, the
> temperature gauge stays in the middle
> (more or less).

More likely other problems would surface if it was overheating, but temp is
a possible cause. Check air intake temp also.

>
> I read some posts that mentioned spraying water into the TB.
> Any idea if it may cure the pinging?

It might, but that is unlikely to do much . Most of the other
clean-out-the-carbon additives also have a small chance of working. You
would better off to put in some higher octane fuel and do a long trip over
hilly highways. If you get it to run right it may clean itself out and
then you could go back to regular. An engine that is pinging badly will
probably get better mileage from premium fuel so that is a solution that
may not cost anything.

-jim

>
> On Feb 28, 4:47 am, Hal > wrote:
> > > My 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE with 100k miles has been pinging when going
> > > uphills for quite a while. It used to ping on hot days only.
> > > The pinging is getting progressively worse and now it pings also in
> > > cooler weather. Oil consumption is 1 quart per 3k miles.
> > > Could these be related?
> >
> > Your oil usage sounds okay to me. I'd make sure the EGR passages/
> > valves are working, if they get plugged or restricted you won't have
> > sufficient EGR, combustion chamber temperatures get too high and
> > you'll start hearing the pinging. Get it fixed before you punch a
> > hole in a piston....
> >
> > As for the 'slight miss at idle', when was the last time you changed
> > the plugs, cleaned the cap and rotor, and checked the plug wires?
> >
> > Chris

> wrote: 95 Corolla 1.6 4A-FE 100k miles

My car has been pinging when going uphill for quite a while. It used
to ping on hot days only but it's getting worse and now it also pings
in cooler weather.
__________________________________________________ ____________________________

The most likely source of increasing pinging is a growing air leak
into the intake system causing lean, hot burning. This could
come from loose fasteners, a defective EGR/IAC/PCV valve, a
failing manifold gasket, a loose carb/throttle body, etc.

If you continue to press hard on the accelerator when it is pinging,
it can eventually burn a hole in a piston, cook an exhaust valve,
or pound out a rod bearing.

Good luck.

Rodan.

On Mar 5, 3:38*am, wrote:
> There's no EGR on this model.

Is this a US market car or a foreign build one? I'm not trying to call
anyone a liar but I thought all US models had to have an EGR system,
at least cars built since the mid 1970's.

> Is it possible the pinging is caused by a bad thermostat? Or a bad
> radiator cap?

A bad cap to me means one that leaks coolant or fails to hold
pressure. You can test yours with a radiator/radiator cap pressure
tester, you can usually rent them at a local auto parts place. If the
cap is more than a few years old chances are the gasket is worn and it
will not hold pressure. New ones are inexpensive, so if you have any
doubt about it replace it.

A bad thermostat can fail in one of two ways. If it is stuck closed,
you'd know it. The car would overheat, badly. A thermostat that is
stuck open will prevent the engine from reaching normal temperature
and it will take a long time to get any heat into the cabin area.

If the engine is heating that can cause your pinging.

> The engine takes quite a bit to warm up, however, when warm, the
> temperature gauge stays in the middle
> (more or less).

Define "takes a bit". If it gets to the middle within 5 minutes or so
of a dead cold start and stays in the middle all the time after that I
would say your cooling system is working normally.

> I read some posts that mentioned spraying water into the TB.
> Any idea if it may cure the pinging?

Spraying water into the intake is one way to try and break up
excessive carbon. It might help, it might not. If you have a mass
airflow sensor trying to do this procedure will almost certainly cause
your check engine light to come on because you will have to spray the
water into the intake, not the air cleaner. And you need to do that
with the engine running. If you take off the air hose that feeds the
intake the airflow sensor is no longer going to see any air moving
past it and the ECM will trigger a fault code.

Without an EGR valve, a few more things come to mind. Overly advanced
ignition timing can cause this problem. Another possibility is a
vacuum leak somewhere in the intake system. You can test for a vacuum
leak by getting yourself a can of spray carburetor cleaner. Start the
engine and let it idle, then spray the carburetor cleaner around the
intake manifold where it joins the cylinder head, around the throttle
shaft area, and if you have a mass airflow sensor, around the boot
connections between the air cleaner and the intake manifold. Also
check the vacuum line that goes to the brake booster and any other
vacuum lines you see. If the idle speed changes when you hit a certain
spot with the carburetor cleaner it means you have an air leak, the
solvent is being sucked into the engine and burned and causing the
idle to change as a result. Vacuum leaks can be tricky to find, so
check carefully. If you have any cracked, broken or hardened vacuum
lines under the hood replace them.

The procedure for checking and setting ignition timing depends on the
car, and I've never worked on a 95 corolla. Sometimes you have to
disconnect a plug, sometimes you have to jumper a few pins on a
diagnostic connector, sometimes you have to do nothing. It would help
if you had a service manual for your vehicle as it would tell you how
to check and adjust the timing. At the very least you will need a
timing light, the inductive ones are the best. If you get one of the
old ones that uses a spring between a plug wire and the timing light
just be warned that they can(and very often do) light up your
life...in a bad way. Been there, done that.

Good luck with it.

Chris