I just spent lots of money for a rebuilt engine on my 1997 Toyota Camry. It only hat 71K miles on it. Now there is a vibration in the cabin and through the brake pedal that wasn’t there before. I notice it is less when I keep the transmission in park. More when I’m in Drive or reverse. It also is less pronounced when the car is warmed up (i.e. a long drive). The mechanic doesn’t know what to do about it. Last time he simply cleaned the computer connection. Ideas?
Did this JUST happen after a recent engine rebuild, or has it been getting worse over a lengthy period? I’m thinking it’s more along the lines of a motor or transmission mount. A bad one can cause a LOT more vibration to be transmitted to the car. Check right here http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37&satitle=subaru+shop+manual&category0= on the Car Talk website for a good shop in your area. The dealer will probably suggest replacing all three (I think) mounts for around $600. You PROBABLY only have one that’s bad.
Some more info might help. It’s odd that you would need an engine rebuild at 71k miles. What happened?
It could possibly be a motor mount problem but I’m leaning toward an engine performance problem.
Who rebuilt this engine and about what did it set you back? There are varying degrees of engine rebuilds; some proper and some not so proper. My point here is that if it was a shaky rebuild and you have a cylinder with lowered compression due to something not being done properly then that could cause a vibration. An engine miss due to weak plug wires, etc. is a possibility. Timing belt being off a tooth or so could also do it, and speaking of which, a proper rebuild should mean a new belt and water pump on an 11 year old vehicle if this has not been done previously.
If he told you he “cleaned the computer connection” then I’m a bit suspect on this engine rebuild already since that diagnosis is pretty shaky at best and can be construed as a brush off statement.