Bought my Camry when new. A mechanic looked at the plugs and said they looked fine. After that every month or two it will start missing out after stop-and-go driving of about 1/2 hour. Then at stop lights it might die. Sometimes it is hard to start again. AFter it rests, it is fine. Toyota dealer couldn’t get it to miss out, kept it on the scope in the parking lot while idling, and even had an employee drive it home 1/2 hour away with the scope on. Ran fine, no scope indication of any problem. I never know when it will die, and the chances of being next to the Toyota dealership when it dies are pretty slim! 100,000 miles. Help!
The problem could be due to several things. If you can’t catch the trouble when it occurs you might try replacing the plugwires as a start. They are due for replacement anyways if this hasn’t been done already.
How long have the pugs and plug wires been in there?
Assuming the above is OK then I would be looking at the coil(s) or whatever passes for one on your car.
That makes sense. The problem seemed to start after my neighborhood mechanic looked at the plugs to change them but was surprised that the plugs were still fine. Official Toyota maintenance guide says 1st plug change 120,000 miles.
I think we’ll change plugs and wires.
Thanks!
Ensure the fuel filter has been changed, recently. Have your mechanic check the TCC (Torque Converter Control) system. If there is a TCC fuse or relay, pull it (if possible) and observe the car’s behavior. If it improves, the torque converter lockup isn’t releasing (or, staying released) below 35 mph, as it should.
It could be gunk in the Throttle Body/ Idle Air Control valve.
Fortunately, this is pretty easy to clean yourself - get a can of CRC Throttle body cleaner a phillips screwdriver and some paper towels.
I did this recently on my '96 Camry V6 and it cured an intermittent rough idle/stalling problem.
Google Throttle Body/ Idle Air Control valve for your make/model and you should get some pictures to guide you.