Heck engine light flashing and car miss fireing

PRECIADO91

MEMBER
1999 TOYOTA CAMRY SOLARA
V6
2WD
AUTOMATIC
300,000 MILES

My cars check engine light is flashing and when I put it in drive it starts puttering really hard. The engine is shaking more then usual. And last night when I was driving home I got half way and it started to not go past 200 rpms. This morning I started it up and its still puttering is their any way to read the codes without a code reader? What do you think might be wrong with it?

2 Replies

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
33,871 POSTS

You should not be driving the car when the Check Engine light is flashing. That means way too much raw fuel is going into the exhaust system and is going to overheat and damage the catalytic converter. That is going to turn your misfire repair into a really expensive repair.

Most auto parts stores will read diagnostic fault codes for you for free, but remember, they're in the business of selling parts. Fault codes never say to replace parts or that they're bad. They only indicate the circuit or system that needs further diagnosis.

You know we can't diagnose the cause of the misfire over a computer. You have to do the testing, then we can help analyze the results. The place to start is with the common stuff like spark plugs and wires, especially if it has been a long time since they were replaced.