2008 Corolla CE - Daily Driver Revival

Same here!
Luckily I’ll know soon! Tracking info just updated. Magnaflow and summit are getting me the parts on Friday.

I’ll likely spray the mid pipe to manifold bolts with pb blaster every day before each drive. If those come loose, it’ll just be one cut with the sawzaw and an 02 sensor. Really hoping for an easy win here!

 

I used to have an old BMW with platinum-based catalytic converters. They lasted many miles and many years, but eventually even they started to fail. Replacement OEM cats were excessively expensive. So to pass smog test I'd a) change engine oil b) wash the car c) put fresh premium and add ethanol to about 15% d) go for 1 hour highway drive right before tailpipe testing. It would pass most of the time, but it would be close every time. Now, if you didn't wash the car, forget it, she would never play nice.

 

A wash always helps. We have used Cataclean product on a few F150 trucks that had catalyst efficiency codes pop up-always just before a smog check is needed. It's work and the codes usually stay away for a year or so. Those cats are near $7k for OEM.

 

Haha this is gold!

7k?! Wild stuff! I did actually try cataclean but it couldn’t resurrect the dead CAT. Many people swear by it though, I’m sure it has merit.

I was driving along this morning and a CEL popped up. P0101 (MAF out of range) Honestly I find this kind of funny because I’ve been data-logging during my commute specifically watching MAF g/s, and LTFT. As I’m cruising on the road I thought to myself, man g/s is pretty low… before I could finish the thought the CEL popped on. lol

P0420 (CAT) and P0101(MAF) have been intermittently popping up as pending but neither have actually confirmed for over 700 miles. First CEL in quite a while. Luckily my new CAT and mid pipe are coming in today.

The magnaflow cats are good quality for the price and since I’m getting the oe replacement/ direct fit option it will correct the 02 position as well. (Current setup is not at all how Toyota designed it)

Once installed I’ll confirm
-post cat temp sensor now higher than pre cat sensor
-monitor MAF g/s for changes
-monitor LTFT for changes.

Honestly if the cat is partially restricted all of this should correct. If not, it will be good to know the CAT is working and the sensor positions are back in the OE locations while I dig deeper for a vacuum leak, exhaust manifold leak, or a fuel pump issue.

 

Final data log before the CAT swap.

Downstream 02 pretty low. Kind of mirroring the upstream sensor as well. Classic failed cat.

Out with the old:
Used a little chain cutter from harbor freight. Worked like a charm to get a clean cut. (Much better than I could have with a sawzall)




Old aftermarket cat on the left, magnaflow “oem” grade on the right
(Note, swapped magnaflow’s hm grade to their oem grade since this car was originally sold in California so the onboard emissions monitors are extra sensitive)



Hit a little snag on install. Magnaflow is true 2.25” OD but the Toyota pipe is closer to 2.125”. Had to run to the parts store and get a different pipe adapter. Took some scrap bits of pipe and found a 2.25” OD to 2.25” ID adapter fit perfectly.


Used a ton of permatex copper exhaust sealant on the pipes just for extra insurance.

Torqued everything up and set the car back down.

Went to reconnect the battery and realized the “marine grade” terminals I had from oreillys were already starting to fail from tightening and loosening so much in the last few weeks… looked it up and I learned they use recycled led to make them… so I swapped those out for some zinc ones which are much stronger


Gonna let the car sit overnight to give that permatex time to set.

Ill do the same datalogging with the new magnaflow cat and report back with changes

 

I've been putting these on most everything lately.
https://www.batterycablesusa.com/battery-adapter-top-post-ordnance-military-style

 

Man the car is running great today. Feels like it picked up 20 horsepower.

Gonna keep doing some datalogging as I drive and see what else the car needs. I suspect a fuel pump will be next as @Rocko9999 previously hinted at. But for now I’ll let it ride. Gotta get the 4Runner prepped for Toyota Jamboree!

 

Not going to take the Corolla?

 

Hahaha no sir! Old Silver needs to stretch her legs!

 

Looks like a lot of fun!

 

Alright boys. Fuel pump next


Works fine at cruise^

Not so much under load:


Downstream 02 (O2S2) reporting the cat is working extremely well. But those fuel trims did not correct. I was worried about that… The ecu can’t even ask much more than 33% (ecu limit is around +/- 34% LTFT) so driving it hard means I’ll be running lean.

Anything over 15% throttle input could mean damaging the engine or the new cat. Simply put, the fuel pump can’t keep up with the airflow, and I see AFR creep up to 16-18 before my mechanical empathy forces me to back off the throttle…

Thinking back on it, this is why the spark plugs looked like they’d seen lean conditions. This was also a likely contributor to that aftermarket CAT’s short lifespan (8 months)… The root cause was never fixed

Fuel pump, lock ring and new seals on order. Gonna swap it once I get some downtime with the 4R prep

I’ll check fuel pressure to verify… but the data is very telling

 

Drove the 4R today in response to yesterday’s findings. Really don’t want to burn up that brand new CAT.

Fuel pressure gage coming in tomorrow to verify. But I’m fairly confident this thing needs a fuel pump, so I’ve moved forward with the order.

I’ll post photos of the fuel pressure test results soon

 

Is fuel filter separate or integrated? I think line/filter restriction is as likely as failing fuel pump.

 

Unfortunately it’s an in-tank filter, pump, and sending unit assembly.

Clogged fuel injectors are a possibility as well. I’ll know more once my fuel pressure gauge comes in!

(unfortunately it was delayed in shipping)

 

I like how methodical you are. Also, clearly, you are more patient than I am. I have been known to just change parts when they are cheap enough. While I know that a guess is not a solid plan, it worked often enough for me.

 

Thanks man! But I can totally understand that perspective as well.

I definitely felt like I was doing that at a certain point with the electrical system. Got really tired of testing the fuses on repeat and seeing different failures around the system. So I swapped every fuse. Then the ignition switch and starter relay was cheap from autozone so I swapped those out… I learned my lesson with that… since the duralast start relay shorted internally and fried the entire start circuit (and almost the new starter) New OEM is in now and works like a charm.

In hindsight I could have likely changed the starter and the intermittently failing NSS and left the fuses and relays alone. Instead, I got impatient, failed to diagnose an intermittently failing part, and made a lot more work for myself by throwing some cheap parts at it.

I won’t make that mistake with the fuel system. I figure the Denso/ Toyota parts lasted for 200,000+ miles so that’s what I should stick with. And I’ll verify the lack of fuel pressure before I install that pump assembly

 

When I bought my 2nd gen, I vowed only to replace parts with OEM or high quality name brand parts (translation = expensive parts, lol). I've been doing that and while more pricy, its been worth it. I once had a car where every part on it was cheap Amazon sh*t. Some of the parts didn't exactly fit properly... But I made them fit, hehehe (don't try that at home). I won't buy another auto part off amazon again. RockAuto, YotaShop, or Toyota for me.

 

Prepping the 4Runner for Toyota jamboree has been taking priority. But I finally got the fuel pump in (for a minute I thought it got lost in shipping!)

I had told myself I would test fuel pressure and replace all the old fuel hose and evap hose while the tank was depressurized… Well, I had about an hour after work today so I did this job the simplest way possible.

Pulled the efi fuses and cranked it a few times to kill fuel pressure


Rear seat off, removed access panel, and disconnected lines. Lines felt decently soft so I removed the lock ring


Pulled the old pump out and swapped the new one in


New o ring and lock ring went on with it.
Took 45 minutes

Then went on a test drive.

Idle and part throttle cruise:
LTFT stays in that 10-20% range. AFR reading nearly 14.7 the whole time; meaning fuel corrections are doing what they need to do.


And the real test, acceleration.

LTFT goes up to 20 percent, well under the ecu’s cutoff of 35%. MOST IMPORTANTLY AFR is staying at 14.7. Exactly where it needs to be. Awesome.


Idle is perfect. Starts are perfect. And the fuel pump can finally keep up with the new exhaust.

Carrie’s back to commuting boys. I’ll put some miles on her and monitor the data. Eventually I’ll pull spark plugs and read them again. For now, she’s golden