2012 Camry P0456

Ahhhh... the dreaded evap system DTC P0456.... don't you just love those evaporative emission system codes? They don't affect the performance of the car, but they turn the check engine light on anyway, and they can be highly annoying. I haven't seen many problems with the 2012 Camrys at all since they were introduced, and today I got the first I've seen with an evaporative emission system very small leak code P0456. Of course the first place I checked was the gas cap, and to be honest, its hard to tell if these things are locked down correctly, even when they were delivered from the factory. Toyota, for one reason or another, has changed gas cap designs. Now, instead of mulitple audible clicks when locking down a gas cap by turning it clockwise, the cap only makes one click to indicate that it's tight. Well, even when these caps are working correctly, its hard to tell if they are tight enough because of the 'one click' type action. First, I just cleared the code and performed an evap self test with a scanner and re-tightned the gas cap. The code returned, so I knew the cap wasn't loose but I still suspected that there was something wrong with it. So, before I proceeded to more complex evaporative emsission system diagnostics, I put a new gas cap on the car as a hunch and performed another evap self test. This time the evap system self test passed, and I knew for sure that the old gas cap was bad. Unfortunately, it appears that diagnosing these newer gas caps is going to be a bit tougher than the old ones. The older style gas caps were pretty easy to diagnose most times: they either locked down or they didn't. I wish I could say that I had a more scientific method to diagnosing this problem, but sometimes all you have to fall back on is experience and an educated conclusion as to what the problem is, and then replace the part based on that conclusion. If you don't have a scanner to perform an evap self test, a code reader should be able to clear the code for you once you replace the gas cap. The car's ECU will automatically perform another evap system self test within a couple drive cylces. If the check engine light doesn't come back on within a few drive cycles, you'll know that you fixed the problem.

The absolute worst cabin filter I've ever seen

A while back I made a post about how replacing cabin filters is good maintenance practice. Here's a pic showing why. This filter was so clogged, it would not allow airflow to pass from the blower motor housing. The blower motor just began working against itself until it just stopped working altogether. I had no idea this filter was so bad when I replaced the blower motor on a 2010 Tundra, I just knew that the truck smelled bad overall... When I replaced the blower motor, I noticed there was no airflow coming out the A/C vents, and that's when I checked and found this beauty of a cabin filter. Once I replaced the cabin filter, air flowed freely throughout the truck's HVAC system and all was well. Not only was this filter impeding HVAC air flow, it was definitely a health hazard. No one should have to breathe air coming out of an HVAC system filtered by something like this.

One Quick Tip When Replacing The Water Pump on Rav4 with 2AZ-FE Engine

I don't have a picture accompanying this quick tip, but for any do it yourselfer out there who is replacing the water pump on a Rav4 with a 2AZ-FE four cylinder engine, I have a tip that should save you time and aggravation. Just about anyone with a 2AZ-FE engine seems to have to replace their water pump at one time or another, so this might come in handy... Before you attempt to loosen then engine drive belt by pulling the belt tensioner clockwise, remove the passenger side motor mount and the bracket that it bolts into first. Without removing these items, it is nearly impossible to access the belt tensioner, even with fancy professional serpentine belt tensioner tools. (The service manual omits this step, as it's just something I had to figure out for myself. The reason that this step is omitted is because it is possible to disengage the belt tensioner without removing the bracket and motor mount, but you'll probably end up with some busted knuckles and a bar of soap in your mouth if your mother is around. Just because it is possible, doesn't mean that it should be done if there's an easier way to do it:-) If you remove the motor mount and the bracket it bolts into, the serpentine belt tensioner is easily accessible with a long 3/8" ratchet and 19mm or 3/4" socket. Once you have the belt removed, all you will need to do is remove the alternator and then the water pump is very easily accessible for removal. If I run across one of these Rav's in the near future, I'll add a pic to this article so you can see what I'm talking about.