Banjo

Hi Graeme, I forgot to mention in my reply to your post, that the reason there is water or moisture in the exhaust system in the first place, is that water is a natural byproduct of the combustion process, that goes on inside the engine. Cheers Banjo

Hi Graeme, Nothing unusual about that in old cars in cold weather, like we are experiencing her in S.E. Qld. at present. I gather you are Buccan, near Chamber Fat etc. (I live at Greenbank) The last two mornings have been the coldest two mornings in the past 2 years. What happens I think, is that as the hot moist air inside the "exhaust system" cools overnight, after a run; that moisture condenses to water, & mixes & dissolves with the carbon in the exhaust system. Start it up on a cold morning; give it a couple of short burst of revs to clear the cobwebs, and instead of cobwebs, you get a black sootie water vapour. This is there all the time, but not in the initial volume you cop, when you first start your car, and blow it out. With the car warm after a run, let it idle, and briefly hold a clean white rag over the end of the exhaust pipe & you'll see what I mean. Sounds like you better get your girl to open the Rolladoor, before starting it up these mornings. Look on the good side; your girl could have backed the car into the garage, then you'd have a Gyprock wall speckled with black soot, which is not as easy to clean as a rolladoor ! P.S. Glad to see I'm not the only one to lay old carpet on the garage floor. Cheers Banjo.

Hi Marius, Just quickly checking your previous post on Rollaclub, I was reminded that a few years ago, you were contemplating reconditioning your engine, or maybe fitting another second had motor. Did you take either of those actions, or is your existing engine, still pretty much as it was back several years ago ? Cheers Banjo

Hi Marius, The symptoms you describe are pretty common, and there can be a lot of things that can cause this. Basically, you have to go through each area step by step, & ensure everything in each area is correct & working. The real problem, where it could be a fuel, or an electrical issue, or maybe both, is that a fault in one area, can create a symptom that appears to be caused by the other area. eg: a worn or erratic advance bob weights in the bowels of your distributor, could make the revs jump all over the place, but it could be interpreted as a inconsistent fuel delivery. There are some other areas outside the straight fuel & ignition issues that can cause erratic behaviour. There are mechanical components, that can cause any number of different symptoms, where the engine runs roughly. A good mechanic, faced with an problem engine performance, will systematically go through each area. eg: I've seen K motors with a stuffed timing chain tensioner, that ran reasonably at revs with load, but would not idle for the "love of money". Basic Tests you can do: Mechanical: 1. Remove all spark plugs & do a compression test, & see how close to each cylinders readings are to each other. This will determine whether rings & or valve seating are OK. 2. Remove rocker cover & ensure tappet settings are OK. 3. Check oil pressure with proper guage. Fuel: 1. Check fuel pump delivery & fuel tank breathing etc. 2. Completely dissemble carby & clean & reassemble, and adjust float level setting (very important). 3. Check the very fine filter in the inlet fuel line to the carby. (remove needle & unscrew brass seat fitting). 4. Check the accelerator pump action. 5. Check the action of the electric solenoid on the carby, which cuts out fuel flow immediately ignition is shut down. 6. Change Fit new fuel filter. (even a filter that was replaced recently, might have suffered a bad batch of fuel) 7. If you haven't paid attention to your fuel tank for a long time, then remove, drain & clean it. (Altezzaclub will endorse this suggestion) 8. Check all the little rubber hoses & valves etc. attached to the carby for pollution control. 9. Check & clean the PCV (positive crankcase ventilation) valve on the top of the rocker cover. 10. Fit new air filter. Electrical / Ignition: 1. Ensure alternator is working OK, and terminal voltage at battery is OK whilst running. 2. Check spark plugs or renew. 3. Check dizzy cap for HV break down. 4. Check H.T. leads for breakdown. (best done at night in the dark)5. Check points & settings or renew. 6. Check or replace condensor. 7. Dissemble dizzy, & check the advance bob weights & springs. 8. Check the vacuum advance unit as part of the dizzy. 9. Check starting resistor attached to the coil if fitted. 10. Disconnect anything non standard, connected to the ignition system, like tachos etc. So there is a few tips, and others might like to add some other pointers, I have omitted. These suggestions are random in the listing order; however, if you go through things systematically, the result will be you must find the issue, and will solve your issue. I hope that assists in solving your problem, & let us know what you find. Cheers Banjo

Was working on a fellow Rollaclub members KE20 at the weekend, with a windscreen wiper issue, where the wipers were tracking everywhere, except where they were suppose to go. What a bugga of a thing to work on, unless you are a midget, with everything hidden up in behind the dash cluster, unlike the later KE3X series, where the wiper motor & associated rods are all accessible from under the bonnet. Anyway the wiper pivot bushes were very dry & worn. The knurled metal pivot points onto which the wiper arms attach, were very corroded, to the point where there was almost no evidence of the fine splines on the tapered pivots. Question: Does anyone know if it is possible to get new KE20 wiper pivot assemblies ? Has anyone come across any out of the Thai or other SE Asian aftermarket area ? I'v a had a quick look on the net, and can't see anything first up. Is it possible to adapt pivots from a later or other make of car or model Rolla, that could do the job ? Glad to receive any suggestions, from anyone whose been through this painful exercise previously. Cheers Banjo

Wow Neil, Absolutely beautiful ! What I find. Where are all these granny spec. Rollas coming from ? I had one exactly the same, but it went to Rolla Heaven, after severe cancer in the rear upper quarters, which is always an issue, when the car is pillarless. I have a KE30 the same colour, but faded a little more than yours. Looking at your third pic of the missing pinstrip, it doesn't appear that the paintwork where the missing strip is, is any darker or better condition than the exposed general paintwork. I agree with Big G. Don't rip the stripe off. The stripe is tapered, so I'd get a pro to infill the missing bit, with some black strip cut to suit. I presume your Rolla is stock standard, & has a 4K-C engine in it ? Is it an auto or manual. I put a 5K in mine with a 5 speed KE70 gearbox, & it was the best touring / cruising Rolla I've owned. Very envious, as no doubt a few others on this forum will be. Rollas in that condition are getting harder & harder to find. Cheers Banjo

Hi Tim, Good you've lots of feedback ! Is your fuel gauge U/S, or very inaccurate ? Is that why you are zeroing in on the 7-8 volt regulator, on the back of the dash ? I think I posted something on here a short time back, when I replaced my regulator on a KE30. There were basically two types of regulator. Solid state & vibrating contacts with heated contact. Both horrible things ! Looking forward to the pics. What do you know of the history of this car ? Does it have relatively low klms ? It really is iconic looking, of the late 1970s with the white walls. I'll bet it is a head turner, when you are driving it around. Cheers Banjo

Hi Tim, Lovely little Rolla you have scored there, that looks like it has been well preserved. You haven't said where you are located. I've tried to zoom into your pic, but the resolution is too poor to work out whether it is LHD or RHD, what the number plate is, or what is written on the sign board in the background. Are you in Australia ? Lots of things can get changed on a car in nearly 38 years, but there are ways of telling, by carefully reading the plates attached to the rear engine firewall. If it was assembled & built in Australia, it will have a plate saying just that. The 4K-C engine was the most common around that period. There were Rollas built around that time that could accept either round or square headlights. I had a KE55 coupe with honeycomb grill & square headlights, but the attachment & mounting points were still there in the body for round headlights, although they were not shared by the square headlight mounting requirements. Tell us where you are located, & post some more pics, of interior & engine bay in particular, & we should be able to narrow it down. P.S. Does it appear that the car has ever been resprayed, or possibly had a front end panels fitted at some time, as a result of an accident or rust ? Has the body got any rust in it. Look forward to more info & pics. Cheers Banjo

OK, lets work backwards. My guess is that you have never had this engine turn over, as you said you had to buy a new starter motor, & since that time you have not been able to get the engine to crank. 1. Take out the 4 off spark plugs & see if you can turn the engine over by hand, with a spanner on the crankshaft pulley. 2. If it turns relatively easily, then squirt some engine oil down all four spark plug holes & turn it over by hand about 10 off revolutions. 3. Do not put the spark plugs back in. 4. Pull the single wire off the starter motor engaging solenoid, and replace it with a single wire long enough to reach the battery positive terminal. This is usually a spade terminal. 5. Make sure the spanner on the crankshaft pulley has been removed. Touch the wire to the battery positive terminal. If all good the starter should engage & spin, as there will be no compression with the spark plugs removed. 6. Squirt some more engine oil down the spark plug holes, & continue to spin the engine with the starter, until the engine spins very freely, as a result of the oil being spread on the cylinder walls. Now you know the starter spins the engine, you've got to find the starter relay (kick panel ?), & check that it has power to it, and energises when the ignition key is turned to start position. Once you got that far, put the plugs back in, & try starting it, as you indicated previously, that you had + 12Volts to the dizzy breaker points, when open. Good luck ! Cheers Banjo.

Hi Omar, This is like one of those serials on the TV, which goes on & on. I just want to jump to the episode where the car starts, & everyone is happy. OK, so the switch appears to have four (4) wires coming out of it. My guess is the two (2) individual wires will be for the reversing lights, & the connector socket will be for the start circuit. This should be pretty easy to test. If you short the two individual wires on the loom, where those switch wires plugged into, the reversing lights should come on, when the ignition is on. Likewise, if you short the corresponding two wires in the plug on the loom, you should be able to start the car ! Like Altezzaclub suggests; I'd be giving that switch a really good clean, & see what you find. You might find its just full of road crud, and when it is all cleaned up inside, it might just work, so you don't have to go looking for a replacement one. Good luck ! Cheers Banjo

Hi Omar, My guess is, you've probably got a 2T-C 1.6L engine in your car, with a 4 speed auto. I tried to find a 4 speed auto gearbox pic on the net that might show this elusive neutral switch, but couldn't find one. Does the engine under your bonnet, look a bit like this ? Cheers Banjo

Hi Omar, Glad you've found it. Is it the circled switch, lurking back there in the dark, with what looks like 2 wires on it. You have obviously got a complete different engine & auto box, in your KE55 USA, to what we have here in Australia. Can you please take a photo under the bonnet, of the engine, so we can identify it. Lets know how you go. I won't be surprised if you find the switch is U/S. That s not a good place to have an electrical component, with all the under floor rubbish all over it. Cheers Banjo

Hi Jeremy, I can believe you would break a key board in half, when you are angry. Just look what your Avatar indicates you did to your Rolla, when you couldn't get the bonnet open one day ! "In computing, an avatar is the graphical representation of the user or the user's alter ego or character. An icon or figure representing a particular person in a video game, or an Internet forum. " Cheers Banjo

I went looking for an auto shifter I knew I had in the shed somewhere, that I removed from my KE30 when I did a manual changeover. Altezzaclub's wiring diagram is how all auto Corollas were wired, with maybe small variations, or maybe different coloured wires. I can't imagine that Toyota produced some autos with the neutral lock-out switch not incorporated into the auto shifter. Your photos don't show the area under the plastic ware, where the switch is located. You can clearly see the switch in the pictures below. This switch is a combination switch. It does two functions. 1. It has a N.O switch that only closes when the shifter is in neutral. This allows the starter relay to energise, only when in neutral. This is as per Altezzaclubs diagram above. 2. The second function of the combo switch is a N.O. switch which only closes when in reverse. This turns the reversing lights on. I just buzzed these out with the shifter I have here. So there are a total of 6 wires, coming out of the auto shifter. 4 off those are in a plug, and the other two are single wires. The plug contains the wires for the reversing & Neutral lockout switching. Plug: Red wire with White stripe & Red wire with Blue stripe are the reversing switch. Black Wire & Black Wire with White Stripe are the neutral lock-out switch. The two loose wires . . . . White wire with Black Stripe, & Red wire with Black Stripe are the illumination light, for the auto console, as Altezzaclub pointed out above. From the photo, you can see that the plug lead is only 9 - 10 cm long, so the matching socket must be close somewhere behind the console. I know that's where I found mine, and just added a shorting link between the Black & Black with White stripe socket terminals. P.S. From memory, when I drove a few of these olde auto Corollas, the position of the auto shifter in neutral was quite critical, and you had to jiggle it a bit sometimes to get it to allow the starter circuit to work. While holding the key in the hard clockwise start position, jiggle the auto shifter that is in neutral & see if that has any effect. Trust this assists Cheers Banjo

Thanks Mal ! Just beautiful. Be sure to put some pics up here, when it has all gone back together. Strangely, I was following a current model Corolla Hatch this morning, that had a colour that I haven't seen around, on a lot on Toyotas, that was reminiscent of those colours of yesterday. I looked it up on the web, & found it is not available on all models. In the Corolla range, it only appears to be available on the Hatch. It is called "Citrus". I have to spray my KE30 2 door shortly, & am torn between whether to stick with the original colour (my wife calls it "baby pooh"), or one of the newer colours, that are similar, but more up to date. There is even a Ford yellowy gold colour that looks very good, that would go over the original colour pretty well. However, I think I'm a bit like you, & would like to keep it olde skool look. I've sourced the original colour code, so getting the original colour matched is not an issue. Thanks for the picture of your RA65 Celica rally car. My wife & I had an RA40 years ago, and travelled far & wide interstate in it. It was a great travelling car; loved cruising, and you could always lay the back seat forward & sleep stretched out in the back. My wife always referred to it as "SillyCar". It was anything but, and was very reliable & had a lovely gearbox. Cheers Banjo

Hi Mal, Absolutely beautiful ! What a find. I started with an RA40 Celica, a KE35 Coupe years ago, then a KE55 Coupe, & now the "getting rarer" KE30 2 door sedan. However, my favourite would be a TE27; but if not, I'd settle for a Ke20 or KE25 like yours. They still have one of the best appearances of all the Rollas, to my mind, when they are lowered slightly, with widies & flares. The agressive grills, of which there were several types, also give them that "mean", but attractive extremely ageless look. Some of those USA equivalents, like the SRs are awesome. I think I'll drool over your photos today. So what have you got in mind for the "serious" upgrade, other than the respray ? Cheers Banjo

Hi Mal, I'm really sorry I didn't retain those clips. I will keep my eyes open for some more. I'm assuming all the KE Rollas used the same head lining bar clips. How many are you needing for the KE20 ? I think the KE55 Coupe, that I "dissembled" at the weekend, had four (4) on each side. I just went out in the yard, where I had been working, & found a broken one in the dirt. At worst, you could probably make some up out of steel. The steel rod bars are 5.1mm in dia. A piece of steel tube to suit could be cut into 20mm lengths, and then tack welded to a thick steel nail , 5mm in dia., cut into 18mm sections. Should work OK. Nice paint job ! Is that an original Toyota colour or something you just liked ? Very much in keeping with popular colours of that period your KE20 was manufactured. Keep the pictures coming, as you progress with putting it all back together. Love complete rebuilds ! They involve every aspect of the car. Cheers Banjo

Hi Omar, Welcome aboard ! In which country are you located ? I note your car is LH drive. The problem will be quite simple, as there is no power to the ignition coil & also no power to engage the starter. The problem will be either the ignition fuse, the ignition barrel itself, one of the electrical plugs & sockets at the base of the steering column, or possibly the transmission switch in the centre console, that only lets you start the car, when it is in neutral. A test lamp should be able to determine the issue quickly. I'm putting my money on the transmission switch. I would temporary run a wire from the battery positive, to the +ve terminal on the coil, and then touch a +ve voltage to the starter circuit as you have described, & see if the car starts. Off course, all other things like fuel in the carby, fuel in the tank, new oil in the sump, & water in the cooling system, must be right first. Take off the air filter & squirt some "Sure/Quick Start" pressure can stuff, down the carby throat before trying to start it. 22 years is a long time to sit idle, & lots of things will have become stiff & stuck. A better idea, would be to remove all spark plugs, squirt some engine oil down the cylinders, & turn the engine over with the starter a few times to loosen things up. At the same time, disconnect the fuel line into the carby, & check that fuel is being delivered whilst turning the engine over. This will prove the fuel pump is working & that there is fuel in the tank & lines. Also change the fuel filter prior to this, as the paper filter would have broken down & blocked. I actually started a 5K engine at the weekend, that had been sitting idle out-doors for 12 years. It took 30 minutes to do the above suggestions, & it started first kick. I couldn't believe it. If it starts, but runs very rough, or won't idle, I would suspect the carby. Either remove & thoroughly clean & reassemble, or maybe you could get away with just removing the top, & giving it a real good spray of a carby & throttle cleaner. Let us know how you go. You certainly have a lovely little Rolla there. How many klms/miles, does it show on the odometer/speedo ? Cheers Banjo

Hi Mal, Bugga ! I stripped my donor Rolla at the weekend, including removing the headlining & bars. If I'd known you were after the little plastic clips, I would have delicately removed them, as they are very brittle when 40 years old. Unfortunately I yanked the bars out & broke them all. Cheers Banjo

No Dave, a comment like that would be "over the top".

Hi Marius, Good one ! Do strange strange things happen in Norway ? Hah ! Hah ! Cheers Banjo

Anyone who is interested in learning about ignition advance in our K series engines, and its importance & possible implications, cannot read a better short write up than this one by Julian Edgar on the AutoSpeed website. It is so crammed full of general & specific information, obvious written out of experience, rather than theory. I've read the article several times, & gained more insight with each read. http://www.autospeed.com/cms/article.html?&title=Getting-the-Ignition-Timing-Right&A=109132 I just love the photo in the article showing an engine on a test bed/engine dyno, with the advance obviously very retarded, such that the combustion is taking place in the exhaust manifold/header, with it literally "glowing". One of the many indicators of a well tuned engine at maximum power output, according to this article, is the lowest exhaust temperature possible. Has inspired me to put a couple more temperature sensors on my air intake & exhaust system, & just see what is going on in my engine, under different environmental & driving conditions. Cheers Banjo

Hi Marius, If your speedo "odometer" is still showing the correct number of kilometers the car has travelled, but the speedo itself is showing an increased speed, then the issue is within the speedo itself. Usually not something you can do to resolve this, although very close inspection of the fine spring & magnet that allow the needle to turn, may disclose/indicate something. Best see if you can find another speedo. Cheers Banjo

Hi Ethan, My vernier says 13.8 mm at that point you have circled. The shaft actually tapers slightly (gets thicker) as it goes towards the swivel ball thing. So generally, that area of the shaft is between 13 - 14mm in dia. Trust this assists. Cheers Banjo

Here is a good read, regarding your concerns about excess retarded ignition timing causing overheating. https://www.smokstak.com/forum/showthread.php?t=70385 There was someone on here recently that had the timing way out, and had combustion happening in the exhaust manifold, such that the whole manifold was glowing pink. Frightening sight if you lifted the bonnet at night. Cheers Banjo