Distributor O-ring, 1995 4cyl 140k

Thanks for suggesting the distributor O-ring as the source of my oil
leak...Right On. The seal was hard as a rock, brittle and worn. Oil
dripping everywhere. Was not too difficult a job, and removing the air
intake/filter assembly helped give room to get that bottom distributor
bolt. I did the cap and rotor at the same time: fair amount of carbon
buildup/corrosion on both. Looks like I should have done all this around
100-120k miles.

When shooting the ignition timing I found it diffult to really line up the
marks to the 10 degrees BTDC recommended on the VECI label, but it looked
close, so I left it. I've heard others discuss "advancing the timing" --
what does this do, and how is it done?

VC gasket/PCV is next, then timing belt - anyone have advice for when to
replace the water pump, or how to check it?

On Sat, 06 Nov 2004 14:09:28 -0500, "camry-keeper"
<pwichert.DeleteThis@nospam.hotmail.com> wrote:

 >
 >When shooting the ignition timing I found it diffult to really line up the
 >marks to the 10 degrees BTDC recommended on the VECI label, but it looked
 >close, so I left it. I've heard others discuss "advancing the timing" --
 >what does this do, and how is it done?

"Advancing the timing" means to have the spark sooner than the
standard setting. You car for example will mean 12 degrees BTDC
instead of 10 degrees. I don't suggest it as it will increase the
chances of your car to knock (or ping). This will then require a
higher octane fuel. The only advantage is that you have a slight
power increase.

 >VC gasket/PCV is next, then timing belt - anyone have advice for when to
 >replace the water pump, or how to check it?

When to replace the water pump? Depends. If you have an internal
water pump, replace it when you replace your timing belt. Most
Toyota's have an external one so they would only need replacing when
water starts to leak from it. The leaking water is the sign that the
water pump is bad.<!-- ~MESSAGE_AFTER~ -->