valet nightmare
 

Hello all.

I just bought a 1998 4 cylinder Camry from a friend. Replaced the battery. No spark, but gas flows. I assumed valet switch issue, no keyfob for this car exists to his or my knowledge. He said his wife had this issue with the valet switch so it was removed or bypassed. I was upside down in the drivers seat with various panels removed (not easy at my size) and I did not see any valet switch. I saw a round lid that pops open with a grid of codes, I assume that is for doing electrical testing of some sort. No valet switch was found.

Do any of you have a wiring diagram for this circuit? Do any of you know if I can go to a junk yard & pull these things from a clunker camry & plug them in to make them work?

My fear is having to have it towed to an electrical specialist (no money for that) and I need it to start. Any solid advice would be greatly appreciated!

Did the engine every run in your presence before the battery change?

Any blinking red lights on the dash?

Does the car have a Toyota or aftermarket alarm?

In your hunt for the switch did you see anything under the dash that appeared an aftermarket box or a box stating Toyota RS3200 or something to this affect. Also look behind passenger side kick panel.

In your hunt did you find any box under the dash having any toggle switch or push button? Look around the steering column area under dash.

Does the key have a chip inside or it it just a plain key?

Valet key allows engine to start but does not allow access to other locked areas.

If the car has a Toyota immobilizer alarm it is possible changing the battery triggered the alarm system which disabled the ign but there should be a blinking dash light and a chipped key.

Another type of Toyota alarm has a reset toggle switch under dash. If you find this turn ign key to ON and toggle switch.

Try locking all the doors, then opening the drivers door with the key.

It was parked for a season, but ran fine before that. No chip in the key. The friend I bought it from said they had the valet system removed due to this sort of issue. Where the switch should be under the dash, there is an empty socket & some modified wires. Again, no toggle switch or red button, no after market alarm. No keyfob either. It cranks over fine, and I can smell gas after a while, but there is simply no spark.

The Toyota theft unit, if installed, is behind the glove box. Aftermarket units are typically under the dash near steering column having ready access to push the button or toggle switch.

Check for +12V at ign coil ign ON, Black/Red wires. Could be lack of spark for reasons other then a security system.