'94 Camry misses during acceleration in 1st gear

[simplyjoel]

My '94 Camry with 167,000 miles recently developed a radiator leak and overheated. I replaced the radiator, but ever since then, the car will begin to overheat if i'm driving less than 40mph. If i'm over 40, everything is fine. I believe this is because the cooling fans aren't kicking on. The fans worked before, but haven't worked since. Any suggestions? Also, when i take off after a cold start, when i try to accelerate the engine misses, and accelerates slowly. Once i'm past 1st or 2nd gear, everything works great. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

[RIP]

Do the fans come on when you turn on the A/C? Try jumpering the fans to the battery to make sure the fans themselves work. Check the temp sensor connection.

[jdmccright]

Unplug the connector from the coolant temp switch at the bottom of the radiator. This should cause the fans to come on. If not, then there is a problem with the fans or the wiring to them...or a blown fuse.

As for the slow acceleration, I'd first remove the distributor cap and clean the contacts inside it along with the metal rotor tip. If it's been a long time (or never), there will be a fairly thick crust of oxide buildup. Scrape it off & get it shiny again with a knife or scotchbrite pad. The nub in the middle isn't made of metal...it's made from graphite. Don't use a knife on it or it'll break. Just use a scothbrite pad to buff it. Also buff the top of the rotor where that nub contacts. Finally, after all this, recheck the timing to see if this needs to be adjusted.

[jdmccright]

I must add that the engine should be off when you unplug the fan temp switch. Then turn the key to on...they should come on then. If not, check the connections...you might have missed one, or the fan fuse.