TOPIC: Newbie - 2AR-FE

Hi,
i have been following Ron's video for quite some time. I tried to contacted him to get the groove done but its been a month and still no reply. So i decided to do it on my own and finally did it. I hope its done right. Going to put it on my 2011 scion tc, a 20 mpg gas guzzler. please help me out guys i am totally new and have no guidance accept for videos. I am attaching some pics of the groove that i did. Let me know if its done right.

needs to be closer to the butterfly shaft about a fourth inch each side. did you card it before cutting? the groove looks ok other than that

You will not believe it that i did this job with jewelery cutting dremel bits (cost me $12) and took me over 3 hours to get the close to valve. Thank you for reply. I will test this as is and on my next job i will try to be even more closer to the valve. I Really need to get professional tools. If you can suggest the Dremel i will be thankful. I am also going to get those carbide burr reverse umbrella bits order so i can do it more easily and quickly.

Hi tracy,
I got the bit, thank you.
Wanted to update on my progress on my car.
2011 scion tc 2.5 4 cylinder 28000 miles. My cars EPA 24city 30 highway. I was getting 21 city & 27 highway.
Full tank 14.5. Before modifications 320 miles on full tank. Now over 400 miles.
After the groove, mpg remedy, increased tire pressure & new air filter i am getting 29 city and 36 highway.
I now want to plug the pcv lines but have no clue how to do it.
Gadgetmen, i need help locating the pcv lines and how to cap them. Will be waiting for reply. You can also text me at 7134018279.
I will also post some pics of my engine shortly.

Doin' good there, Shahan!
punching buttons on my calculator--at these MPG's you would have 420 miles city and 522 miles range total. That's a hefty gain! . If you want to-look for a stretch of hiway where you can go as straight/level in low traffic and little or no wind, for at least 50 miles round trip. Fill the tank at start, then get on the road try to drive as steady as possible use cruise cont. if avail. Go in as light of traffic as you can to avoid lane changes or speed changes. Called an Orange Test. I do this I go 25 miles on a route I have, turn back to start at a certain gas station pump. I refill w/ exactly 50 miles on trip odo, fill just like at start. Then compute MPG's. Longer route is OK if possible, but 50 miles min. is best. This gives an idea of what your Car itself is capable of- not "Real-world"- but just to set a benchmark. You might be amazed at results...

IF you can locate a diagram of the engine's PCV/ crankcase breather system, or just take pics of what/ where you might think components are- then we can help out. Remember w/ the PCV you aren't just capping it off- you are redirecting PCV crankcase gas flow to before the TB. The usual easyiest way is to locate then cap off the manifold vac. source that sucks in PCV gas. Then just tee the open end of PCV hose/tube- the end just removed from manifold vac.- to the hose that lets in filtered fresh makeup air to the crankcase. The breather makeup air tube will connect to the main air inlet duct or the air filt. box.

This helps maintain good manifold vac. and still lets the crankcase vent/breathe. We aren't defeating the PCV- only redirecting it to before the throttle body intake air stream. An alternate way is to just directly connect the hose fron PCV, directly to the main air inlet duct. Either way is fine.

Congrats on a great start, Shahan!

Tracy G

i still cant find the pcv line. Let me know if you want more pictures.

look at the intake manifold close if it has one it has to get vacuum

Hi Shahan, yes more pics please, need complete as possible views of intake manifold. Having difficulty matching the diagram w/ your pic of area right behind alternator. This one reminds me of Ford Focus late model 4-cyl engine w/ the air-oil separator on side of block under intake manifold. Confusing, as pic of yours it looks like exhaust manifold heat shielding around exh. manifold, but in diagramn it's clearly intake man. ports showm w/ intake man. removed, can see injector rail above open ports. On yours, are intake and exhaust manifolds on opposite sides of engine? Your 3rd pic is obviously the crankcase breather hose that PCV hose/tube would be tee'd into. You labeled that metal pipe as blow off gas line, does it have a Turbo?

Tracy G

The engine in my car is 2ar-fe, also used in following cars. I hope this helps.
Toyota RAV4 (ASA33/38), 181 PS (133 kW; 179 hp)@6000, 233 N·m (172 lbf·ft)@4000
Toyota Camry ASV40 (Base & LE), 171 PS (126 kW; 169 hp)@6000, 226 N·m (167 lbf·ft)@4100
Toyota Camry ASV40 (SE), 181 PS (133 kW; 179 hp)@6000, 232 N·m (171 lbf·ft)@4100
Scion tC (AGT20), 180 hp (130 kW), 173 lb·ft (235 N·m)
I am in process of making a video so it is easier for us to locate it.
By the way my neighbor mechanic told me (pcv valve) its on the fire wall side only accessable by lifting car.
I am planning to get this done in the morning and will be going to plumbing sotre. Can anyone suggest what parts would i need to complete the process.

Hm.. Chilton's says to remove the intake manifold to remove the PCV Valve.

Shahan you don't/shouldn't need to deal with the PCV Valve itself--what's needed is to find the PCV valve, then trace the route of the hose or tube connected to it, to where it reaches the intake manifold. That will be the "manifold vacuum source". Remove the hose from that vac. source, then securely cap the vac. source off, typically some type of vacuum cap will do. now take the open hose or tube and redirect /extend it as needed to tee into the makeup air breather hose you clearly showed in the pic. Usually I just cut this hose, find a Tee fitting at the auto parts store to fit the PCV hose to the breather hose. Inspect for good connections, and you're done. Sometimes ingenuity is needed to get this done. Sometimes automakers get creative in how they design the PCV system so we have to be the same.
To verify you've found the PCV man. vac. source, try idling the engine,w/ the hose or tube off, you will know right away if it's a man. vac. source!

Places I go to find needed tees', hose joiners, fittings, extra hose, clamps, whatever- are auto parts stores, big box hardware stores, NAPA parts stores, etc. I've found parts in the Irrigation section of home depot before. Fuel, vacuum or heater hoses in various sizes at auto parts stores. Today's cars often use hard plastic tubing instead of rubber hose, but these can be cut, tee'd into or extended w/ hose anyway. Avoid thin vinyl hoses, won't hold up. The Help! parts rack at auto parts stores. If you don't see what you want just ask, many parts stores carry other stuff in the back too. Metal or well- made plastic parts are typical, just match to the sizes/ I.D.'s needed. For larger size vacuum caps look for heater bypass caps. Some vacuum caps today are a low quality rubber that will crack in months- so I've found silicone caps on ebay too, they last very long.

Tracy G

Shahan, I know this is an old post and you may not have this car anymore, but I just bought a 2014 Scion TC which has the same engine (2.5 2AR-FE). Were you ever able to modify the PCV successfully on this engine?

I did it the second day I had the car. In a couple of the youtube videos I've watched about PCV valve replacement on this engine (which I watched merely to find the PCV location) this stupid valve is extraordinarily difficult to access that I almost wonder if Toyota found out about people like us capping off the PCV vacuum and spoiling their profitable planned obsolescence. Judging by Toyota's later models that need layers of bumper cover and etc removed just to access the oil drain plug inevitably increasing the cost of an oil change, it seems like Toyota is moving more and more away from the DIY'er consumer. Anyway...

For anyone else that has the 2AR-FE engine and wants to modify their PCV, you do not need to remove the intake manifold. You do not need to jack up the car and remove the passenger wheel to access it like a few YouTube videos show for replacing the PCV valve. Although I did do this originally to locate and follow the PCV valve hose to the vacuum port on the intake-manifold, it's not necessary.

If facing the front of vehicle with hood opened it's going to be on the passenger side at the back of the engine. You're not going to be able to see the port too well, but it's within reach and you can feel the PCV hose connected to the port sticking out of the manifold. I believe you'll see/feel a wider hose near this one that does not have the thin wire clamp that the pcv hose has. You can also recognize the hose by 90 degree angle it makes as you can see in the diagram posted previously.

Once again, you won't be able to see it very well if at all. Just use your hands, disconnect the hose and then put a vacuum cap over the same port you pulled the hose from. I believe the vacuum cap I used was for a 3/8'' but you'll know by feel and you'll be able to see the hose once you disconnect it. That's it. You're done. I suggest starting it up once to make sure you did not pull the wrong hose and it sounds okay. One of the first things I usually notice after capping the PCV is a quicker engine startup.

I have not bothered to make a second vent from the PCV valve/hose. It's optional. You also do not have to worry about crankcase vapors/gases being expelled from the PCV valve/hose left as it is because there's no longer that strong engine vacuum necessary to pull open the PCV valve. If you wanted to make it a vent, you'd need to first hollow-out the PCV valve with a drill because the weaker vacuum of the upper intake [which would become the new vacuum source] is too weak open the check-valve mechanism inside the PCV valve. I've done it without first hollowing out the valve before when I didn't know what I was doing and all it did was clog the valve shut.