P0012 code

I have a 2015 4.0 liter Tacoma. Last month the CEL came on for two days and then turned off.
Same thing happened in July. Dealer checked oil control valve and changed oil. Was fine until last month when it did the same thing. Now they want to change the cam gear actuator. Not thrilled at having a flat rate technician tearing into my new engine. I know that tech will have to hurry the job. I was a flat rate tech for 32 years at one Buick and two Chevrolet dealers.
I got out four years ago. Disappointed at having trouble this soon.

 

Why not? They all use the Time Labor Manuals...

You could always take it to another independent shop and have them take their time on a by the hour charge...

Are you saying that you did shitty work for 32 years or what?
I'm confused.

 

No. I am saying that the labor times keep being reduced and that encourages shitty work. Car dealers are only interested in speed not quality. More billable hours. I have seen plenty of hack mechanics. And plenty of good ones too. The good ones tend to turn less billable hours because they want to fix it right. Unless you have been or are a flat rate tech you won't understand.

 

What I am saying is that there are good and bad in every field. Flat Rate Tech or not... I was pointing out that you more or less branded all dealer techs as wanting to get more hours over doing the job right...

I don't think you were a crappy tech. I was only making a point.

 

It's a 2015 .. let them fix it. If it breaks again, let them fix it again.

 

Thanks Jimmy. I did my best to be as professional as possible. Maybe not all dealers are the same. However I only hear complaints from the techs I know. Unfortunately it the ones that can turn the most billable hours that make the money. The "Fix it right the first time" ones generally do not from what I have seen.
Plus Toyota won't cover my rental car while my truck is in for a warranty repair. I never saw that problem while working at the GM dealers. My truck has been running great so far. So I think I will cancel my appointment and see how it runs. I have a "free" oil change coming up next month so it's better to wait.

 

^ This

 

I have got the P0012 code recently almost every driving time. I thought the reason for the P0012 code would be the Oil Control Valve or it´s filter, but the filter was perfectly clean and the valve works well and ohms are within specs. Checked the timing too, it was ok, not jumped and the chain was tight. Now with an other ECU it's same thing. So, anything else left than the VVT-i actuator? But it's completely mechanical unit and I don't understand what would be wrong there. I have changed the oil (5W-30 fully synthetic) and the filter (Toyota OEM) regularly, the engine looks clean inside when I took the valve covers off. About 125k in the odo.

And the main question, how it can know that the camshaft timing is over retarded? There is no sensor for the camshafts if I have understood right.

 

Sorry, I know I'm late chiming in. I had mine come on at 76k and couldn't figure out what it was. It showed code P0012. It turned out to be from too much moisture in the oil. As soon as I changed the oil, all dash lights shut off.

 

I would be nervous about ripping into the chains/front of the motor without REPLACING the vvt solenoid (little valve with the screens) first and driving it for a week or two. The solenoids are relatively cheap and very easy to slip in and out. The dealer said they "checked" them.. hmmm..

The timing actuator (The adjustable gear are front of the camshaft) is a pretty serious job and it is expensive..

Edit.. sorry I missed the part about the dealer doing it under warranty. I wonder if they swapped the solenoids side to side and the problem did not follow the solenoid to the other bank.. they could be right..

If you're nervous, get some solenoids and out them in yourself. Make sure the oil level/condition is good, clear codes and see what happens. I would be skeptical of a actuator issue on such a new truck. Did you accidentally let the oil level run low?

 

Did you ever figure out what was causing this on your FJ, Finn?

I have a 6spd 07 FJ as well and its throwing the same code.

 

P0012 is likely the oil control valve (OCV) not closing fully. It's an easy removal and inspection, here's a link I saved when I was troubleshooting my error code last year:

https://www.fjcruiserforums.com/forums/problems-dealer-service/488514-p0012-code.html

 

I have the same code. 05 Tacoma 4.0 .bought the ocv valve. This came about after the mechanic did the head gasket job. Such a clusterfuck .

 

Did they waaaay over use FIPG when doing head gasket replacement? Like is there alot bulging out from Timing cover? If so chances are it's as bad on the inside. FIPG might be mucking up everything.

 

Move the ocv to the other bank and see if the code follows

 

It doesn't look bulged. But I did change the oil on it right after . Code came back .bought the sensor. Going to install this weekend. I believe it's the vvt soleinoid?

 

Isn't it a different part #? On bank 2?

 

morelia, does it idle kinda rough?

 

Not at all .IdkId perfect. And p0012 is the only code

 

It's actually an easy gear to change, the timing cover comes off without too much fight.

I typically start with the OCV and a hot oil change first, it's really hard to test and sometimes the fault only happens at specific times.

I understand your concern about the tech not taking their time, but it's pretty routine to do a VVT controller for us.