Grantch522

Bought it yesterday. Used to have an oil leak a gasket was changed is what I am told. Had some white smoke coming from the engine but I didn't think too much of it. Drove it that day and it was fine. Nice and fast.
Next morning not so much.
CEL came on and also traction turned off and won't turn on. Smoked still and now when put into drive or reverse it idles really really shaky. I've checked oil and its fine. Also Car accelerates really really slowly. Only has 124k on it. When put into neutral idling calms down gets really rough at low rpms. I am learned about cars, but don't have too much knowledge as of right now.
I took it to the dealer and they will check it out and fix it for free but I still want to check out what you guys say versuse what he says the problem is.

OceanView

What CEL codes came out?
Do you have VVT on this engine?

808mcv20l

I thought all 99-01 had VVTI.

Anywho, it really depends on what codes come back.

The problem can be a number of issues.

EGR problems, Ignition coils, Oil control valves, O2 sensors, knock sensors, etc...

White smoke...
Check your radiator cap (NOT when it's hot) Is there oil/coolant mixed in there? If not your head gasket is likely ok.

I had white smoke coming from the engine bay on my 99 Camry, the issue was a leaky Power steering pressure hose, it leaks enough to drip on the rear exhaust manifold and get burned up which causes the white smoke.

But yeah performance problems usually go back to the basics:
Air
Fuel
Spark

speedkar9

Start with cleaning the throttle body and idle air control valve. Then check for vacuum leaks.

tomf

First read your error codes with a OBDII reader. Sounds like it is an oil control valve (OCV) but you need to read the codes. The codes will point you in the right direction. Don't know about the smoke, though.

I think if you reset the codes your car will run fine until it warms up or until the next time you drive it. Some error codes need two cycles to set the error codes. Others, like an O2 sensor, requires the sensor to be heated (usually about 5 minutes to warm up), before the ECU, a computer, starts using the data. So it will run fine for 5 minutes. Then the check engine light will come on.

If you don't have an OBDII reader, some auto parts stores will read the codes for free.

As for the slow acceleration, it is possible the engine is in safe mode. If the error is severe (like misfires and knocking), the engine goes into safe mode to prevent damage to the engine. If the check engine light is flashing, do not drive the car. A flashing check engine light indicates a problem exists that could damage the engine.