Toyota Repair: toyota camry 94 v6, toyota camry, battery cables

Question
hi, im having some trouble with my car. few days ago i noticed my car starting to knock it felt like the gas would just give out and come right back. at first when the knock would occur the car would still drive but now when i start it, it idles for a min then dies. after it dies it will not start for some time. so i went to a friends house to try and get some help. we ended up just cleaning the fuel filter the best we can due to my current budget. we poured gas in it, shook it, taped it a little then poured it out the color was a choclate color pretty nasty. we did that several times. when we put it back in the car it ran fine for a day but then the knock + car dieing occured again. so then we thought maybe the battery cables needed to be replaced so we put new cables on. the old positive cable was so rusty and looked burnt where it connects to the motor area. that still didnt fix the problem. so to make sure the fuel filter was pumping gas through we took the bolt off the top and tried to start it to see if gas was pumping, the gas was pumping. this is where im lost we are not sure wut else to do. my friend told me to get a diagnosis, he said maybe its an electrical problem something to do with the coils maybe. but in order to get a diagnosis the check engine light has to be on??? its not in my car. if u have any insight on other things i could check or change please help me. thank you for ur time.

Answer
It sounds like the fuel filter is clogged and needs to be replaced as long as the fuel coming from the tank is clean, try replacing the fuel filter, they are available at a reasonable cost from most autoparts stores, the check engine light will not turn on for fuel problems on this model.