3.4L 2WD 4R
190k miles

My parents offloaded their backup vehicle to me after deciding they don't need it anymore, now i'm trying to get it running after an overheating issue.

SHORT STORY
truck won't turn over, no clicks. New battery installed, but Heater & Starter relays are clicking away when the battery is hooked up. Also the horn fires off repeatedly. I disconnect the horn fuse for sanity's sake and try starting the truck and i get nothing. All lights, accessories, pwr windows work fine.

LONG STORY
Dad installed a new upper radiator hose, but didn't trim it, so the fan sliced away at it until the coolant was all gone. Truck seemed to go in to limp mode as he was driving it to my house to drop it off. I didn't know abt the no coolant issue until i got to messing with the truck after it was dropped off.

I added coolant, swapped out the hose and cleared the codes on my OBD2 scanner. Codes were P0115 (engine coolant temp circuit...assume this is due to the lack of coolant) and P0120 (throttle / pedal position sensor / switch A).

After i did all that, the truck started up fine, drove it about 2 miles and left it for the following weekend.

After about a week of sitting, the truck wouldn't start. I attributed it to the 7 year old Champion battery. Replaced it with a 24F 825CA battery.
The second i hooked up the new battery the horn started beeping again and the Heater and Starter relays started clicking non stop. I removed the horn fuse and checked the OBD2 scanner, no codes. Truck won't start either. All the accessories work fine (getting 12.5 volts from the new battery).

So, i started looking for possible issues, and the starter contacts / solenoid show up as possible culprits. Thing is, it seems too coincidental that the starter contacts would crap out so suddenly and right when these other issues were popping up...I don't think it has anything to do with the starter.

The only thing i did to the truck between the time it ran to the time i stuck the new battery in was:

• removed air intake assembly to clean MAF...truck started /ran fine after i cleaned the MAF

• Remove the cover to the transmission gear shifter in the truck to clean around it and tighten up the shifter lever cause it was rattling around too much. This did involve disconnecting a harness or two around the shifter, but everything is reconnected / reassembled.

ideas, comments apperciated...

I'd start with basics like ensuring batt connections are tight, might even charge battery up some more, I like 12.7 as a minimum. Check ignition fuses in engine bay.

When the starter contacts wear down too much, there is still a click caused by the plunger trying to hit the contact. The fact you hear no click might mean no power is getting there, so check up stream to battery.

Let us know what you find.

i re-charged the battery, checked connections. All the fuses are good.

What i'm wondering is what does the repeated relay clicking/horn honking mean? Key's not even in the ignition when it does this. As long as the battery is hooked up the relays and horn go off.

I'm going to try to mess around with it some more this weekend, thanks for the tips. I'll update accordingly.

How about testing the starter relay?

(sb continuity between 1 & 2 but not between 3 & 5.

The horn will “work’ without the key in the ignition. I would suggest checking the connection in the steering wheel where you press to activate the horn… it’s possible that the contacts are stuck. That’s my guess.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

When it’s doing the repeated clicking and horn does the dash light up while it’s doing this? Like it was put Into ACC mode


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

sorry for the delay in responding...

the dash lights aren't on, but when i stick the key in the ignition the dash does light up, as you'd expect.

checked continuity, all good with that on the starter relay

I wonder if this is something to do with the alarm system? Has the truck been "deactivated" due to the alarm triggering??? Not sure how alarms work in these trucks. I see the turn signal / hazard lights flashing, along with the clappy relays and the horn.

for example, this guy seems to be having the same thing going on as i do. I'm going to try this when i get home:
1997 Toyota 4Runner Alarm Lockout | Toyota anti theft system with alarm - YouTube

The key FOB is dead, so i use the key to unlock the door. This may be what triggered the alarm / disable mode after i swapped out the battery.

it ended up being the alarm system. I deactivated it with 3 key cycles and pushing in the red alarm button while cranking the engine.

Thanks for letting everyone know - many don't post Solutions so it doesn't really help - this makes the site work well.

Toyota did try their best to keep these vehicles from being stolen so much with immobilizer keys, alarms and of course good locks. Continued luck with the Runner.