Engine shutting off while driving
 

Hi Everyone. Looking for some help

2015 4runner SR5 4x4 / 65K miles / Mods: lift, Tires, roof rack

The past 5 months the trucks stereo has been rebooting every couple of weeks (stereo was replaced last Nov for the same issue). Along with the display between the tach and speedo. Now the engine started to shut off.

Engine has shut off 5 times. 3 times leaving my house / work and 2 times while driving on the street traveling around 45 mpg.

The engine shuts off and I lose all power and I just coast to a stop.Once at a stop I put the truck in park and restart it.

Ive taking to the dealer 4 times and they cannot find anything wrong (no codes / check engine light)

Im at a lost....not sure what to do at this time.

Did you check the ignition switch? I had a Buick with bad switch that would just cut off. You had to put it in neutral restart and put back in drive. Pretty frightening when approaching a stop light.

Is it loss of electrical power? Fuel pressure?

Wrong section for this.

I doubt the stereo randomly turning off has anything to do with the engine turning off. Unless you R4 is runs off AM/FM.

First thing that comes to mind is the fuel filter. Loss of throttle is a symptom of this.

Have not check anything myself yet. Its been taken to the dealer 3 times for this issue and just today is wont during on (as of the battery is dead) Battery was replaced this January.

The truck completely shuts off. Only was I can explain is: Your driving down the road and turn off the ignition....but the truck coasts to a stop.

This is my 3rd 4runner and I have never experience anything like this.

Moved to the 5th gen section (sorry about that)

I also doubt the stereo is causing this. But seems all these issues started after it was replaced by the dealer (it kept rebooting).

I will check the fuel Filter this week.

Probably NOT fuel filter -- bad filter would not cause sudden stall with easy restart.

When the engine dies, if electrical accessories stay on and the battery warning light comes on, check for bad engine ground cable or connections.

If everything electrical shuts off along with the engine, check ignition switch and battery connections/cables.

My best guess would be that the techs failed to properly tighten a ground wire or battery cable when replacing your stereo. If it's not that, then check the ignition switch.

Had a similar issue last summer. Something was causing the electrical to over heat and the truck would shut down. Local shop was able to figure it out and move around some of the wiring to get rid of the over heat. Haven't had any issues since.

(Side not my stereo also goes in and out but this just started happening recently)

@chihuahua I had this type of thing happen, my negative battery cable was loose. The stereo would reboot and the whole truck would essential turnoff and then on while driving. Popped the hood and looked around and noticed the cable was loose, tightened it up and never had a problem again.

Worth checking, if you replaced the battery it may have worked loose over time. Could also be a grounding issue elsewhere but start with the easy check and go from there.

I had a vehicle in the past that would shut down due to plugged fuel filter. Water in the filter. I doubt that's the case here. Loose ground? Bad fuel pump relay?

Need to check the basics. Wiggle the wiring. Turn on all accessories while at idle. Bad battery? Bad battery could short internally. Causing immediate shutdown. As soon as the battery is moved the short is momentarily opened. Fuel pressure?

On my previous vehicle (Isuzu Trooper) I went through a period where it would suddenly shut off and couldn't be restarted for a random length of time (several minutes to a half hour or more).

Eventually found that the rubber piece around one of the spark plugs had decayed and was occasionally causing a short.

sounds like the ignition switch where your key goes into. Do you have heavy key chain and etc? Ignition switche part usually aren't expensive. Another reason why the push-start button would be beneficial on the 5 gen.

Start simple. Battery terminals alternator connections. Pull a wiring schematic and start tracing primary and secondary circuits. Sounds like the techs botched something. You could also check for Parasitic Draw to see why the battery is dead... What type of battery?

Another vote for checking your battery cables.

I had a new battery installed on my Nissan Frontier while I was overseas.
Came home and attempted to drive the Frontier. It was completely dead.

Noticed the positive battery cable was disconnected. New battery had a raised portion on it's top preventing a good connection of the clamps. Whoever installed it didn't take the additional step to flip the bolt on the clamp so it would properly seat on the terminal. Instead they 1/2 assed it and tightened it down as far as they could.