I was removing and reinstalling my throttle body like 5 or 6 times within a couple days trying to chase down a couple issues. The last time I installed it I mistakenly swapped a coolant line with a vacuum line of the same size. I fired it up and it idled nice a smooth. Then white smoke starts pouring out the exhaust and it starts struggling to keep running. I immediately key off and start taking it back apart. When I get the rubber boot off the TB it's full of coolant. Man my heart sank LOW. I pulled the spark plugs (soaked) and turned it over a few times to blow out the coolant. Cleaned the plugs and once it was all back together it ran just fine. Exhaust blew smoke for a few minutes but its been about 5k miles and all is well. Tough little motor the 3rz. I thought for sure I killed it. To this day I still wonder who thought it was a good idea to run coolant through the TB...
Anybody else almost kill their 4Runner?
- Thread starter D'arce
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Dieselchessy
New member
I don’t remove that coolant line at the TB. I remove it from the port coming up out of the intake manifold.
I find it easier, just turn the clamp the right way so you can get it with long needle nose, and it prevents that mistake.
But yes, I’ve been party to that technique of plumbing coolant right into the IAC and injectors. Gets your attention.
I find it easier, just turn the clamp the right way so you can get it with long needle nose, and it prevents that mistake.
But yes, I’ve been party to that technique of plumbing coolant right into the IAC and injectors. Gets your attention.
Jidaran
New member
Not a 4Runner, but on the same (greater?) level of stupidity: at the tender age of 17 I topped off the coolant reservoir in my Volvo redblock ('84 240) with window washer fluid. Drove around for a while before my dad realized what I had done. Didn't seem to effect the engine, we did a coolant flush and it lived for many years after that.
-Have an coolant leak from a leaking heater core (hard/expensive to fix) and keep driving it and topping it off when the temp needle starts to climb too high.
-Leak apparently gets way worse driving to work since it's my only car I'm still driving it and it blows a huge cloud of steam billowing out of the hood from overheating.
-Try to get back home by turning it off, letting it cool, driving for 30 seconds until it starts blowing steam, turn it off etc.
-Get to the last turn onto my street and want to get home in this last push even though the temp needle is saying SHUT ME DOWN!.
-Keep driving and the interior heater core or coolant lines blow and a bunch of steam starts billowing out from under the passenger seat.
-Make it home, park the runner and buy a new car until I have the time and place to replace the heater core (Was January in Manitoba Canada, -15 to -35C, no heated garage and it's a 2 day job).
Fixed up the runner a year later and it runs fine. Seemingly no damage from overheating bad a few times. Overheated enough (I guess pressure builds in the coolant lines when its boiling off!) to blow something in the coolant lines in the cabin!
Now it's my daily driver again after moving to a new city and it's doing great.
My 4runner also got shot. I was out target shooting in a gravel pit with a buddy when we started hearing bullets overhead. We were the only ones in this pit but there were people shooting in other pits so it must have been ricochets. As soon as I say "Those sound like they're close" there's a super loud BANG right at the 4runner as we hit the deck and run for cover.
She took a hit to the hood but it only left a little dent and chipped the paint away, way less damage when knowing how loud the bang was when it hit.
My baby also can handle running on low/no oil. I had a power steering leak (still ongoing) and always left little puddles everywhere I went (mark my territory/parking spots). I wrote it off as just being power steering leaks even though I started seeing brown stains everywhere I went instead of red. It didn't click until one day when I checked my oil and it was fully off the dipstick. I had been leaving 5-6" puddles every time I drove it for a couple weeks that that point so I know it was super low. It was "empty" apparently when I got it filled to go to the shop to get it looked at.
The oil sending unit was apparently spraying out oil out when the engine was running! A new unit and some new oil and she hasn't said a word about being run dry. That was probably 4 year ago now and 10's of thousands of KM put on since then without issue.
With that power steering leak my PS pump has been through hell and back and still runs strong. When it was first leaking I dumped several bottles of stop leak in it which just leaked out. But come winter the stop leak was so thick when it was under -20ish the steering wheel would barely move, had to literally break the power steering fluid up by wiggling the wheel before I could turn. I'm sure the PS pump will go on me eventually but for now I run it until it's grinding and tells me to feed her.
I also was putting 2 stroke marine oil in her gas tank for a year or so after I got her after reading about it in a thread on here. Can't say it helped anything but it definitely didn't hurt anything, definitely was a risk killing her trying some weird advice on the Internet!
The timing belt was due 90 thousand km ago but she doesn't care, though from this forum it isn't critical and they last a long time. Never done spark plugs or any other maintenance on her either other than meticulous oil changes (every 5,000 km on the mark she always gets the best (cheapest) conventional oil).
So what I'm saying is I've thought I've killed her many times but she always perseveres.
I just wish every bolt underneath wasn't rusted out or I could fix things up, right now I'm just running her into the ground.
I drove it for a couple weeks with no rear shocks, both top bolts had rusted right off (and all the other bolts/nuts under there have no shape left other than a round rust ball). I really learned what shocks do for the ride quality in that time, sketchy to say the least.
-Leak apparently gets way worse driving to work since it's my only car I'm still driving it and it blows a huge cloud of steam billowing out of the hood from overheating.
-Try to get back home by turning it off, letting it cool, driving for 30 seconds until it starts blowing steam, turn it off etc.
-Get to the last turn onto my street and want to get home in this last push even though the temp needle is saying SHUT ME DOWN!.
-Keep driving and the interior heater core or coolant lines blow and a bunch of steam starts billowing out from under the passenger seat.
-Make it home, park the runner and buy a new car until I have the time and place to replace the heater core (Was January in Manitoba Canada, -15 to -35C, no heated garage and it's a 2 day job).
Fixed up the runner a year later and it runs fine. Seemingly no damage from overheating bad a few times. Overheated enough (I guess pressure builds in the coolant lines when its boiling off!) to blow something in the coolant lines in the cabin!
Now it's my daily driver again after moving to a new city and it's doing great.
My 4runner also got shot. I was out target shooting in a gravel pit with a buddy when we started hearing bullets overhead. We were the only ones in this pit but there were people shooting in other pits so it must have been ricochets. As soon as I say "Those sound like they're close" there's a super loud BANG right at the 4runner as we hit the deck and run for cover.
She took a hit to the hood but it only left a little dent and chipped the paint away, way less damage when knowing how loud the bang was when it hit.
My baby also can handle running on low/no oil. I had a power steering leak (still ongoing) and always left little puddles everywhere I went (mark my territory/parking spots). I wrote it off as just being power steering leaks even though I started seeing brown stains everywhere I went instead of red. It didn't click until one day when I checked my oil and it was fully off the dipstick. I had been leaving 5-6" puddles every time I drove it for a couple weeks that that point so I know it was super low. It was "empty" apparently when I got it filled to go to the shop to get it looked at.
The oil sending unit was apparently spraying out oil out when the engine was running! A new unit and some new oil and she hasn't said a word about being run dry. That was probably 4 year ago now and 10's of thousands of KM put on since then without issue.
With that power steering leak my PS pump has been through hell and back and still runs strong. When it was first leaking I dumped several bottles of stop leak in it which just leaked out. But come winter the stop leak was so thick when it was under -20ish the steering wheel would barely move, had to literally break the power steering fluid up by wiggling the wheel before I could turn. I'm sure the PS pump will go on me eventually but for now I run it until it's grinding and tells me to feed her.
I also was putting 2 stroke marine oil in her gas tank for a year or so after I got her after reading about it in a thread on here. Can't say it helped anything but it definitely didn't hurt anything, definitely was a risk killing her trying some weird advice on the Internet!
The timing belt was due 90 thousand km ago but she doesn't care, though from this forum it isn't critical and they last a long time. Never done spark plugs or any other maintenance on her either other than meticulous oil changes (every 5,000 km on the mark she always gets the best (cheapest) conventional oil).
So what I'm saying is I've thought I've killed her many times but she always perseveres.
I just wish every bolt underneath wasn't rusted out or I could fix things up, right now I'm just running her into the ground.
I drove it for a couple weeks with no rear shocks, both top bolts had rusted right off (and all the other bolts/nuts under there have no shape left other than a round rust ball). I really learned what shocks do for the ride quality in that time, sketchy to say the least.
2ndhandyotaman
Member
I did the same exact thing this past summer when I did the timing belt. I missed the "clue" that the truck gave me, in the form of the spring clamp wouldn't quiet expand ( open) enough to fit easily over the barbed flare. I completely missed the vacuum line behind the coolant line.
Once I got it figured out, the engine blew white smoke for a good 10 minutes while I slowly drove around the industrial park where I was working on it. Once it cleared out, everything was fine. It probably helped clean out some carbon!
Once I got it figured out, the engine blew white smoke for a good 10 minutes while I slowly drove around the industrial park where I was working on it. Once it cleared out, everything was fine. It probably helped clean out some carbon!
G_Raw
New member
Man not quite the same thing at all. When I installed my KC lights I was finished with the install and tested the lights only to find out they didn't turn on. I investigated and found I forgot to ground them. So I went to go ground the wire but in moving it into position the metal tab of the wire tapped a battery terminal...which was connected again. You guessed it! I shorted the 4runner! Chasing so many fuses and fried old wires was a learning expierence.
gamefreakgc
Elite Member
I switched the vacuum & fuel hoses on the backside of the engine once. Took me a good couple of hours to figure out what I did, though the overwhelming fuel smell was a good indicator.
The throttle body coolant lines are there to keep the throttle body from icing. Doesn't happen here but I guess in high-humidity conditions with cold air, going from a atmospheric pressure environment to a vacuum it can cause the throttle valve to ice over and cease to function. Doesn't sound fun.
The throttle body coolant lines are there to keep the throttle body from icing. Doesn't happen here but I guess in high-humidity conditions with cold air, going from a atmospheric pressure environment to a vacuum it can cause the throttle valve to ice over and cease to function. Doesn't sound fun.
