Died on me parking

M

mendozer

Member
Today driving into work my 2002 just died on me as i parked. no shuddering, just lost all power. all the lights on the dash came on, but no code shows on my ScanGauge. I had to run into work so I won't be able to look at it until lunch, but what?
One time about 2 yrs ago it shuddered to a stop and i think i diagnosed it as nearing the end of the transmission fluid service interval and after i changed it everything was fine. This time no shuddering. So I'm not sure but I'm open to input
 
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I just tried starting it up and it turned over but was making a very rough and chugging sound as if there was not enough gas or air or both. Then it turned that off. Then I took my phone out to record the sound and tried turning it on again and it would not start. It just sputters. My hypothesis is maybe the fuel pump because it has a fairly new fuel pressure regulator and spark plugs and fuel injectors. So anything else in that line of parts are newer than the fuel pump including the fuel filter which was changed several years ago
 
Tow truck just came and he started it right up and he gave it more gas upon ignition. Drove it onto the flatbed. So knowing this....I feel 95% certain it's the fuel sending unit or maybe a clog in the line that just got pushed out. I'm still towing it back now bc I don't trust it for my long drive. Looking back I think I actually did replace the sending unit back in 20 when I was doing my rebuild. I'll have to check my logs. Tow truck guy said maybe add the fuel system cleaner stuff to the tank

EDIT: I checked and I did put a new DENSO full pump in 2020 when I rebuilt the top end.
 
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ok so it passed all inspections i could think of over the weekend and drove too, then died again tuesday morning, this time letting off the brake in traffic going down a hill. So now both times were letting off brake to hit gas at low rpm/speed.

It's been at the shop for 3 days now and they can't figure it out. It only died on them once and it didn't throw a code which is what I guess they're relying on. I may be getting it back for me to figure out.

Help me brainstorm here...
Low speed, from a stop. Starts up right after if I give it a heavy gas pedal press during the crank over. No loss of power while driving otherwise, lack of acceleration, shuddering, shaking, whining, etc. It's normal until the moment it dies. Never been any indication for something computer/codes.

I'm thinking now:
1) fuel line clog/corrosion
2) throttle position sensor?
3) air/fuel sensor? But i'd imagine other issues/codes
4) MAF? same thing, I'd expect issues.

otherwise i dont' know
 
Brake booster leak?

Does it die when you remove your foot from the brake or when you start pressing the accelerator?

-Charlie
 
got called back this morning. Didn't die for them all day yesterday. I mentioned the low speed thing and he thinks its the IAC valve being gummed up and recommended a seafoam treatment for $200, vs replacing IAC for $700. But....2001/2002 don't have a IAC valve unless I'm mistaken. I thought they were drive by wire with the throttle plate. So...I don't trust them now. Told him I'd pickup today and take care of things myself.
 
You are correct - 01/02 has no traditional IAC. It could still be something 'sticky' with throttle control though. 01/02 also means no brake booster hose. Hmmmm...

-Charlie
 
maybe i'll take apart the whole throttle body (the plate itself isn't dirty) and just seafoam the hell out of it. When I hear the mechanic tell me something i know isn't true it really makes me mistrust them which is why i do 99% of my own work.
 
Sounds like your throttle body has given up the ghost. The unfortunate thing about those throttle bodies is there isn't a replaceable throttle position sensor or a replaceable IAC. Once something with that throttle body goes bad, it becomes a paper weight. Those throttle bodies are very expensive.

I know a guy who parts out 4runners in Washington. He might have one he could sell you. You can contact him through Facebook. His name is Josh Young and his company is PNW 4runner Connection. Tell him Timmy the Toolman referred you.

Log into Facebook
 
Looks like new ones are 400-450 that's not awful. But used yes is available for 175. I wonder if knowing there's no gunk at all is worth the extra 200 or so. My inclination is yes
 
Just got it back home. At idle I'm at 700 rpm parked and 590-595 in gear so it seems ok. I'll disassemble tomorrow and see things
 
It could be electrical. I do not know the wiring of your older runner, but your issue sounds like a problem my 2004 Pilot had. Honda Dealer followed the technical book procedure of recommending new fuel pump. I said no and towed it to a shop where I had gained confidence. They kept it about a week and discovered a main relay was acting sporadically. It was worn out! New relay Part cost $50, diagnosing and install of relay burried in dash $300. So $350 and problem gone!
 
Well the EFI relay was fine when tested. What other relays could it be? That's the only one I know of that involves fuel delivery
 
Okay, I did a bit more testing today. The mass air flow sensor resistance is 1.87 khms and the spec in the manual is 2.2 to 2.7 so that's low. The voltage does fluctuate as it should when the power is on so that part is okay. For the throttle body itself, the motor sounds like there might be some friction when activating. But the motor resistance is within the spec as is the clutch as is the throttle position sensor as is the accelerator pedal position sensor. The fuel pump resistance is .6 ohms and it should be .2 to .3 according to the manual so that is high. This is testing it at the plug under the passenger rear seat, not the pump itself. Because the fuel pump bracket assembly has an extension wire essentially from the top of the plate down to the pump. So it's not technically testing the pump itself. When I replace the fuel pump 5 years ago I only replaced the pump and not the assembly. So I'm wondering if the problem is just the wire harness but I won't know until I drop the fuel tank and I don't want to do that unless I'm sure this is the issue because that is a pain.
I also went ahead and cleaned the entire throttle body assembly pretty well, including the motor vent on the top which was pretty dirty. The plate itself looked okay
 
Just fired it up and I got two codes p0100 and p0110 which correspond to mass air flow, circuit malfunction and intake air sensor. I didn't do anything to the mass air flow sensor. It was already clean. Although I'm wondering when I put the throttle position motor assembly back together if I didn't align it perfectly, which I thought I was pretty close to it because at rest the throttle position is now at 17 and 1200 RPM where it used to be 13 in about 700 RPM.
I've read that you really shouldn't mess with the throttle position sensor and that driving around will sort it out by itself
 
I reset the ECU and drove around a bit. Now at idle in park it's 14/842 and in gear it's 14/630rpm. That seems closer to normal
 
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