Error Code P0353 & Catalytic converter repair

[islandfellow]

Greetings everyone. I've search, and read all over this forum, and others, but can't seem to get this issue fixed. My 2004 4Runner has been running "rough" for sometime now. It has 198754 Miles. I took it to the stealership in February, and had a tune up and other stuff which has been WAY over due.

I replaced the spark plugs, and coils myself when it started running rough. The stealership insist that the spark plugs that i got from autozone was the wrong kind, NGK irridiums which i research on here, and the coils which I got on the internet was bad, they charged me $$$ to fix. After a few weeks it started the same thing, the stealership charge me $95 to do a diagnostic and says it is the Catalytic converters.

after puzzling up the funds I finally was able to take it to a muffler shop and replace the Catalytic converters, which did not fix my issue. The muffler shop claim they where all burnt up, but I had a crying baby in the car and had no time to check it out.

I bought myself a code reader and is getting the following

P0353 Powertrain
Ignition Coil "C" Primary/Secondary Circuit.​

and

P0354 Powertrain
Ignition Coil "D" Primary/Secondary Circuit.​

I replaced the sparks plugs again, and still getting the above code, I see no reference anywhere about coil C or D. Does that mean that something is up with coil (starting on the driver side to the passenger side) Coil 3, and 4, (the middle ones?) and what is up with them.

Thank you for your time in advance

 

[Ralph Blake]

You really need to get far away from them Toyota stealerships,as you are finding out they just keep trying things,nothing you installed yourself will ever be right.

And they just keep installing a lot of anything that will make them a lot of money. The service writers at my Toyota stealership,even told everyone at a get to know the service Dept. party,that they are on commission. COMMISSION yeah that made everyone roll their eyes.
Also those code checks at parts joints like Auto Zone again they want to sell you parts and make MONEY lots of MONEY.

And them code checking devices you buy,sometimes they hit a real problem,again many times you follow their codes and buy a exhaust sensor and it solves nothing.

Find a small shop that people have used and trust near you,and let them really solve the problem. Am betting a valve job and new timing chain if it's a V6 can't remember what your driving. Also clean them injectors.
Anyway that is my thoughts. And good luck.:hello:

 

[islandfellow]

It is a V6. Thank you for your input. Finding a good small shop is so difficult these days it seems like everyone just has eye for the money.

 

[Ralph Blake]

It is a V6. Thank you for your input. Finding a good small shop is so difficult these days it seems like everyone just has eye for the money.

Sadly this is what everyone runs into,for many problems one just has to find help. So as many have done they go to their Toyota dealers service Dept. and they find that they are being told they need many items replaced. In the end their 4Runners are no better then when they took it in,their just out a bunch of money.
I remember talking to a Toyota service guy back in 08,was telling him how poorly Kia treated me with my 03 Kia Sorento, he just loooked at me and said don't expect much more from Toyota. I was some what taken beck by his honest reply.
Like many others i have had really bad experiences,with small shops also it really is a crap shoot today.:juggle:

 

[BlackWorksInc]

Thing is, if they're selling you stuff and it's not fixing it; then you can dispute that usually (depending on how your laws in your state are written.)

P0353 & P0354 are coil failure DTCs typically (C & D translate to 3 & 4, not sure why Toyota went this way, but A= 1, B= 2, ect.), make sure that the plugs are seated tightly and that the clips on the connectors are not broken allowing them to back off (I see a lot of ignition coil clips get broken by other shops and DIY jobs.) If the connectors and wiring are good, it is most likely an issue with the coils themselves. Remove Coils 3 & 4 and swap them with either 1, 2, 5, and/or 6; make sure you mark the coils you're swapping, then clear the DTCs and run the vehicle. If the DTCs move to the new position (i.e. if Coil 3 is in Cylinder 1 and the DTC moves to Cylinder 1) then the coils are at fault, if the DTCs remain at the original cylinders after swapping coils there could be a wiring issue that will need to be traced down.

On a side note, do you have one of those Chinese TIS Techstream scantools? They can be pretty useful in these types of situations.

1GR-FE Cylinder Positions

 

[alia176]

Holy cow, the firing order of the V6 is cracking me up!

 

[islandfellow]

UPDATE: Problem FIX. vsc, track light no error codes?

Thanks everyone for the input.
I decided to try and fix the issue myself instead of going to the stealership or any other mechanic., First I switched the coils around like many of you suggested. I moved number 3 to the number 5 position, and the code change to P0355. So I ordered up 2 coils right away, and installed them, and my truck is running smooth again.

All the lights are now off except the vsc, and track light, but I get no codes. Some people say to do a zero point calibration, but I'm not sure about that, I would rather figure out why it is on.

Thanks again for the advice.