i really did it now... help! runs terrible 30mph and under!

[pyrodork]

hello.
i was having a little sluggish idle so i thought to increase it the way i *thought* how... by adjusting the wires on the throttle(?) on top of the engine block. seems that there was 3 wires. i couldnt adjust the one that would seem most obvious, but the one i did adjust was the "underneath" the mechanism.
also in my mechanical fiesta, i've been hearing a sucking sound coming from the metal box over the air filter. i removed it, shot some lubricant on the hinge of the metal flappy-spring thinger, shot some lube into the carb (i also thought i might need some new plugs but thought i'd try this first... upon not finding any starting fluid handy).
put everything back together. tried starting a few times, with an unexplained quick kill. bugged the crap outta me, so i readjusted the wire almost back to its original position. still wouldnt keep going. a few minutes later, i noticed i forgot to plug in the wires to the metal box on the air cleaner box. started fine.
an hour or so later, started it so i could leave, and the whole thing sounded terrible. like it was choking. i called a friend over and by the time she came by, it was sounding back to normal, but the engine light was still lit. started driving... real sluggish. averaging 15-20mph with the pedal to the floor. soon, a few small backfires would go, then the engine light turned off and i was able to go as normal. the second i step on the brake, however, the engine light comes back on. starting from under 30mph, it keeps sluggish until maybe a few small backfires and it goes normal again. luckily i was able to make it to work. got stopped by a cop, though (thought i was drunk or something... going 20 in a 65 ).

it seems that the 30mph is the transition point. it's also the point where, when braking, the vehicle stops shaking... i think that's front brakes/rotors, though. alignment is fine.

another note... before tweaking the truck, i had it sit in the driveway for 2-3 hours. when i opened the hood, the radiator itself was still burning hot, as well as the large hose on the left hand side. i was able to remove the radiator cap with no issues. fluid was full in the tank and in the overflow. no idea why it would stay that hot for that long after driving it.
there seemed to be a fluid leak somewhere. there were white spots on top of the radiator, behind the fan on the block, on the side of the battery, and other locations in the general area. all fluids seemed full except for power steering. i didnt know whether to use the hot gauge or the cold one, seeing as the radiator was still hot. i felt the outside of the power steering fluid tank, was warm, so i thought i'd play it safe and fill it to just past the low mark on the hot level. then i see that the cap says to use transmission fluid for the power steering. what the dirt? did i hurt it by putting normal power steering fluid in? i know that wouldn't have caused my engine to behave so poorly.
there was also an unidentified burning smell while doing the 15/20-mile drive to work. only while the engine was running... didnt matter if it was driving or not. couldnt tell at higher speeds.



ANY help is appreciated! i'm practically about to cry!
specs are in my signature block... i also have a haynes manual that i'm going to browse.


THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!!!

 

[pyrodork]

also, the oil gauge on the instrument panel goes up when the accelerator is pressed, goes down when the accelerator is let up.

looking at the haynes manual, i dont really know what i did. probably messed up the choke system. in the morning, i'll try to readjust the steel wires to the original position. i'll remove the air cleaner housing cover again and attempt to see if i screwed something up in there. still, any help appreciated!

thanks!

 

[Gryphon]

I am not really sure what you did either! If we could just go out and look at it, but oh well!

Ok, this is the '94, right? No choke on a fuel injected engine. I am not sure what you shot lube into. Your wires you adjusted, are those the cables that run the throttle plate? If so, it sounds like you have an auto tranny? One of them should be for the kick-down switch then. I am wondering if the idle is too low? That would show up at lower speeds.

I would start with a new cap and rotor and spark plugs. New wires if they are old too. Clean up anything that looks corroded inside the cap. Just a nylon brush or compressed air should be fine, you do not want to spray anything inside there. Maybe some fuel system cleaner too (the kind you put in your tank at fillup).

Spraying some starting fluid around the intake and vauum hoses while the engine is running will help find any vacuum leaks too. If the idle perks up when you spray, there is a leak there. They can do things like this too.

 

[regularguy412]

i'm with gryphon on this one,,,

my guess is that it's some sort of vacuum leak,,, maybe you knocked something loose or got some of the vacuum lines hooked back on the wrong nipples. you may have cracked the plastic intake box when you removed it,,, the one on my 92 3.0 was cracked a lil when i bought it,, so i had it replaced when the garage did the tune up.. try the spray routine around the various lines and intake box,, see if that helps,,,, if you get a change in engine rpm,, you likely have a vacuum leak and the air flow sensor is not projecting a true reading to the computer so it will accurately adjust the air / fuel mixture.

good luck !

Mike in ARkansas

 

[pyrodork]

today, i put in fuel injection cleaner as well as spraying in some carb/choke cleaner to hopefully rid the oils from the lube. doubt that'll happen, though.
i found if i push the pedal down slightly, it accelerates okay (not normal, but okay). pushing it down more causes it to "choke".

a couple friends told me that it's one of the sensors... probably the oxygen, and that i can get the 'check engine code' by counting the times it flashes when it's on, but not turned over. since i dont have it here with me now (borrowed a car to get to work), i'll try it in the morning and post results.

thanks!

 

[pyrodork]

s'pose i should mention that it starts fine... usually. if it's warm, it starts great. idles decently, revs as normal when in idle. once it's put into gear, though, is when it starts acting funny.

 

[pyrodork]

wow, i did research all night.

today, when i went to check everything, i tried to move it off the street to the driveway and had a HECK of a time getting it to stay running. once it warmed up some, it got better. must've taken me at least 20-30 times.

now on to the progress...
i checked the diagnostic code and it came up as 31; which, according to off-road.com, is the manifold and/or airflow meter sensor signal circuit; with bullets on airflow meter/circuit, manifold pressure sensor/circuit, and ECU.
which manifold, i ask?
according to the haynes manual,
system: air flow meter signal or vacuum switch signal
diagnosis: open circuit in Vc signal or short circuit between Vc and E2, and open or short in vacuum switches
trouble area: air flow meter circuit, air flow meter/ECU, vaccum switch signal, and vacuum switches/EGR

yeah, that was probably the metal box on the air cleaner that i sprayed lube into. *sigh* at least i know that's what did it and not to do it again.
does anybody know the proper way of cleaning that thing out after spraying foreign fluid into it or do i need to replace the thing? i'm on a REALLY tight budget (i make less than $500 monthly at the moment).


oh, and i had checked the distributor cap in november and it still looked new. the plugs... i'd love to replace them, but it looks like a pain in the butt of johnny tremain. cant afford to have someone do it... unless it's a friend of mine. and i *want* to do it myself, too, for my own knowledge and experience.

on another note, tried replacing the fuel filter last fall and couldnt get the darn connections to budge. even with mechanic-recommended penetrant. such a tight space in there, anyway! i printed off the how-to in this forum (by mikes4runner, i believe), so hopefully that will help. otherwise, any recommendations?


thanks!

 

[mikes4runner]

Don't spray anything in your throttle body. The sucking sound was your throttle butterfly flap opening to suck air into the engine. you could try spraying some electronics cleaner on it, you can get some at Radio shack. I use to clean my MAF on my Spyder BTW.

Your oil pressure gauge is fine. oil pressure goes up when your RPM's go up.

The white stuff on things could be anything thrown from the fan when driving. not radiator fluid or power steering fluid. etc. and yes you could come back a hour later and the radiator will still be warm/engine too.

I hate to say this but you should have done the basic tune up before messing with your throttle and CAI. new plugs and fuel filter will do wonders for our truck.

The plugs are not hard I did mine last week. I could do a small write up if you want. for god sakes don't pay someone to do it, it really is not that hard.

As far as the fuel filter try sraying the connectors good, soak them let it sit overnight then try to tighten a little then loosen it should work. if not you might have to cut the lines and replace.

 

[pyrodork]

pics!

(thank goodness for webcams!)


assembled to air filter box top...
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v386/pyrodork/My%20Things/Picture14.jpg" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com~original">


individual part (that i so intelligently sprayed lube into)...
<img src="http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v386/pyrodork/My%20Things/Picture15.jpg" alt="Image hosted by Photobucket.com~original">


if i'm correct, this part is known as the MAF, mass air flow sensor, and the air flow meter. all and the same, right? i found some used ones averaging at about $50 (and up to over $200!) that i'll send for/pick up (depending on which company i go with) if this is the infamous "air flow meter" thus referenced to in engine diagnostic code 31.



ugh, i hate having to find toyota parts in the midwest! i need to go back to washington... and soon!

 

[pyrodork]

Don't spray anything in your throttle body. The sucking sound was your throttle butterfly flap opening to suck air into the engine. you could try spraying some electronics cleaner on it, you can get some at Radio shack. I use to clean my MAF on my Spyder BTW.

the sucking sound was coming from the air filter area. i recently figured it's probably cuz i have a drop-in k&n filter and it would be a normal sound for that.

and yes you could come back a hour later and the radiator will still be warm/engine too.

after an hour, yes. warm, yes.
after 2 1/2 - 3 hours, radiator hot to the point of not being able to hold it for more than 2 seconds, not likely.

...right?
it was like i just stopped driving it.

I hate to say this but you should have done the basic tune up before messing with your throttle and CAI.

CAI?

i agree with the tune-up, though. problem is the cash. however, this result is going to cost about the same.

i hate small towns with little or no job opportunities and only making barely enough to pay the bills.

The plugs are not hard I did mine last week. I could do a small write up if you want.

that would be awesome! all those nooks and crannies are intimidating to a low income, trial-and-error style, amateur mechanic like myself.

 

[Gryphon]

I agree on the sucking sound; my K&N makes some really cool sucking noises! Kinda like dropping the hammer on a big 4bbl carb. My intake hose (pre-filter) is missing. If this was done to your rig as well, it is sure to make the same noise.

We did that a lot with our VW's, modifying the airbox always seems to make new noises.

Sorry I didn't remember this earlier.

 

[pyrodork]

My intake hose (pre-filter) is missing. If this was done to your rig as well, it is sure to make the same noise.

that's the part that is behind the headlight? i think i saw some stuff on yotatech about removing that and also drilling holes in the bottom of the filter box for more air flow.
would it really make that much difference?



also saw one about cleaning the O2 sensor... with acetone. is there any way to damage it by soaking/toothbrushing it? my truck wasnt getting the best pickup at all, and i'd love more than anything to remedy it.
wait... i take that back. more than anything i want to have my truck in driving condition! that's a close second, though!

 

[mikes4runner]

that would be awesome! all those nooks and crannies are intimidating to a low income, trial-and-error style, amateur mechanic like myself. [/B]

It is pouring down rain all this weekend give me untill Wed and I will post something with pic's.

Mike

 

[pyrodork]

when i went to the junkyard to pick up the air flow meter, i told the guys there what was going on. they said that spraying lube into the meter or the throttle wouldnt do what's going on. they suggested the EGR and possibly a clogged cat. i replaced the distributor cap, with nothing working better than before.
i tried removing the EGR and although i got all the nuts loosened (the two large ones as well as the two mounting ones), i could not get the darn thing off. the large pipes went into the EGR pipe, and with the room i had to play with, i couldnt get it out. yeah, i got it all moving... the whole thing is loose from all points, but because those pipes go inside, i cant get it out. the lower flexible metal pipe i cant get to move, either. i have a feeling this is probably the issue. when i do get it off, how do i check to make sure it's working properly? at the junkyard, they said for probly $50 a mechanic shop could do it. i dont really have the money to throw around, though.
the air flow meter might still be a problem, though. when i shut it off, i can hear the flap inside slap back into default position. a friend suggested that it might not be opening all the way; thus causing not enough air to come through.

*sigh*


as far as replacing the plugs, the rearmost passenger side looks like the mother of all headaches with all the hoses everywhere and stuff. i was thinking about purchasing one of the jointed T-handle type plug removal tools, but i'm unsure of the size. help?! also, would that be a good buy or is there something better i should go for?

thanks!

 

[pyrodork]

finally got the EGR off, but it seems to me that it's working. i sucked air from the tube on the top and the valve came up, as it seemed like it should. came back down when i stopped. *shrugs* i put it back on and nothing new happend.
there is a part, that i cant for the life of me find what it's called (is it the PCV?), that's sorta hidden on the passenger side above the tire well. there's three things attached to the side with little rubber hoses coming out of them. the leftmost one looked like a valve, and i thought it could be the PCV because i havent been able to find that yet (according to the haynes manual locations). when i pulled the hose off the top, a bit of air hissed out... leading me to believe that it's clogged. tried blowing air into it from both ends with nothing. love to replace it, as i dont think it's supposed to be like that, but if i dont know what it's called, it's doubtful the parts store would know.


this whole thing is REALLY frustrating me! hopefully i'll have someone look at it with me tonight. i hate not having a vehicle. yeah, i borrowed one from my parents... but now my mother is home and she's pretty wary about letting me borrow the car so much (as if she left the house more than once every 2-3 weeks!).
i had much better things i could've done this weekend than try to figure out what's wrong with my truck. routine maintainence is one thing, but when i'm stuck trying to find out the problem, it sucks!

another thing i thought might be an issue is when i messed with the cables on the throttle. might've gotten some idle timing/mixing messed up; even though i moved everything back to where i found it.

also cleaned the O2 sensor today with denaturized alcohol and a toothbrush. spent some time sitting in a can of the stuff, too. still no progress. still doesnt wanna start. still dies right after it does. sometimes it gets a good healthy start, but still dies quickly.

tried the fuel filter again. this time i got some gas dripping from it, although i still couldnt get the nut moving more than 1/32 turn. i'm thinking that maybe i'm not depressurizing it right. haynes says to start it and let it idle while unplugging the wires from the fuel pump, letting it die, then cranking it a few extra times. yeah... i cant do that so much right now, especially when it wont really start to begin with. then, i cant find the wires from the fuel pump and i'm NOT going to remove the tank to get to them. already did that once before on my 88 tbird when the pump went out. ugh. anyway, what i did last time i tried it, as well as this time, is i unplugged the EFI fuse (this does control all the fuel stuff, right?) and removed the fuel filler cap. then i attempted to start it a few times and, of course, i got nothing, so i thought it was okay.
now, i guess i'm rounding off the edges of the nut with my 14mm wrench.

i f*ing HATE most everything now. dont even get me started on women/relationship issues... i dont think anybody could handle that.

 

[pyrodork]

i f*ing HATE most everything now. dont even get me started on women/relationship issues... i dont think anybody could handle that.

yeah... sorry bout that. wrong place for it. just a lil overstressed at the moment.

 

[mikes4runner]

Okay hold on.....this whole thing got started when you fooled around with the air intake and the throttle wires right?

Before that the truck ran okay right, maybe needed a tune up but it still started and ran okay right?

So then your problem must lie there the throttle cables or the air intake. Make sure you reconnected everything take your time if you need some pic's of the layout let me know.

The junk yard guys are idiots if you spray oil all over your MAF it is not a good thing it may not be the problem but it is still a no no.

About the spark plugs you are right the hardest one to get to is the Passenger side rear. All you need is a swivel socket and a extension for your ratchet. then it is not hard at all to remove.
If you can wait untill Wed I will do the write up with pic's.
BTW I use a 3/8 drive ratchet, the plug size is 5/8.

Mike

 

[Gryphon]

that's the part that is behind the headlight? i think i saw some stuff on yotatech about removing that and also drilling holes in the bottom of the filter box for more air flow.
would it really make that much difference?

Yeah, thats the same old trick we used on our VW's to get more power cheaply. It can work really well if it is done intelligently. If not, you can develop more problems, but nothing like what you have going on...just sucking in water or not filtering your intake air.

Don't sweat the hassels man. You are stuck on the same rock as the rest of us and I am sure we all understand and have been there. I just had to get my axle housing welded up! I think thats why at least some of us come here...to vent, learn and help each other.

I wish I had an easy answer for you...but this kind of problem is not a cut and dried easy one. I think you are on the right track. I am interested to see what the spark plugs look like.

I had to modify my throttle cable. It was stretched too much and sitting slack in the bracket. I shimmed it out with a couple nuts and washers and secured it back to the bracket with a zip-tie. I am still looking for a new cable, but it has been running just fine like this for a year now. (nothing as permenent as a temporary fix, eh?)

Like I was told in a fire dept. officer's command class during a VERY stressing training scenario this last weekend: 'Close your eyes, take a deep breath, let it out slowly'...the problem is still there, but we'll get it figured out.

 

[pyrodork]

Okay hold on.....this whole thing got started when you fooled around with the air intake and the throttle wires right?

Before that the truck ran okay right, maybe needed a tune up but it still started and ran okay right?

yes, that would be correct.

So then your problem must lie there the throttle cables or the air intake. Make sure you reconnected everything take your time if you need some pic's of the layout let me know.

as i cant be sure, i think it's good. i didnt remove anything, only adjusted. and i pretty much put all that back the way i found it. however, i think it's possible that the slightest adjustment could get it out of whack. i'm going to try to get a mechanic friend to look at it with me today. if nothing happens at the end of monday, though, i'm probably going to call a guy that was recommended to me last night. cant afford it, but at the same time, i cant afford not to.

The junk yard guys are idiots if you spray oil all over your MAF it is not a good thing it may not be the problem but it is still a no no.

would you suggest i buy that part anyway? it's an hour drive and $40 for the part, so it's not that bad. and i'm sure i could sell the part if that wasnt the problem, but still.

kinda forgot to check for LEAKS when i checked the EGR. i only checked for movement with pressure. i really dont wanna take that apart again, as the whole project took me a bit of hours and many headaches.

 

[pyrodork]

Yeah, thats the same old trick we used on our VW's to get more power cheaply. It can work really well if it is done intelligently. If not, you can develop more problems, but nothing like what you have going on...just sucking in water or not filtering your intake air.

i probably shouldnt try that i try offroad sometimes, but nothing extreme. for me, the problem lies more in the liklihood that i'm going to make it worse.

Don't sweat the hassels man. You are stuck on the same rock as the rest of us and I am sure we all understand and have been there. I just had to get my axle housing welded up! I think thats why at least some of us come here...to vent, learn and help each other.

i have to do that with my camper... axle fell off of one side while driving! at least some U bolts fixed the problem. now i want to replace them on the other side to prevent that from happening again.

one of the more major hassles i have is my ex. on halloween, after 10 months of being together (2 1/2 being long-distance), she told me she wasnt honest with me. proceeded by telling me that the name she gave me was a nickname, and the age she gave me was a bit off, too. she told me she was 20 (i'm 25). yeah, she's 16 (now 17). so, two months later (mid dec), i did the "right" thing and reluctantly decided to take a break; also having some other issues going on that made everything a bit difficut to handle all-together. since then, i got re-aquainted with an old friend and we sorta hooked up, but unofficially. over the easter weekend, my ex posted in her livejournal that she was getting married that monday. i cant verify anything, but i'm pretty sure she's not lying about it. then, i did the wrong thing and went to this friend of mine, freaking out, looking for some sympathy. she's in the army, too (in my unit). she has post-traumatic stress from working in the hospital in afgahn, not to mention other things, too. yeah, wrong thing to do on my part. now she doesnt know how i feel and believes i dont care, and the ex thinks i hate her cuz i havent talked to her since i read her expos'e. i cant think of anything to say that would be appropriate. cant help but still have feelings, but at the same time, i wanna smack some sense into her for marrying a dumb*** guy she hasnt even known for 4 months.
then all this stuff with my truck... working on it all week with, really, no progress... ugh.

ok, i vented a little. thanks.

I wish I had an easy answer for you...but this kind of problem is not a cut and dried easy one. I think you are on the right track. I am interested to see what the spark plugs look like.

it's frustrating cuz it seems that nothing is working, and yet i still cant rule anything out.

i can post pics of the plugs with my webcam once i get them out. i purchased bosch platinums, so i hope theyre as good as people say they are.

I had to modify my throttle cable. It was stretched too much and sitting slack in the bracket. I shimmed it out with a couple nuts and washers and secured it back to the bracket with a zip-tie. I am still looking for a new cable, but it has been running just fine like this for a year now. (nothing as permenent as a temporary fix, eh?)

are you talking about the cable on the underside? mine is pretty loose. that's one of the things i was hoping to fix by adjusting the nuts. could you post a pic so i can better understand?
also, the rubber "insulator" before the exposed cable has nothing inside that would adjust anything by twisting it, right? if so... uh oh.

Like I was told in a fire dept. officer's command class during a VERY stressing training scenario this last weekend: 'Close your eyes, take a deep breath, let it out slowly'...the problem is still there, but we'll get it figured out.

yeah, i've been doing that. the only way i was able to relax was by watching tv. probably not a good coping mechanism, getting the topic off-mind, but i guess it works... sometimes.

thanks for being in the FD! i'm in the army (reserve, at the moment). it's a tough job with not enough appreciation. so, again, THANKS!