Oddball electrical problem with even more fun symptoms

[Underdog]

This problem has multiple symptoms, but they all add up to a 1990 toyota 4runner that does not run reliably and could possibly get someone killed.

Current symptoms.

1. Your driving along and pow...all of the panel lights come on.

2.The car jerks, and all dash lights goes out but engine still runs.

3. If you give car gas, the engine revs but does not go anywhere.

4. If you then coast to the side of the road, put the car in park and then back into drive, the engine will cut out as you try to drive away.

5. The car will not restart after this, unless you hotwire the starter.

6. The car then runs normally, until this behavior is repeated at random increments.

7.The final symptom is that the clock has been reset at least twice as if the battery had been disconnected.

HELP ME O'MIGHTY TOYOTA GODS!!! I'm very close to 300,000 miles and will do whatever it takes to make it there...as long as my electrical issues don't burn my baby to the ground.:

 

[CJ3Flyr]

This problem has multiple symptoms...
...electrical issues don't burn my baby to the ground.:

As elementary as it sounds there's 2 quick checks to be done:
1) Battery terminals
2) The other end of the battery cables: double check the ground to the block/body and the + wires connection into the main power block. Check the grounding wires between the block and body two.
3) There should be a main fuse. Pull it, make sure it looks good and re-install it.

Check those things first... Good luck!

:cheers:

 

[BenzTech]

Definitely sounds like a voltage issue...but I would look at your grounds. Make sure your battery terminals are clean; pull the wires off your battery and clean the inner part with a wire battery brush. Also, run a resistance check on your battery ground wire and clean the ground point on the chassis with a wire brush. And do a voltage drop test on your power wire. Since you have high mileage on this baby, I wouldn't doubt your battery leads are heavily corroded on the inside of the insulation causing high resistance. Another thing you could do is attach a volt meter to the battery, and run the leads up inside the car with the meter. While your driving, check the actual value voltage. When the vehicle starts to malfunction, take note of the voltage readings. Over/Undervoltage issues do some weird things. Anyways, if you have already done these items and problems still persist, let me know and I'll do some digging.