DisguisedRope
New member
Is your 4Runner not starting? Do you turn the key and only get a single click? Will it randomly do this and then start fine for weeks before not starting again? Have you replaced your battery twice and it still happens? Have you cleaned all your connections on your battery and wires going to your starter and it seems to fix your problem but only for another couple weeks?
If you answered yes to these questions, you probably need to replace the contacts/plunger in your starter. You can go to the dealership and spend ~$500 and have them replace your starter. Or you can go to your local parts store and get a re-manufactured starter for ~$250 and pull yours out and put the new one in and then go return the core. But if you are going to do all that work, you should pop 5 more bolts off the starter itself and replace just the contacts and plunger for ~$15. New contacts and a fresh coat of paint are generally all you are getting with the re-manned unit anyways.
I have a 2008 with a V6 and what seems to be referred to as the winter or cold weather starter, and I searched a lot and couldn't find a decisive answer on which contacts fit our starters or any pics of what our starters look like on the inside, so I ordered a few different kits and just used the one that had what I ended up needing.
First things first, order this kit off of amazon (Victory Lap ND-34SOL Solenoid Repair Kit).
Next, watch this video and remove the starter from your truck. It may help to soak the two bolts with your favorite flavor of penetrating oil for a couple days prior. I didn't and had a heck of a time cracking them free. Also, I was able to lay under my truck and see both bolts, and used that angle to reach in with a breaker bar to get them started.
Once its out, fixing it is very easy. Remove the three bolts on the cover you see in the background of this pic to expose the inside of the starter. Pull out the plunger and you'll see what I have pictured here.
Undo the nuts on the two big copper bolts that stick out from the sides. Pay attention to the order of things on the bolts so you can replace them in the same order.
Here you can see the old vs new contacts and plunger. When I got to this point I was convinced that this was in fact my issue.
Clean up the copper bolts with some fine steel wool if yours are corroded. Always good to start with all clean connections. Now put the contacts and little bits back together and tighten them up.
Slide the new plunger back in and put the cover back on. I didn't take any more pictures, but it looked like a starter, soooo yea.
Finagle the starter back into your truck and connect everything back up. If you did it all correctly it should fire right up. Well it will probably stutter the first time due to the battery being disconnected and the ECU needing to relearn how to run, but the second time, the second time it should fire right up.
Album of all the pics in one place if you are interested.
If you answered yes to these questions, you probably need to replace the contacts/plunger in your starter. You can go to the dealership and spend ~$500 and have them replace your starter. Or you can go to your local parts store and get a re-manufactured starter for ~$250 and pull yours out and put the new one in and then go return the core. But if you are going to do all that work, you should pop 5 more bolts off the starter itself and replace just the contacts and plunger for ~$15. New contacts and a fresh coat of paint are generally all you are getting with the re-manned unit anyways.
I have a 2008 with a V6 and what seems to be referred to as the winter or cold weather starter, and I searched a lot and couldn't find a decisive answer on which contacts fit our starters or any pics of what our starters look like on the inside, so I ordered a few different kits and just used the one that had what I ended up needing.
First things first, order this kit off of amazon (Victory Lap ND-34SOL Solenoid Repair Kit).
Next, watch this video and remove the starter from your truck. It may help to soak the two bolts with your favorite flavor of penetrating oil for a couple days prior. I didn't and had a heck of a time cracking them free. Also, I was able to lay under my truck and see both bolts, and used that angle to reach in with a breaker bar to get them started.
Once its out, fixing it is very easy. Remove the three bolts on the cover you see in the background of this pic to expose the inside of the starter. Pull out the plunger and you'll see what I have pictured here.
Undo the nuts on the two big copper bolts that stick out from the sides. Pay attention to the order of things on the bolts so you can replace them in the same order.
Here you can see the old vs new contacts and plunger. When I got to this point I was convinced that this was in fact my issue.
Clean up the copper bolts with some fine steel wool if yours are corroded. Always good to start with all clean connections. Now put the contacts and little bits back together and tighten them up.
Slide the new plunger back in and put the cover back on. I didn't take any more pictures, but it looked like a starter, soooo yea.
Finagle the starter back into your truck and connect everything back up. If you did it all correctly it should fire right up. Well it will probably stutter the first time due to the battery being disconnected and the ECU needing to relearn how to run, but the second time, the second time it should fire right up.
Album of all the pics in one place if you are interested.
