Won't start, no OBD codes on scanner - 2003 4runner

[scotter8]

Hi guys - I'm stumped.

Driving around town today, down hill to a stop light, the dash beeped about 5 times then the VSC light turned on. No ABS light, no CEL. Light turned off within 5 secs. Engine was running well. The beep and light sequence happened again 30 feet later on the same hill, right at the stoplight. Turned the key off at the red light because, hey, that's what we did went the radio went dead once (a year ago) and it worked then. The engine was immobilized, turn the key and it just clicks. We were in the middle of the road, so got a tow home.

2 hours later, I tried turning it over and it started! Idle was fine, no MILs. I was getting ready to plug in the OBD scanner and the dash made the same alarm beeps as before then flashed the VSC light. At idle, in Park, on a level road in front of my driveway, in 70deg weather, with under a quarter tank of gas. I'm going to go get a can and put a little more fuel in after I post this, but there were no power issues while driving. With ignition ON, there are no codes in the ECU's memory. Even when I just saw it have a VSC light.

I disconnected the battery, checked all the fuses in box locations (all good), pulled out the efi relay for good measure, all back in the right place, reconnected the battery (after about 2 min) ... engine won't start.

The battery is fully charged, the radio and power windows work, turn the key and it only clicks. It seems like the engine is immobilized. But why? It was running well, it's my daily driver. What would fail so the engine would keep running but prevent itself from starting?

I have a Toyota repair manual, and am reading through Volume 1. No strokes of genius yet. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[scotter8]

Added 1 gal of gas. Gauge reads that there's more fuel in the tank. Car's been left alone for a couple hours. Still won't start.

 

[scotter8]

I borrowed a diagnostic scanner to see what DTCs might be hiding, but there were no errors. ABS and VSC lights flashing very rapidly. The engine started. Idle was at 500rpm (normally just over 1000rpm). Drove it to the dealer. It was a 13 mile drive on backroads ... and it got a little scary at the end. VSC TRAC and ABS were flashing very rapidly at first. Then they went solid about 3 miles in. Then the airbag light came on solid in addition. Then the VSC OFF light. Then 9 miles in the battery light came on. Then the odometer and all gauges turned off ... fuel showed empty, no speed, no power to the dash. Then all the lights came on. As I pulled into the service driveway at the dealership, the truck turned itself off ... I coasted into the service bay with all the lights flashing crazily and the engine off.

They wouldn't entertain any other notions than: 1) my accessory lights drained my battery (Dad and I installed them 8 years ago, no electrical issues) and 2) the alternator is bad.

Now that someone's said it, I can agree with alternator. It seems more like a voltage regulator given the dash turning on and off. No idea why the battery light didn't come on yesterday. I'm also surprised the alternator died so quickly (30 minutes of run time). Totally unlike my 944 that I roll-started all the way from Nebraska to North Carolina.

 

[VolcanoT4R]

I borrowed a diagnostic scanner to see what DTCs might be hiding, but there were no errors. ABS and VSC lights flashing very rapidly. The engine started. Idle was at 500rpm (normally just over 1000rpm). Drove it to the dealer. It was a 13 mile drive on backroads ... and it got a little scary at the end. VSC TRAC and ABS were flashing very rapidly at first. Then they went solid about 3 miles in. Then the airbag light came on solid in addition. Then the VSC OFF light. Then 9 miles in the battery light came on. Then the odometer and all gauges turned off ... fuel showed empty, no speed, no power to the dash. Then all the lights came on. As I pulled into the service driveway at the dealership, the truck turned itself off ... I coasted into the service bay with all the lights flashing crazily and the engine off.

They wouldn't entertain any other notions than: 1) my accessory lights drained my battery (Dad and I installed them 8 years ago, no electrical issues) and 2) the alternator is bad.

Now that someone's said it, I can agree with alternator. It seems more like a voltage regulator given the dash turning on and off. No idea why the battery light didn't come on yesterday. I'm also surprised the alternator died so quickly (30 minutes of run time). Totally unlike my 944 that I roll-started all the way from Nebraska to North Carolina.

Have you done anything to it recently? New stereo, amp, alarm? Sounds like it could be a bad ground.

Also, did you try starting it in Neutral instead of Park? I'm not that familiar with the 4th gen, but I know the 3rd gens have a Neutral Safety Switch that, if faulty, will prevent a vehicle from starting and may cause issues with the VSC/TRAC lights.

Don't know the steps, but testing an alternator is generally a fairly simple process--it should be laid out in the FSM.

IMO, the technician blaming the accessory lights is simply laziness because they didn't want to spend the time to figure out where the electrical issue was.

If you know anyone with a 2003 4Runner (or another model that uses the same alternator) you could swap the alternators to see if a) the problem follows the alternator or b) the problem stays with your T4R.