Sluggish aceleration \ Not starting now.

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » April 30th, 2012, 1:38 am

I had the car engine washed and underbody washed yesterday. Since then I noticed that on pulling off it is sluggish. What may cause this? I'm wondering if fluid got into the engine somehow?

Gts limited · Postby **Gts limited** » April 30th, 2012, 10:40 am

maybe the distributor got wet it needs cleaning inside cap

Postby **Hook** » April 30th, 2012, 10:47 am

If moisture gets into the distributor, OR if the distributor cap "sweats" due to the engine heat and the rapid cooling from the engine wash, the symptoms may resemble the same symptoms of a misfire, with sluggish acceleration and/or erratic idle.

Inspect the spark plug holes for water and suck up/soak up/blow out any water that may have pooled up in there (which would cause an electrical arc between plug wire and the cylinder head BEFORE the current even gets to the plugs) AND make sure the distrubutor internals are dry.

Inspect rubber seal between distributor and cap for leaks and cracks one time and replace as necessary. Sometimes a thin bead of RTV is all you need if you can't find a replacement seal, but next time, be sure to cover the distributor with a plastic bag before washing.

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 2nd, 2012, 12:26 pm

Ok I went by the mech and blew out the distributor and the spark plug holes yesterday, still no improvement. I started it this morning, it sounded like it was missing and it shut off. I tried starting it.....nothing. I attempted to see if there were water still by the the spark plug holes, nothing. I disconnected the injectors to find water, blew them out and connected them back. Nothing, I'm only tumbling, I don't think its the battery, nor the alternator.... if it was the alt shouldn't it be a click click sound when trying to start? and if the batt, it shouldn't even click. I'm no mechanic but it sounds like a relay/fuse? or it could be the ignitor? any contributions appreciated.

Seeker · Postby **Seeker** » May 2nd, 2012, 1:34 pm

does your car carry plug wires??

Postby **Hook** » May 2nd, 2012, 1:56 pm

check fuses meng...blow out all electrical connectors, check for error codes, make sure you're getting fuel and spark.

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 2nd, 2012, 5:28 pm

who has a code reader that I can source?

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 3rd, 2012, 3:51 pm

Ok so further to my "small" problem that turned into this..... I towed my car to a guy in El Socorro to have it scanned only to discover that the car was wired without the diagnostic port. So there goes money wasted re: towing. Anyways, the mech suggested that the coil could have gone bad and to have it tested...... So now I'm in need of an auto electrician to have the coil/ignitor checked out and hopefully if its just the coil, can work up a coil to the ignitor and see if that works. Anyways I'm back on meh two feet until same is fixed.

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 3rd, 2012, 3:51 pm

I'm now on the hunt for an external coil/ignitor

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 3rd, 2012, 7:04 pm

Anybody knows where I can get an external coil and ignitor to work with 4EFTE engine?

Postby **Hook** » May 4th, 2012, 10:30 am

Have you determined for sure if u need these? Your car is OBD1 so it's easy to pull the codes without a scanner or a diagnostic port, provided you haven't reset the ECU yet.

Later on when you have time, you can wire in a diagnostic port from any other OBD1 Toyota vehicle using the colour codes and pinouts whown below. Take a Sunday afternoon and do it yourself if you want.

Go here and see which ECU u have and the pinouts for such.
http://www.toyotagtturbo.com/forums/sho ... ut-Diagram

If you're unsure, just unscrew the top plate of the ECU. The pinouts are on the board.
Connect one end of a normal T5 bulb or 12V LED to ignition positive and the other to pin "W" (this is now your "Check Engine Light" or warning light) and connect pins TE1 and E1. Turn the key to the ignition on position and count the flashes from the bulb.
NOTE: you have to do this without disconnecting the ECU, so wou won't erase the error codes.

See how to read and decipher error codes here:

Marco from Tropojë wrote: Good luck.

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 4th, 2012, 2:21 pm

It was the coil indeed....... but it brought me to another concern...... which they say I can only fix with epoxy .... there's what looks like a sensor or some type on the end of the Throttle body... when facing the engine, its on the left side of the throttle body..... the clip was broken off. the mechanic said it deals with the idling of the car and to stick it back (making sure the the ends are connecting to what they are supposed to be connecting to. Anyways I'm yet to give it a test drive which I will do shortly. Wish meh luck.

Postby **Hook** » May 4th, 2012, 5:29 pm

Throttle Position Sensor. Yeah, one of the pins is the throttle closed/open indicator, one's a WOT indicator and one gives the ECU the throttle angle, so you'll get a loopy idle and an error code if it's out.

See if u could score a TPS connector and a diagnostic port off a scrapped harness. For older cars/engines like ours, I'd suggest u buy a harness to scrap for moments like this when u'll need plugs. The connectors tend to get brittle with the engine bay heat after a while.

Marco from Tropojë wrote:Good luck.

Postby **Hook** » May 4th, 2012, 5:31 pm

Throttle Position Sensor. Yeah, one of the pins is the throttle closed/open indicator, one's a WOT indicator and one gives the ECU the throttle angle, so you'll get a loopy idle and an error code if it's out.

See if u could score a TPS connector and a diagnostic port off a scrapped harness. For older cars/engines like ours, I'd suggest u buy a harness to scrap for moments like this when u'll need plugs. The connectors tend to get brittle with the engine bay heat after a while.

Marco from Tropojë wrote:Good luck.

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 6th, 2012, 11:26 pm

Thanks for the info Hook, I will get to it re wiring. I fixed the trottle position sensor with epoxy for now.

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 9th, 2012, 7:56 pm

I burrowed this from a page and I wanted to ask just for confirmation, the TPS is the cylinder shaped device pointed out by the black arrow, correct?

Postby **Hook** » May 9th, 2012, 11:08 pm

nope, the TPS or throttle position sensor would be connected to the butterfly valve/throttle plate assembly so it could detect throttle position/angle

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 10th, 2012, 9:56 am

Ok the device I was referring to with the black arrow pointed to it is the IACV. Does anyone know where I can get this?

Hibrydsoul · Postby **Hibrydsoul** » May 10th, 2012, 10:15 am

Nevermind that I found a place that sells the throttle body for $500.00

ek4ever · Postby **ek4ever** » May 10th, 2012, 11:28 am

I hope you got it sorted out and also learned an important lesson .... do not do engine washes where high water pressure is used especially when the person is just spraying everywhere in the engine bay.