Please help! Car won't start! - Toyota Nation Forum : Toyota Car and Truck Forums

Lightning_KP61 · 10-25-2011, 09:16 PM

Hey guys. So my sister's car has been running rough for awhile now. Last night, she said it was stumbling pretty bad. I went out to check things out and when I pulled one of the spark plug wires, the connector was stuck on the plug and just the wire and boot came out. So now one of my wires was busted. Just to see if it made a difference, I started it up again. It actually sounded about the same, with maybe a little more harshness. I ran it on three cylinders for about a minute, then closed the hood. When I slammed the hood shut, the engine turned off. I tried firing it up again, but no luck.

Today, I went and purchased a new wire set and plugs. After I install everything, I try starting it up and still get nothing. I'm pretty sure my wires are hooked up correctly since I did them one at a time. All of the fuses are intact, and I don't see anything disconnected or out of place in the engine bay. I get a gas smell out of the exhaust after cranking it for awhile but it never tries to start. I'm not sure what else it could be. Please help!

slowrolla · 10-25-2011, 09:18 PM

Does the starter turn the crank over?

Lightning_KP61 · 10-25-2011, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slowrolla

Does the starter turn the crank over?

Yes. It actually turns over pretty fast.

slowrolla · 10-25-2011, 09:28 PM

If you smell gas, you're definitely getting fuel. Check to see if you have any spark. Pull out the spark plug wire one at a time and have someone crank it. If you don't see any spark, check around your distributor.

Lightning_KP61 · 10-25-2011, 10:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slowrolla

If you smell gas, you're definitely getting fuel. Check to see if you have any spark. Pull out the spark plug wire one at a time and have someone crank it. If you don't see any spark, check around your distributor.

So I just pulled the plug wires and looked inside the boot as my dad cranked the engine. No spark that I could see. Everything is plugged in around the distributor as far as I can tell.

Lightning_KP61 · 10-26-2011, 12:47 AM

Is the ignition coil removable? Or is it integral to the distributor? Also, I was linked to this site from another thread: http://www.tundrasolutions.com/forum...ns/#post352803

Talks about oil seepage around the distributor O-ring, which can short stuff out. Anyone here heard of that happening?

What's really bugging me is why did it shut off right when I slammed the hood? What could that possibly do to kill the spark? Thanks for all your help, guys.

Lightning_KP61 · 10-26-2011, 01:48 PM

So I've answered my own question. I'll test the coil later when I can remove it. I have a Haynes manual at home, but can anyone tell me off hand what the resistance should be for the coil? Thanks.

Still wondering what I could have done to kill the engine that night. It happened literally right as I closed the hood. Seems like a strange coincidence. Any guesses?

Lightning_KP61 · 10-27-2011, 02:46 AM

Update: I tested the coil and the primary winding was bad. I replaced the coil, along with the cap and rotor since I was already in there, and it starts now. It runs a little better with the new ignition parts, but the idle is still high on cold start-up, and it becomes lumpy after you take your foot off the gas. Anyway, I'll get to that another day. Thanks for all your help, slowrolla.