98 corolla keeps dying in cold weather - EFI relay

[strantor]

Since the cold weather set in this year, the 2 times it has gotten below 35degrees (F), my '98 corolla keeps dying. I start it, it runs anywhere between 2 and 20 sec, then dies. no check engine light. I could hear a faint click from inside the car every time it dies, so I checked the relays. The one marked "EFI F-HTR" (I guess that's the EFI relay, there's no fuse there) clicks at the same time the car dies. Once I've started it enough times for it to warm up, it runs just fine. Anybody know what the problem is offhand? If not, anybody know where I can get the electrical prints?

Thanks

[fishexpo101]

Did the car ever do it before (assuming that it dropped that low previously)?
Still on the same take of gas, when it is doing this? Or has it been going on for some time?
What happens when you give it more gas after starting it, does it want to still stumble and die?

Could be a number of things causing this - from a bad take of gas, to a dying full pump, to bad coolant temperature sensor, weaken battery, dirty throttle body, vacuum leak, etc. The clicking from the relay makes sense, as all relays do that, they switch power in that manner. Possible there is an intermittent electrical problem - could be a loose or cracked relay, unexpected electrical load, bad chassis ground, etc. Have to do a little more digging around to shorten that list.

[strantor]

Originally Posted by fishexpo101

Did the car ever do it before (assuming that it dropped that low previously)?

Yes, a couple of months ago...

Originally Posted by fishexpo101

Still on the same take of gas, when it is doing this? Or has it been going on for some time?

...different tank of gas; several tanks ran through it between instances

Originally Posted by fishexpo101

What happens when you give it more gas after starting it, does it want to still stumble and die?

It doesn't stumble and die, it just dies promptly, as if I switched off the key. It makes no difference if I give it gas. I tried that, started it, held the RPMs around 4K and it still died promptly a few seconds later.

Originally Posted by fishexpo101

Could be a number of things causing this - from a
1. bad take of gas, to a
2. dying full pump, to
3. bad coolant temperature sensor,
4. weaken battery,
5. dirty throttle body,
6. vacuum leak, etc. The clicking from the relay makes sense, as all relays do that, they switch power in that manner. Possible there is an
intermittent electrical problem - could be a
7. loose or cracked relay,
8. unexpected electrical load,
9. bad chassis ground, etc. Have to do a little more digging around to shorten that list.

1. don't see any correlation to gas
2. if it were the fuel pump, I assume I would get sputtering & dying, is that right?
3. no dummy lights come on; isn't there a dummy light for coolant temp?
4. battery seems fine, cranks over good, even after tens of repeat starts
5. again, wouldn't it sputter?
6. vacuum leak would cause it to run crappy, right? it runs just fine while its running.
7. I'll check the relay. When I wiggled it last time, it started and ran for over a minute before it died.
8. could be, what comes on within a few seconds of starting? I'll check that out, whatever it is.
9. one of the most cantankerous things to troubleshoot, is it not? I hope that's not the case.

I'm really leaning towards an electrical issue here. It really runs good while it runs, then just like someone turned off the key. ont hing I just thought of: This car had (has) an alarm. last year the alarm was going all wacky; it would start going off while driving down the road. it would turn on spontaneously and you couldn't turn it off. It would lock out the key to where you couldn't start it even while disarmed. I simply pulled the fuse out of the wires going to the alarm and the car worked fine after that. It was as if the alarm had been removed. I thought I did good, but maybe it's come back to haunt me.

[landphil]

It wouldn't be the first time an alarm caused issues in cold temps, but to be honest that's not even cold. My first thought is the ignition switch is a little gummy inside, you could try some electrical cleaner (or brake clean - the non-flammable kind only) inside it. You'll have to remove the steering column covers and probably remove the switch from the back of the lock tumbler to spray it inside, then cycle it on and off a few times. If the problem goes away after this, I'd replace the switch for best reliability.

Secondly, actually, do this FIRST, check all the electrical connections at the battery terminals, not just the main starter cables, but also the power and ground feeds onto the battery clamps, as in the ones that feed to the power distribution blocks. If any corrosion, disassemble and clean thoroughly(after disconnecting the battery ground of course).

My third suggestion would be to put some gas line antifreeze in the tank in case you have some water in the tank freezing up, but in theory it should sputter some if that were the issue. I'd still do it though. These things don't always play by "the rules".

You say it runs well otherwise, so I'm assuming it's had regular maintenance and tune-up's? Cold weather has a tendency to bring underlying issues to the surface.