[Guest]

Car stalls while driving <SOLVED>

SOLVED!Unfortunately it is the fuel pump that is bad.

I have two solutions for this problem,
A. If I keep the gas tank full it is perfectly fine, as soon as it drops below 3/4 of a tank then it dies (fuel pump over heats from not enough gas to cool it down)

B. Replace the fuel pump (that is what I am going to do, the other option is not really worth it, every 50 or so miles I would have to be getting gas; thats no good)


So...
Maybe I will do a write up with some pretty pictures about how to drop a rusty gas tank and replace a RETIRED fuel pump

Update: 6:44am CDT Sunday, February 3rd
I just got home from work and tried to start the car, cranked for 15 seconds and no start. I left the ignition in the on position and I placed my foot all the way to the floor and help it there for 30 seconds then tried to crank again for 5 seconds. Still did not turn on and I did not smell fuel at all. Iimmediatly went out and pulled a spark plug and checked for spark on the cylinders, I HAVE spark on all four. On the last plug when I was checking the car turned on idling very bad (well it was only running on three cylinders because I had one of the plugs out). I then put the plug back in and the car ran perfectly fine just like it always has. So were am I at now? I have spark when it wasnt turning on, didnt smell fuel, but then miriaculiously it turns on at the last second..... HELP!!!!

The Car:
1989 Corolla Wagon All-Trac Deluxe

The problem:
Car stalls while driving after it gets warm (usually 30 minutes), after the stall it will not turn back on. However if you wait a few hours or let it sit overnight it will turn on and run perfectly fine for 30 minutes or so and then the car will stall again and not turn back on. I have not yet checked to see if the car has spark or fuel when it stalls because I have not yet had a change. However in the morning or after its been sitting it oviously has spark and fuel because it will start and run.

What I've done so far:
I had a spare distributer laying around so I figured I'd go ahead and swap it and and see if that helped. I swapped it out this morning and it turned on first crank. Drove it around for 30 minutes or so and it was perfectly fine. Went to go to work and it died 1/2 mile from my apartment.

The TO-DO LIST:
1. Check fuses (under the dash and in the engine bay)
2. Check Relays
3. Idle car till it dies and check Spark
4. Check for Fuel, see if spark plugs are soaked with fuel (this would be good, means I'm getting fuel)
5. Check Vaccum lines to see if they are disconnected or leaking
6. Check / Replace Fuel Filter (possibly getting clogged)
7. Replace Spark plugs, cap, wires and rotor

The did list:
Replaced Dizzy Replaced Cap, Wires, Rotor, Plugs
Replaced Air Filter
Replaced Fuel Filter
Reconnected Blue tube going to charcoal canister
Two Bottles of "HEAT"
One bottle of Fuel Injection Cleaner



Help ME!!!!!

 

[yotaprism]

is it over heating? i had that problem in an escort. it turned out to have a blown head. it would run fine for about a half hour in the cold and then it would over heat and shut off. it wouldnt start back up for a while. and then once it cooled down it would fire right back up.
i sold it for 300 bucks to some guy and he told me he had to replace the motor.

 

[Guest]

Are you using Bosch/aftermarket or Toyota distributor and wires ?

Bosch aftermarket ones.....

is it over heating? i had that problem in an escort. it turned out to have a blown head. it would run fine for about a half hour in the cold and then it would over heat and shut off. it wouldnt start back up for a while. and then once it cooled down it would fire right back up.
i sold it for 300 bucks to some guy and he told me he had to replace the motor.

doesnt over heat at all. let it idle all day long and it would be fine.

 

[Guest]

^ That's the cause of your problem.

BOSCH is not the same company it was 25 years ago.

There's a reason it's called BOTCHED.

Go get a Toyota distributor and wire pack, very good chance that will fix it.

NO WAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am not going to get Toyota distributer for $400. Besides the two distributers are Toyota OEM. just the cap and wires are bosch as well as the plugs. And since the problem happens with both distributers it is not a problem with the distributer, it has to be something else like a crank position sensor or something along those lines or a bad relay or something. Any other advise out there. I really need some help here.

 

[Rookie_One]

then get the cap and wire from toyota

 

[Guest]

then get the cap and wire from toyota

maybe I should update this,
each distributer has a diffrent cap and rotor.... there for since this happened with both distributers, which means there was diffrent sets of cap, wires, and rotor on each diffrent distributer. That rules out the distributer, cap, rotor, and wires. The only thing that could be a faulty with the ignition right there is the connection to the dizzy or bad spark plugs.


However with that being said I am going to get a new cap, rotor, wires, and plugs anyway... however this is not going to fix my problem guaranteed. so next suggestion. where is REN when you need him...

 

[freakinbox]

your lucky btw the toyota distributor for the 4af here is $800 something!

btw denso or NGK plugs are recommended for our cars, Bosch is high discouraged. Try changing the cap and wires with a different aftermarket company, cost me about $60, the toyota cap and wires here are around $120 so I told them to shove it, jackson toyota might just be super expensive though

 

[Guest]

your lucky btw the toyota distributor for the 4af here is $800 something!

btw denso or NGK plugs are recommended for our cars, Bosch is high discouraged. Try changing the cap and wires with a different aftermarket company, cost me about $60, the toyota cap and wires here are around $120 so I told them to shove it, jackson toyota might just be super expensive though

I was thinking about getting some NGK plugs, and whatever checker or napa has in stock for the cap, rotor/wires. I dont think this is going to fix the problem. I dont see how the car would run PERFECTLY fine when it has been sitting for hours and then 30 minutes after starting just die and not turn on at all. Do the wires become really bad when they warm up? I mean that would be crazy cause that would mean I have two bad sets! Anyone think this might be fuel related? When I get home I am going to let it idle till it turns it self off and then start testing things like mad. Will definetly check the fuses as soon as I get home. I really hope its not a bad fuel pump ???

 

[yotaprism]

i doubt this could be it. but my sentra used to run great untill it got warmed up and then it would start to sputter and stall out. although it would fire back up after a few painful cranks. turned out to be the fuel filter. but like i said this sounds a little more serious than a fuel filter.

 

[Guest]

i doubt this could be it. but my sentra used to run great untill it got warmed up and then it would start to sputter and stall out. although it would fire back up after a few painful cranks. turned out to be the fuel filter. but like i said this sounds a little more serious than a fuel filter.

I'll check into the fuel filter... I also doubt this has connection, however maybe there is some debri in there that as fuel gets going it starts to clog the output or input of the filter and chokes the engine . next time it dies I'll see if it is flooded. I really hope its not a fuel problem...

 

[Guest]

Do these cars have Crank Position sensors? I dont think they do, but if someone could jog my memory that would be awesome!

 

[Flashmn]

sounds like ignition controller failure to me. its a small square part found in the distributor, goes by the name ignitor.

 

[Guest]

sounds like ignition controller failure to me. its a small square part found in the distributor, goes by the name ignitor.

I have replaced the distributor with a known working one and the problem still happens. You still on Flashmn? I'm leaning towards a going bad fuel pump. What are your experiences with pumps on their way out?

 

[Guest]

check the first post updated now..

 

[Flashmn]

I've never had a pump go on me. Usually they just lose pressure, so you're not getting fuel to the engine or they just seize. We had one car that wouldnt start because of a failed pump, but you couldnt drive it either.

thing is, it cant be fuses, fuses will burn after that if you dont replace them, they wont be magically revived.
Plug wires wont do this, nor will plugs, wires are easy to check, multimeter and ohm reading, if they read below specs (I think it was 15kohm) they're ok, might wanna check when they're hot too to cross that out. Doubt its the fuel filter either.
I'm thinking its ignition electrical related, they get quite warm, its something that fails when heat goes up, usually its the ignitor.

 

[Guest]

I've never had a pump go on me. Usually they just lose pressure, so you're not getting fuel to the engine or they just seize. We had one car that wouldnt start because of a failed pump, but you couldnt drive it either.

thing is, it cant be fuses, fuses will burn after that if you dont replace them, they wont be magically revived.
Plug wires wont do this, nor will plugs, wires are easy to check, multimeter and ohm reading, if they read below specs (I think it was 15kohm) they're ok, might wanna check when they're hot too to cross that out. Doubt its the fuel filter either.
I'm thinking its ignition electrical related, they get quite warm, its something that fails when heat goes up, usually its the ignitor.

Yea I was thinking ignition too, but then I swapped the other dizzy in... U think even though its a diffrent dizzy that was working when I pulled it, it might still be the problem....

 

[freakinbox]

you might be right, I know chryslers are known for running then shutting off due to a bad pump. 2 cars I had for a long period of time both had mechancial fuel pumps so I haven't had to deal with one going.

 

[Guest]

damn electric fuel pumps....

I started the car two hours ago to let it idle and die so then I could start testing for spark and fuel pressure but the god damn thing wont die. So I drove it to the gas station (2 blocks away), filled it up and put 4 bottles of heat in there. Hopefully I had some shitty gas(but I doubt it). Well I am going to let it run and drive it around close by till it dies. I will update as soon as it does.

 

[REN69]

:snore: <------ REN



I'm leaning towards either the ignitor like flashmn said.. (the ignitor is a totally different part that's attached to the distributor by a wire and not IN the distributor, so it could still fail) OR the fuel pump working intermittently. :dunno:

BTW, the ignitor is located on the firewall and usually one of the wires runs from the distributor to the ignitor, its a small black box. You can see it just under the strut bar in this pic.

 

[Guest]

:snore: <------ REN



I'm leaning towards either the ignitor like flashmn said.. (the ignitor is a totally different part that's attached to the distributor by a wire and not IN the distributor, so it could still fail) OR the fuel pump working intermittently. :dunno:

BTW, the ignitor is located on the firewall and usually one of the wires runs from the distributor to the ignitor, its a small black box. You can see it just under the strut bar in this pic.

Thanks. I thought the ignitor was in the dizzy. I will take a look when I get home. u are all mighty Ren. Thanks. Hopefully this will fix my problem because I dont want to drop my rusty gas tank to replace the fuel pump...:thumbup: