I was driving down the highway at about 55mph and my car started lurching. My RPM gauge was staying steady but the car was kicking pretty badly... I turned on a side road and hit the gas and it wouldn't go above 20mph. Then It just died. I still had lights, the radio and ac were still on, and when I tried to restart it it cranked and tried to turn over but wouldn't start. The lights didn't dim when I tried to start it either, so i'm guessing its not a battery or alternator problem? I have over a quarter tank of gas and no known problems with the car... and It has been running fine up until tonight. It's been raining a lot today, and I did drive through a decent sized puddle about 15 minutes before the car died.
It's gotta be the distributor. They are a common fault for that model and I actually have the same model as you. They are very sensitive to water as well. Easy part to replace if you are a do it yourself kind of person. If the distributor goes bad, you can crank it all day long and it wont spark.
You say your rpm gauge was steady the whole time? That sounds like something else but i'll stick with my original guess. Throw a used one in it from a wrecking yard if you like. Make sure to keep the adjuster bolts in the same place as your current position as that is your timing.
Distributor is located on the right side on the top of the engine and have the wires for the spark plugs going into it. you will need a 10mm socket to remove the 2 bolts holding it in. Its easier to do if you disconnect the air intake as well by simply using a screw driver. Any more questions, I'd be happy to answer. All the best
Replaced the spark plugs and wires. car tried to turn over and ALMOST started... but i am smelling fuel pretty bad, so wondering if the fuel filter is clogged and therefore causing it not to start.
also, turns out that the #1 wire was broken inside the cylinder.
I still think its your distributor. The reason you are smelling fuel so bad is because your fuel pump is pumping fuel into the cylinders like it should be but there is no spark to burn it! To test if it is a faulty distributor, you pull out one of the wires that connects to the spark plug and stick a screw driver in the end where the spark plug would be and crank the engine. You should see that screw driver sparking. No spark means its a bad distributor which is a very common problem for that model. I just replaced mine, same symptoms as yours.
could it possibly just be the distributor CAP? I've called around and the cheapest distributor I can find is 130. A distributor cap is 8 bucks. I don't want to spend 130 and it end up just being the cap that needed to be replaced.
Honestly, I doubt it is just the cap but it is possible. Like I mentioned before, I just replaced one on my car recently and I had to replace the whole unit. I picked one up at a wrecking yard, installed it, and now im driving without any problems.
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SOURCE: my clutch works sometimes and sometimes it
A clutch that's failing doesn't behaves like that - it slowly starts slipping until it fails completely and definitely. If it would break suddenly (like when the pressure plate would snap) the noise and the vibrations it would generate would be unbearable.
No, in your case something is failing inside the transmission/gearbox - most likely in the command forks and their locking pins. The gearbox will have to taken off the car and dismantled to investigate and fix that, and it will be expensive.
Testimonial: "could it just be low fluid "
SOURCE: 1999 toyota tacoma Sr5 won't start
Check for fuel pressure when starting. Fuel pumps have a check valve in them that keep fuel in the rail at the injectors. If the check valve fails, the pump has to pump fuel all of the way up to the engine. Same thing with hot no-restarts. Fuel pump.
SOURCE: 1985 Toyota van LE
hi terk
check battery connections are secure if its been changed recent chances are its the live lead has not been fully seated on the cone prior to tightening
SOURCE: Car died
The steering is powered by the crank by a v-belt, so, this only works with the engine turned on. Check all the gas supply lines (and fuel pump) and the electrical power from the distributor.
SOURCE: 95 Camry was running great. Driving down street
check your timing belt; it is probably broken; then: re-time the camshaft pulley with the crankshaft pulley (line up the marks on the new belt) and, install a new one
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Just went out in the daylight and looked under the hood... things are wet. Slight bit of corrosion on my battery terminals had turned into a sludge. Cleaned terminals, checked a few things and car still won't start. Also, #2 spark plug wire is VERY loose.
Replaced the spark plugs and wires. car tried to turn over and ALMOST started... but i am smelling fuel pretty bad, so wondering if the fuel filter is clogged
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