firedog1900

I have a 99 Tacoma 4wd 5vz-fe engine with 130K that has been giving me headaches lately. Among other things the MIL has come on (blinking) for only a few seconds at a time. I know this indicates a ciritical misfire but have notice NO changes in driveability and like I said only comes on for a few seconds. Well, I read the OBD codes and it indicated a cyl. 2 & 5 misfire - happen to be on the same igintion coil. Before I replace the coil I wanted to see if anyone has had the same problem and ideas on fix. In the past 6 months I have already replaced MAF sensor, plugs and wires, TPS, fuel filter, had tranny flush, all belts and pumps. Now I am chasing another problem.

Any idears?

gregbreakseverything

I dont think I can be any help. I had the MIL flashing, but I could deffinattly feel a misfire. The code read misfire cylinder 6. Turned out to be bad wires.

SLC97SR5

Swap the ignition coil with another pack and see what happens, also the boot that attaches to the wire that connects to the coil pack has been know to let in a bit of moisture. Look for areas where water could get in. A dab of silicone or RTV solves that problem.

firedog1900

Great ideas, only problem is that I don't get the error codes on a cosistent basis and only when I run under load, say at around 70mph so switching may not lead to any answers for weeks. I do have a stutter at 4Krpm which i led to me where I am, the coils are reading at 1.9Ohms and factory specs say they should be at 1.2Ohms.

SLC97SR5

I'm assuming you used ALL Toyota components when you did the plugs and wires? These engines sure like the NGK/DENSO products.

firedog1900

I used denso wires.......got 'em from Napa Auto

SLC97SR5

How about the plugs?

firedog1900

same, sorry i didn't mention that at same time....got the factory recommended plugs

SLC97SR5

I would still recommend swapping packs and see what happens, if it occurs on another cylinder then you have found your culprit. I'm interested in the high restivity of all the coils and not just the suspected bad one.

firedog1900

That has me aa bit stunned as well. Honestly, I don't trust the mechanic that found it since it took him 2 confused hours to find and once he did it was like he knew it all along and it was as simple as the nose on his face.

Do you agree with the wire/plug selection?

SLC97SR5

Good choice on the plugs and wires, you've eliminated one possible source. So did YOU check the ohms on the packs or that's what the MX said. I would test them yourself. It's easy remove the pack and place one lead inside the plug opening and the other in the wire opening.

firedog1900

mx did the Ohm reading.

Thanks for the help. I will switch the packs and see if it produces any new codes. I will also check the Ohm readings for myself and go from there.


Last question for you and like I said I am having many "small" irritations with the rig (130K miles). Another is I am having a clicking/knocking noise coming from engine when I start in the morning mainly when engine is cold or hasn't been run for a couple days. Sounds like fan or something. Any way recommended to pinpoint problem?

SLC97SR5

Is it on the DS up by the EVAP? If so it's probably the VSV...vacumm switching valve. You can disconnect the valve and flush it out with some WD-40. This helps remove gum and lube it up.

firedog1900

You bring up a good question. Firest of all, yes there is a clicking noise that is located up near dash in engine compartment on driver's side. This noise is always going when rig is running.
The other noise, the one I wrote about sounds like it is near front driver's side (near belts/fan).

Where is evap you are talking about?

SLC97SR5

It's the rectangular black plastic box that has various hoses connected to it. My '97 4Runner may be a bit different.

trf4x4

Hey Firedog, I just went through what your going through. I changed the plugs and wires and still got the same code. ( misfire #2 and #5 ) This drove me nuts for about a month. I have a freind that work in the service dept. at the yota stealership. He had one of the techs put it on the scanner. He determained that the misfire was'nt electrical. He though maybe fuel related. I did the Bg injector cleaning. That did'nt help. He decided to pull the timing belt cover and look at the timing marks. It was off by one tooth. They got it back in time and all the codes went away. My truck was running good, so I thought. Now it runs great. I don't know what caused it to jump time. I hope this helps. Tommy

toyota_mdt_tech

A blinking check engien light it critical missfire. You are right, and the cat is getting real hot real quick. Get it fixed.