rollcenter

Ok I have 195 thousand miles plugs are great I keep it in tune here is the rub. This has been going on from the day I bought it but now it is getting bad. I put in a cap and rotor it runs great then a couple days later or even go to the store and no start. I carry 3 caps and rotors. Change cap and rotor it runs fine. I get like a dielectric build up on the pick up points in the cap. Scrape it with a knife and it works It is a white smoky color. I know the problem but for the life of me cant find the problem that is the cause. Yes I have changed the coil. Do I need a new distributor or ecu. Please someone else has had to have this problem and cured it. And if anyone in Weld County Colorado can work on this rig get hold of me I have some engine stuff I want to do. I just do not have time.

Gamefreakgc

Do you have a voltmeter or multi-meter to test the volts at the distributor? The problem is obviously at the distributor but it's up in the air on whether it is that actual distributor or a power supply issue.

Do you happen to have access to another distributor that you could swap in?

rollcenter

Yes I have a fluke what range and what do I test I do not have a spare dist. I would buy one if needed I was thinking that the dist is the problem but man this truck is clean im the second owner. Any help is what I need right now I live way out in the country and we have no close mech I trust.

rollcenter

Ok im thinking igniter is going south.
How do I test it. I have a spare coil it does the same thing guess I will shell out a couple hun to see if I am right.

Gamefreakgc

Here's the specs if you have a multimeter (start on IGN-22):

http://personal.utulsa.edu/~nathan-b...12onvehicl.pdf

scope103

There's no dielectric inside the distributor. You could be leaking oil into the distributor (which is burning inside due to the arcing), or you could have melted some insulation which is ending up on the cap contacts.

I'd look more closely at the stuff you scrape from contacts, to see what it is.

rollcenter

Well maybe that is the wrong word I have no problems with the dist. No oil no melted wires nothing. And that would show up in other places inside the cap. Really dont need to go round and round about what might or could cause it. I would like to know from another yota owner that may have had this problem or a mech that has seen this and found the cure. Not trying to be rude but I have been in the background here for years and followed threads to fix other problems along with mods to my truck. I just cannot believe I am the only one having this problem. But that would be my luck. I am not without pretty good advanced mech skills x aircraft mech Nascar Tech Inspector Hot Rod and Race car chassis fabricator. I have very little time IE working 130 to 140 hours every 2 weeks. So I think the igniter would be the only thing that controls the VOLTAGE that runs the dist or am I wrong. Now the inside of the cap is clean the pick up points get Glazed over with a white coat that blocks the spark to the plugs. I scrap off with a knife it then works again. Since this is intermittent I assume it is a voltage problem not oil or burned coatings. That would be a visible problem.

Gamefreakgc

I've never heard this specific issue. However... I did have a thought... is the caps your a using air-tight? Do you live in an area with high humidity? If there's moisture seeping in from the outside, it could cause the metal to corrode quickly. Out here in CA the air is fairly dry so it takes about 5 years for the caps to rust on the inside.

If you do think it is voltage, do the checks from the FSM above. The don't take long if you have a multimeter, you'll need to measure both voltage and ohms (resistance).

rollcenter

Ok so for anyone who may have this type of problem. It seems to be my igniter has a glitch in it. It didn't just go out it was a intermittent problem. So troubleshooting was almost impossible. I finally broke down and bought a new Igniter 253 bucks, SIDE NOTE TO ALL NEVER AND I MEAN NEVER use PARTSGEEK They are a rip off I am now trying to recover 285 bucks from them but they refuse to answer any emails sent to them they took the money but never shipped the parts. The truck runs great and has not had a no start problem since I put in the igniter I replaced the coil too since that is the part that can foul up the igniter and cause it to fail. Next a 4Crawler Iderler arm and bushing set up Moog pitman arm and ball joints. Anyone live in Weld County Colorado and work on 3.0 v6 contact me if you want some side work.