About 40% of the time, my Runner will turnover, ignite, check engine light comes on, and dies. This whole process takes about 1.5 - 2 seconds. No flash codes despite light. The other 60% of the time, it fires right up.

New plugs, wires, cap, rotor button, eyeballed vacuum hoses and intake, sprayed down AFM, cleaned throttle body best I could in place, repositioned TPS with multimeter, timing is a little above 8 (sounded smoother at idle, runs better at highway speed, and setting it back to 8 makes no difference with start issue).

The cold start injector gives a good stream of fuel (removed it to watch), and there is no hesitation once started, so that was my excuse to not mess with the fuel filter. Don't have a coil/igniter or junkyard to get one, so that was my excuse for not testing.

Some times it does better on boat gas (no ethanol), seafoam, or ethanol treatment. Sometimes not.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thank you in advance,

 

COR relay?distributor pickup?

 

What's a good way to get to the COR without removing the dash? The shroud would still be in the way after dropping blower motor. Maybe I could get it out through speaker hole via the glove box area. And 60% of the time it starts fine. Would that be a worn start contact or something, and the run contact is fine?


I'm not sure how to check the pickup. Things appear fine with cap and button off. But I guess that doesn't mean it's working perfectly.


Thx,

 

All you have to do is take the kick pannel out and maybe the glove box to get to the cor. Its just above the ecu. The contacts get crappy. You can take he relay apart and sand down the contacts if you like. That AFM is part of the circuit that pulls it in once you have engine air flow. It keeps you fuel pump on.

 

In my 88 4Runner, I can see the top of the COR through the glove box area with the glove box off, but I don't see how to get to it. It's on the a-frame just below the passenger speaker hole well above the ECU. Blower related stuff is in the way via glove box. There is no access, kick panel removed, via the ECU.