The part that makes me nervous isn't the lack of starter so much; it's the fact that a lot of accessories aren't working. I have no door locks or windows working, no dash gauges illuminated, and no movement from the needles. Just remembered there's fuses on the remote starter. Found one of the two is burnt (30A) and plugged a new one in. Still no life from the engine, and no door locks or windows. I was hoping the door locks and engine issues were from the command start problems. Perhaps that unit is fried. I have faith that Toyota engineers DID have the foresight to see that dimwits such as I would eventually do the inevitable and engineered the vehicles to sustain the minimum amount of damage. HOWEVER, I question how well I was protected due to having command start installed and the trailer wiring harness. Mostly I'm worried about how the command start affected the flow of power and where it may have allowed the power to flow and cause damage that would not otherwise have occurred. I suppose the fact that one fuse was blown is a positive sign that protection was achieved in some fashion. I would like to know where the burnt smell originated from. I think it was somewhere under the dash. There are SO many wires there, though. I hope it was just the fuses that blew.......

 

You are really going to need to find a wiring/repair manual to chase all this stuff down. I won't BS you, you have some work ahead of you. But with a spot of luck, it's just going to be busy work, chasing down fuses and maybe a singed wire here and there, not component replacement.

 

I sure hope so. Guess I'll quit for today. I don't think there's much i can do until I get wiring diagrams. Thanks for the diagram offer, NAM; I'll take advantage of your offer if you don't mind. I don't mind waiting that long. I expect this could drag on for weeks, perhaps. Will post more if I start making more progress. Until then, thanks to all who have answered questions.

 

There is the main alt fuse in the panel by the battery (100 amp).

Need email addy to send printer image (but can't send til later tonight)

PM your addy

 

Hopefully the wiring diagram you need is on this page:

http://www.autozone.com/servlet/UiBr...3d80161a4e.jsp

Rob

 

Looked at that page already; it seems like it's only for the 3.0L earlier generation trucks?

 

Bunch of blown fuses. First one to check in the large ALT fuse located int he engine room. Note, anything over 60 amps must be unbolted, wont just pull out. And then shart checking all other fuses, outside and on the inside fuse block. Now when all blown fuses are replaced, then you have to see what doesnt work. If your lucky, all will work!

 

No blown alt fuse present. I've replaced all of the blown fuses. Wondering if my command start is fried. Does any one know if the vehicle can function properly with command start disconnected? I have another, older command start from my other truck, perhaps it can plug right in. I want to keep my troubleshooting as simple as possible, so if the truck should be able to run without the command start hooked up, I'll just leave it out for now.

So after replacing all blown fuses that were found (read earlier in thread, they were all listed) I have the following working:
-headlights hi/low beam, but no parking lights, tail lights or dash illumination
-horn, interior dome light, door chime, and door ajar indicator in dash
-red LED on radio, otherwise dead.
-a faint click heard when I turn ignition key to "start"
Edit: also found that hazard lights work, but have no sinal lights

As far as I can tell, these are the ONLY things working. Not sure if other parts are getting power.

I've looked at the online shop manuals I found links to from this site (2003 tacoma, and a '92-96 4Runner on the Autozone site) Both seemed to have enough differnces from my wiring that I want to wait for the correct diagram before I go ripping into things..... I still can't figure out where the fusible links are or what they look like; I've never had to mess around with them before on any of my vehicles, so this is new territory for me.

I'm convinced that something MAJOR is still keeping a lot of systems from getting their power, I just don't know what it is. I want to track down the fusible links and rule them out one by one. After that, I suppose it is time to start tracking down individual components and circuits to see if they have power. I'm feeling very frustrated with this already as I don't even have the proper information to guide me along as far as wiring diagrams. Everyone I've talked to seems so optimistic that this won't involve replacing ECU and such, but I'm really starting to wonder if something major like that is cooked, because if it isn't a fusible link, what other alternatives are there? I've listed what is working and what isn't in case someone more technically savy than I can help me pinpoint the problem. I'm good at installing electrical components, but I am not very experienced at electrical diagnosis and troubleshooting. If the problem is not fusible links, I think I will poke around to see if there where are the circuits with power. I will record my findings, then have the vehicle towed to Red Deer to have an expert figure out the rest, because this is stressing me out already!!!

 

I've got partial power in the main underhood fuse box and the dash panel fuse box. Did some testing with the multimeter and found power at the following fuses:
Dash: 7.5A IGN
Underhood: 7.5A OBD, 15A EFI, 15A HORN, 15A DOME
I don't have power to the rest of the fuses, by all indications. Did not take the large (30A and larger) fuses out of underhood panel; I touched the metal "buses" inside the fuse box (from above, where they were visible) with a multitester, and found no power anywhere, except for the few fuses that were hot. I'm not sure where these few fuses are getting their power from, but it seems as though all other power is out.
Thanks for the note about the larger fuses being attached underneath, I was puzzled as to why the larger fuses were not coming out easily. Good thing I gave up trying; I probably would have broken something trying to get them out!

 

replace the blown fuses and try to start it asap

 

Sorry, but did you read any of this thread before you replied? I've already replaced the blown fuses and tried to start it. I was posting my progress so that someone who was following this thread might be able to figure out and aid me in pinpointing the problem. Sorry if this is a bit of a rant, but please read thread so as to not repeat others advice. Thanks. EDIT: Apparently, I should have listened to your advice; this in fact is the main problem!

 

:pat: OK, I FOUND IT!!!!! Overlooked several times, but the main 100A alternator fuse WAS blown. It was extremely hard to spot, and I only came back to it because it was the only possibility left. I was poking around the underside of the fuse box, and I was getting no current downstream of the alternator fuse to anything, yet I had power right up to it. Decided to unbolt the fuse so I could take a proper resistance reading across the terminals. Infinite resistance. How interesting. Pried the fuses clear cover off for a better look inside the house and holy smokes; there's the problem staring me in the face. The fuse burnt off at one side after the curve inside it, almost where it becomes the fat terminal end. Virtually impossible to spot with the clear cover on it, due to reflections. So I guess I'll try to get a new fuse and then see what happens. Still no guarantee that the old girl will start, but I should have power to a lot more stuff and be able to get her to turn over, I think. Guess we'll see........ Damn, it sure feels good to have figured out this piece of the puzzle!

 

Yes! That's progress.

 

OK, now slowly say "sorry toyota_mdt_tech, I was out of line and you were right all along"

 

......i'm sooorrrryy.........

 

All is well now. Replaced fuse and the 'Runner fired right up. BIG THANKS TO ALL WHO HELPED ME THROUGH THIS!!!

 

Awesome thread. I read it all the way through with anticipation. So glad everything turned out good for you.:bigclap:

 

Thanks for posting the thread. As I said at the begining, this can happen to anyone, so posting your experience is of value to all of us.

 

Yes, it is quite possible that my main purpose in life is to serve as a warning to others.......

 

For some reason, someone put. “-“ mark on my positive terminal and I tried to jump my Tacoma with reversed polarity. The batteries “pos” and “neg” are hidden by the cables. Yes… there was a red boot on the pos, so I am at fault too.

Anyway, in an attempt to help others learn from my mistakes…. My horn started blaring immediately, so I did jump out of the truck and disconnect immediately, but my truck wouldn’t run after that.

I replaced the battery, and the truck would start, but wound t accelerate.

The 140 A Alt fuse (under the hood) was blown, which prevented it into going into gear. I connected the burnt terminals with some forceps and it went into gear, but no acceleration beyond 2000rpm.

I eventually found the ETCS fuse (under the hood) was blown. That brought back acceleration.

My radio fuse (under the hood) was blown as well. That brought back the radio and camera.

My passenger side window doesn’t work from the driver side controls and the locking system isn’t working, but the truck is working. I haven’t pulled all the fuses from under the dash yet.

I hope this helps someone get back on the road.