Max OOOO

Hi, I am new on these forums and it seems that this week I have had the perfect storm of difficult to diagnose problems, so here is what I am dealing with, any help would be appreciated.

I have a 1997 4runner v6 4 speed auto 4x4 with 131K, I did an oil change and replaced the air filter about 300 miles ago, and at 120K the timing belt, water pump, and spark plugs were apparently done. (I did not own the car at this point but I do have a receipt)

So I'll start from the beginning, I bought the car in august, and I had it checked out by a mechanic, the valve covers were leaking a little oil and the rear brake shoes had 10% life on them, but other then that it appeared to be in pristine condition, so I had them replace the shoes and neglected the valve covers as there really wasn't that much oil leaking.

The Brakes.
After they replaced the shoes i noticed a heavy vibration, and an odd smell driving around town, so I felt the drums and burned my hands, it took two trips back in to the mechanic for them to resurface the drums and get it right, however every once in a while I will have one of the shoes drag seemingly randomly. Lately when it has been cold I will start the car and let it idle for about 30 seconds, then depress the breaks and put it in gear and turn around, when I go to stop to put it in reverse to complete my turn the petal is hard and I almost hit the curb because the car was so difficult to stop. Also sometimes when I apply the breaks there is a hissing noise.

The Disappearing Coolant
Last week i noticed my coolant was a little low so I topped the reservoir off, today I looked under the hood and it was half empty (Insert pun about my pessimism here.) After the car warms up it doesn't blow white smoke,(It has been about 15-25F when I start the car in the morning so there is some water in the exhaust.) And that is all I can say about the coolant.

Starter Motor, Battery, Alternator
About a month ago when I would go to start the car every once in a while It would just turn over once, or click the first time I tried to start it, and then It would start normally, but after driving around town at night last weekend all I got was the starter solenoid clicking, so I got a jump and I was on my way. The battery is about 4 years old and it was cold that night.

Whining Noise
I start the car to go to school today and let it warm up, (no starting problems this morning), then I almost hit the curb because of the brake booster again, and then I set off, and there is this fairly loud high pitched whining noise, and I cant tell If it is a whistle or a mechanical whine, the intensity and pitch matches the engine RPMs, and it is nearly silent at idle, by the time I made it 2 miles the noise had almost disappeared. It almost sounded like a turbo.

So that's my story, all of the noises and starting issues seem to go away as the car warms up and seem to be made worse by the cold weather lately. I drive the car 2 miles to school and then 2 miles back during the week, and usually do longer trips over the weekend with my friends. I am going to get out my camera and try to replicate the problems later so you guys can hear and see what is going on. I am trying to do more maintenance and repairs myself lately and i have a Chilton's manual, so any advice is welcome.

Thanks

akaphilly

it all seems like basic problems. so heres my take.

the brakes are improperly adjusted most likly. there is a lil thing u spin in the drum to open up the shoes, jsut spin that to close them a little bit.

coolant. check oil and tranny fluid make sure its not going anywhere it shouldnt be.

just get a new battery and or starter. and thw whining noise. just get new belts. or just tighten them up a bit.

lot and lots of info on this site. alot of step by step writeups. search around a bit goodluck

Yukon

Are you mechanically inclined?

First the brakes.

Check on hte back of the drums. There will be a cable running to a mechanism, this is the aprking brake. Make sure the mechanism pivots FREELY, well, with some resistance from a spring. Your brakes will not adjust properly without these. Once you free them up, pull up and down on your hand brake a lot, then put the parking brake on, and drive in reverse a bit. This will adjust them.
If the things are stuck, I'd be surprised if this doesn't fix it. Or at least make it better, there might be bigger issues there.

Starter:
Replace your starter contacts, and plunger. The parts can be found at the dealer (big money) Or at an alternator/starter shop. (I got all mine for 21 bucks out the door)
You'll remove the starter, then undo a few bolts, and put it all back in and it will start every time.

Could be a head gasket issue with the coolant.. Fill it up, and look around for leaks, radiator, hoses, pools in your driveway, parking space.


Whining, could need new belts. Does the sqealing go away after warming up, or running a bit?

Max OOOO

Thanks for replying.

Sort of, I'm in high school and this is my first car, but between my dad and I we should be able to figure most of this out. Right now time and money is an issue for me, so i dunno.

So, it sounds like I should be able to figure out the brakes, despite the fact that after 3 trips to the mechanic they didn't get it right. I'm still worried about the master cylinder going on me though.

As far as the coolant goes, it's not in the oil or the tranny, and I don't see any drips or leaks, so I guess i'm gonna have to keep looking to try to figure out where it is running off to.

I'm reluctant to do all of that work on the starter and replace the battery to find out it is the alternator going, could the whining noise be the alternator? The belts are good, and yes the noise seems to be only present when it is below 20 out for the first couple of miles.

Yukon

Perfect, I started the game with my runner as my first car, and not too much knowledge about cars, and an incomplete socket set.

Take a look at the brakes, start there. It might not be right, but its all about checking items off the possible causes list, starting with the cheapest stuff!

I'd say you have a safe bet on the starter contacts, if they aren't bad, they will be soon if you have the stock starter. Most people replace them in the 110,000-130,000 range. When I figured out mine were going, I first went out and bought a new battery, then it would still click (admittedly less, the battery was bad, but that was the winches fault) But it didn't fix the problem 100%, put new contacts in, and no issues since. Its a 4 hour job MAX. There are write ups on removing the starter, that's the hardest part, its two 14mm bolts its just in a tricky spot.

As for the belts, start the car up, cold, with the hood up, does the sound seem to come from the belts? Its hard to describe belt squeal, but its very high pitch, and can be RPM dependent. If the belts look worn, might be time for new ones.

I don't know about coolant loss.

Toyota Pete

I would have the battery checked. If you have a bad battery the whine you hear may be the alternator working hard for the first few miles to recharge a marginal battery. Also the suggestion of bad starter contacts is probably right on the money. A weak battery will contribute to contacts going bad faster. Low volts = Higher amperage, causing starter contacts to burn faster.

xfactor203

x2 on having the battery checked - that sounds like it could solve the starter problem, and won't cost anything (to check it, anyway).

You could have an external coolant leak and not know it. They can be hard to find. I'd check really well for drips and moisture before chasing after a headgasket if losing coolant is your only symptom. Do you have to keep adding coolant, or has the level maintained after you added the second time? Perhaps you just had some air in the system.

logsurfer

where do you live? Maybe I can help you with some things..

I would strongly recommend you start with the brakes as this is a safety issue.
I haven't fiddled with the rear brakes yet so I can't give any advise to you at this point.

The leaking valve covers might be caused by loose bolts. clean the leaks, tighten the bolts and
observe for leaks. if it leaks again, time to replace your valve cover gaskets.

for the dissappearing coolant, did you recently flush the cooling system? this happened to me
too and after two top offs (within a month) my fluid level on the reservoir stayed put. It was
air that got purged in the system, but if you want to make sure do a pressure test on your cooling system

for the starter, i would put my money on the starter contacts. Please dont buy a new starter.
Get new starter contacts and rebuild your starter. it will last for another 130k.

for the whiny noise, let it idle, pop the hood and start looking for the culprit.

stir_fry_boy

You may need to check the water pump, you didn't mention if that was replaced with the timing belt? Sometimes they are not done at the same time. As far as the contacts go, that is your cheapest fix. It is a pain, but well worth the money you save. $20 is far far away from $500. Do you have the infamous rear oil seal leakage? Oil leaks from the diff onto your brake pads, this can cause your truck not to stop.

mt_goat

X2...on the tranny fluid look for anything that looks like a strawberry milkshake, and/or too high level. Check it with the engine running after driving some to warm it up.

On the engine oil look for signs of chocolate milkshake.

hross14

Take an auto shop class while you are in school.....learn the basics and get your knuckles bloodied doing some problem solving. AND SEARCH here on the forum.

This stuff is very basic--and hisses mean that you probably have a vacumm leak somwhere--track it down using soap bubbles or little brake clean......

buy a book explaining the basics of auto repair if you dont take autoshop and plan on having transmission problems if it hasnt already been replaced.

Also think about replacing these items very soon

O2 sensors
Throttle Position Sensor (TPS)
Clean the Mass Air Flow Sensor (MAF)

There really arent "tricks" when it comes down to it--in actuality you have to open it up to see what is happening. and i would certainly do that if it were my brake system.

Max OOOO

Ok, first of all, I found the coolant leak, turns out the reservoir was cracked so i just need to pull that out and either replace it or try to patch the leak, so that's one problem down.

As far as the brakes go the petal was hard again this morning, but I talked to a few of my friends with older cars, and they had the same problem as i did, so, i dunno if all of our cars are screwed up or if it is normal due to the cold weather.(it was 9F when I left for school this morning by the way) As far as the rear brakes go, i messed with the parking brake cable a bit and i dunno if i freed up a part or something, but they haven't been a problem lately.

The whining noise is still there but much reduced, i think it is just because of the cold.

I'm going to get my battery tested this weekend, and probably buy a new one even if it is just a little weak, and in a few weeks my dad has a week off of work and we are going to do the starter contacts per your guys' suggestion.

Yea, i wish, they got rid of auto shop and wood shop years before I made it to high school.

nah2323

Hey Max,

A lot of the info given here is helpful. Based on my experience, I would check the following things.

Brakes:
Check to make sure the "bell crank" is freely moving on your e-brake. If you pull the handle up, is there any play before there is resistance? Thats usually the best indicator, and is a common thing with the 4runner.
Secondly, check the adjustments on the rear brakes. With the car off the ground safely, spin the rear wheels. There should be a small amount of "brake drag" on it. If not, you'll need to adjust the rear shoes.
Thirdly, check the brake fluid. It's supposed to be pretty clear. Brown fluid contains copper, which is harmful for any hydraulic system.

Coolant:
- solved.

Battery etc:
Check to make sure all of your grounds are good. I know I had similar symptoms because of a bad ground.
Also, clean your connections on the battery, and the starter with a clean wire brush and some sort of cleaner. Then spray terminal protector on both.

Squeals:
Check to make sure that your belts are tight. General rule of thumb is that the belt should be tight enough if you try to twist the belt roughly 180 degrees. Remember new(er) belts will stretch, so a re-tighten will be needed.
While you're at it take a small can of spray lubricant, and lightly (and I mean lightly) spray a little oil on the center portion of NON COMPONENT pulleys while its running. A non component pulley is something that is just there to keep tension on the belt. Not the alternator and A/C unit etc.. If the noise quiets down immediately, there's your problem.

Otherwise, good luck and may the schwartz be with you.

brian2sun

Why? A '97 w/ 131K isn't bad, my '97 is shifting smooth as ever at 193K.

GoFaSSter

I would check for a vacuum leak somewhere near your brake booster. Do the brakes improve when the hissing stops?

fotorunner

A 4 year old battery? I'd replace that and I suspect your starting problems will disappear.

Also is the hard brake thing only happening when its cold outside?

Transmission problem? I'm at 224,000 and haven't had tranny problems.

1styota4X4

Before tearing into the starter check the ohm readings on the the battery cable. UI have had a couple friends with your body style runner have a faulty positive cable. They found it out the ahrd way after replacing the starter and the battery. Just my 2 cents

BigBallsMcFalls

man..I cry for 3rd gens with a multitude of issues..it has to be neglect, or it was in a flood or something....

I just broke 200,000 on mine, I am the one and only original driver and owner, and have always gone to the dealer for regular service and when ordinary stuff broke (rear heater tubes....normal stuff like that) and it is running great ! best rig ever

hross14

Other have had problems with the auto. Not everybody but enough.....to warrant it an item to keep an eye on.

brian2sun

I have to say, I think the A340F is one of the most bulletproof transmissions around. Compared to a Ford, Chevy, or Chrystler A/T, Toyota's product is leagues above the competition and at 131K, the OP's trans has probably only lived 1/2 it's life - if that.