Problem vehicle is a 1995 Toyota 4-Runner 3.0L.  Seems to start ok on cold soak overnight, but once running it was hard to restart. Vehicle seemed to run awful rich but failed to set any codes. The overall condition of this vehicle was poor, so we needed to keep it going cheap as it is DEFINITLEY ON IT LAST LEG!!!  Anyway 1st fault discovered was the air intake boot. It’d been bothced up by anther shop with the Black Tape, but was clearly a vacuum leak–(air entering the motor without passing thru the MAF). Replaced the air intake hose & problem was better but not fixed. Couldn’t seem to start it after a short test drive & a 10-15 min soak. Engine was always flooding out.  Fuel smell was quite evident, but hard to locate. Finally discovered fuel inside new air intake hose.  Looking into the plenum with throttle wide open fuel was puddled up everywhere. Tip Time. This vehicle has a COLD START INJECTOR located 180′ from the throttle body. Upon removal I discovered even with it unplugged the injector was still dumping serious amount of fuel into the intake & needed replacement.  Replaced the faulty injector & all is perfect.

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Tip: HARD STARTING HOT
Vehicle: 1995 Toyota 4Runner SR5
Category/Subcategory: Engine Performance / Testing and Diagnostics
Title/Heading: TESTS W/O CODES - 3.0L / Engine Difficult to Start Under Normal Conditions
Posted By: Jeremy G
Shop: VILLAGE CENTER AUTO CARE
Date: 3/17/2009

jeep comes in has a stalling prob.  hook it up and has numerous codes but only has to do with the stalling.  po505.  i let it run with a moniter in the pids and a graph of the iac actions.  never died or anything until i wiggled wiring at the back of the head coming out of the back of the injector harness insulator.  by the way this is a 4.0L.  i grab the harness and start feeling and find that the head stud had wore into the insutlation and started in on the brown w/white tracer wire.  the wire was grounding against the head stud very intermittently. while running i noticed the iac target and actual steps would go clear down to 0.  not right.  fixed the wiring and everything went back to normal.

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Tip: iac wiring
Vehicle: 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited
Category/Subcategory: Engine Performance / Testing and Diagnostics
Title/Heading: POWERTRAIN DIAGNOSTIC PROCEDURES / Symptom: P0505-IDLE AIR CONTROL MOTOR CIRCUITS
Posted By: diesel man
Shop: BRADS REBUILD
Date: 3/12/2009

Codes P0703 and P2299 are stoplight switch codes , but when stoplight switch goes bad it can knock out electric throttle when driving .  Does not have to be on cruise , or at high speed . Computor senses throttle is applied and then that brakes are applied and knocks out electric throttle . Sometimes just a little movement of throttle pedal will wake throttle back up . Another clue is a red light in cluster with the symbol   ) / (  [ slash is electric volt ] will come on when problem occurs . This problem with knocking out throttle will not occur if brake is applied - then throttle [ as in power braking to load an engine ] .  This p[robley should also be posted in brake section .     Butch    

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Tip: Throttle cut out when driving w/5.7 drive by wire
Vehicle: 2004 Dodge Pickup R1500
Category/Subcategory: Accessories and Equipment / Communication Devices
Title/Heading: POWERTRAIN DIAGNOSTIC PROCEDURES (PART 1) / ON-BOARD DIAGNOSTICS
Posted By: ButchK
Shop: BUTCHS AUTOMOTIVE SERVICE
Date: 3/26/2009

Took about 3 days to figure this out.  Engine ran fine otherwise, no check engine light or anything.  Found out that the wire for the idle switch (blue/yellow wire off of TPS) will rub and short to ground - that’s when the computer thinks you are coasting with the foot off the gas so it cuts fuel (Spark will be there all the time) until it is able to get back down to 1400 rpm.  Just run another wire to the computer and all will be well agian!
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Tip: Engine will rev up to 2300 RPM than cut out until 1400 RPM
Vehicle: 1991 Toyota Previa DX
Category/Subcategory: Engine Performance / Testing and Diagnostics
Title/Heading: TESTS W/O CODES / SYMPTOM DIAGNOSIS
Posted By: Matt A.
Shop: 10 MILE TELEGRAPH BP AMOCO
Date: 3/24/2009

We had a Tacoma that had the rear axle bearing and seal replaced at another shop.  Customer came to us because previous shop attempted to repair several times to no avail.  Upon initial inspection , it appeared that the inner seal was damaged.  so I replaced inner seal and brake linings.. A few weeks later car comes back for an oil change.   I reinspected repairs and to my dismay, it was still leaking gear oil .a more in depth inspection was nessesary.   upon a closer inspection ,I removed the A.B.S. speed sensor from both axles…

looking in through the hole , I could see what the problem might be.  the A.B.S tone wheel was positioned further out on the right side axle.  something did not look right.   removing the axle , i could see the problem.  the previous installer had pressed the bearing retainer on too far.  resulting in the inner seal to not ride in its correct position.  mater of fact it was not even in contact with the surface on the retainer…

See step #2 for further instructions, and figure #4 for reference. 

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Tip: Rear axle bearing seal leak.
Vehicle: 2001 Toyota Tacoma
Category/Subcategory: Driveline/Axles / Differentials & Drive Axles
Title/Heading: DIFFERENTIALS & AXLE SHAFTS - REAR / Installation
Posted By: Tim__G 
Shop: JAYS CAR REPAIR
Date: 3/17/2009

  Ever had one of those axles you just can’t get out,can’t get prybar in to get a bite? generally drivers side,generally mazda tranny’s. Had one last night, reminded me of a trick i’ve used for quite awhile,thought i’d share with ya.

    Pull out the welder,weld a good thick bead on side of inner c.v. housing.Now you have something for your prybar or tool of choice to catch on.( I personally have taken an old tire iron used for pulling bead of tire over rim and notched the center,works great) Put on weld,one good swing with three lb. sledge and axle is laying on the ground.Works every time! Take axle to grinder,grind off weld and put in corpse pile.

  Hope this helps someone out sometime.

                              Thom
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Tip: Axle Replacement - 20 min.job gone bad!!
Vehicle: 1993 Mercury Tracer
Category/Subcategory: Driveline/Axles / Axle Shafts
Title/Heading: AXLE SHAFTS - FRONT / FWD AXLE SHAFTS
Posted By: Thom G.
Shop: T AND T REPAIR
Date: 2/26/2009

If you are having this issue, try this BEFORE replacing the RWAL Sensor in the rear end.

Remove the connector at the ABS unit on the Drivers side corner of the engine compartment. If there is moisture it will cause this issue. Dry it out and reconnect. Speedo should sit steady at 0 and the ABS & Brake lights should go out automatically.

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Vehicle: 2004 Dodge Pickup R1500
Category/Subcategory: Brakes / Anti-Lock/Traction Control
Title/Heading: BRAKES ABS / REAR WHEEL ANTILOCK
Posted By: Nick - Tech 1
Shop: BOGUE AUTO SALES
Date: 2/27/2009

The code C1245 is in most cases the TPMS system reporting a low tire, As you read down to “Conditions for Clearing the DTC” you will note that it states to use a scan tool. Unless you have a GM Tech2 you wont get it done as most scanners do not have full access to the TIM reset! Generic module status and reset wont allow the code to reset unless TPMS warning is reset first.

First verify you do not have any other ABS codes (wheel speed sensor) or TCS Traction control codes if not, turn the ign switch to KOEO and cycle the headlight switch 3 times on/off to the park light position within 5 seconds to reset the dash TPMS warning. After the TPMS warning is reset, you can clear the C1245 code from the system. Verify your tire pressures and you are off and running again…

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Tip: Code C1245 Time Saver
Vehicle: 2002 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS
Category/Subcategory: Accessories and Equipment / Warning System
Title/Heading: TIRE PRESSURE MONITORING / ARTICLE BEGINNING
Posted By: Rob Marlette 
Shop: TNX AUTOMOTIVE
Date: 2/20/2009

I have ran into several vahicles with misfire codes caused by restricted fuel injector inlet screens. This is common on many makes and models esp with returnless fuel systems. To fix this I remove the injectors and put them  BACKWARDS  in an old fuel rail I have laying around, then I mix 1 gal of gas with 3oz lucas FI cleaner, and hook the rail to my FI cleaner tank, I then use an old OTC injector tester to pulse the injectors with the fuel flowing backwards through the injector. This is an easy, fast, cheap, and effective way to fix this wtih out replacement. Before re-instalation, flush the fuel rail to make sure no junk is in the rail to undo what you just did. I use my SnapOn inspection camera to look into the injector inlet and look for trash, it is easy to see when it is all gone.

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Tip: Clogged injectors
Vehicle: 1995 Dodge Pickup R1500
Category/Subcategory: Engine Performance / Testing and Diagnostics
Title/Heading: BASIC TESTING - 5.2L GASOLINE / FUEL SYSTEM
Posted By: liljoe268
Shop: MAYOS SERVICE CENTER
Date: 2/3/2009

Had an Altima in the other day, low cooling, mimicking a bad compressor. High side low at 130 to 140 max, low side high at 40 to 50. Client asked for a leak test, evac and recharge. Leak test was negative, the evac did confirm proper charge. I did notice a slight haze of A/C dye at the suction line fitting at the evaporator . So after evac, I pulled the hose to inspect the fitting and o-ring. I didn’t notice any dye between the o-ring and shoulder for the retaining nut. So, I suspected a small crack in the shoulder of the fitting. To inspect, I had to move the hose verticle as my eyesight is fading. When I did, I heard a noise from the hose portion much like a rap of a knuckle on a wood table.

I removed the hose and used my borescope to inspect and found the liner collapsed. The photo is after I replaced it and cut it open.

The compressor was indeed going into suction but would not show it on gages because the lo port is in an aluminum tube before the hose section to the compressor. The collapsed portion is aluminum and will open up during an evac and charge and will eventually blow out and block the cross section of the hose with use.

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Tip: Low Cooling, High Lo, Low High
Vehicle: 1999 Nissan Altima GXE
Category/Subcategory: HVAC / Manual HVAC System
Title/Heading: A/C-HEATER SYSTEM / A/C-HEATER SYSTEM OPERATIONAL CHECK
Posted By: ralindwall 
Shop: CATHERINES AUTO REPAIR SVC 1
Date: 2/2/2009