Engine Started cutting out died on my way home

This is my first post here, I apologize if this is long winded or against any guidelines, I can make any changes needed. I bought a 1998 4runner sr5 4wd a few months ago, I want to build it and get it to my fiance as a christmas gift. It needed a lot of work, some body rust (frame is good) leaky valve covers, suspension and brakes. Bought it for 500$. I am a novice, but really want to improve my mechanical prowess. I replaced the valve cover gaskets, and plugs, oil change, with an oil treatment beforehand. Bought a toytec/eibach lift kit, new wheels and tires and everything for the tundra brake upgrade. I was driving it in stock trim while working on other projects for a month or so with no issues, my dad drove it to work, said just before he got there it started running a little rough, on his way home it got worse and worse, the CEL started flashing and it died on him, he was able to restart it, same issue and it died in the driveway and wouldn't start again. I am towing it to a local shop to have the CEL scanned monday night. Does anyone have any ideas? I'm stressing myself out over it too much, figured maybe a sensor or vacuum leak could be it, but didn't know where to start, didn't know if it could be a fuel problem, I wasn't in the vehicle so I'm at a bit of a loss.

 

Not much to do or figure out if it's not in your possession.

Hell, even a lose ground could cause issues...simple as that.

Get yourself a scan tool and find out what your codes are, both present and stored.

 

I appreciate it, I'll go ahead and tow it in monday, see the codes and go from there. I know I had to take 2 or 3 grounds off to do the valve cover gaskets, one may have come loose

 

A flashing CEL isn't a good sign. NEVER start a car with a flashing CEL. You need to pull the codes.

 

Okay, I'll wait for sure then. I'll give an update when I get the codes read

 

Wanted to check my grounds. Saw this one was cut. Does anyone know what it's for?

 

I tightened the ground by the plenum and alternator, no changes. Hoping this sheared wire could be the problem. Didn't know if anyone had any input. Thank you all thus far.

 

Bad, bad, bad!

That's the body to battery ground. So many things are grounded to the body, it just amazing. There may be other paths to the battery, but this is THE ground for 99% of what's in the truck. INCLUDING the head ground. Head>body> battery. Because of the head gasket, the head to engine block electrical connection is virtually non-existent. Without that, little or no spark. And that's just to start. I could go on and on with systems that are affected, but you get the idea. Fix that immediately!
Clean the bolt while you're at it. That corrosion will be a huge problem.

Sorry, not trying to be bossy, but that's one of THE most important wires in the truck, however humble and unpreposessing it may appear. From the factory, there's only two, that one, and the one going to engine block down on the AC bracket, that the starter, and various sensors use. But almost no path for current flow for all the rest of the truck's electrical systems. I cannot imagine who would cut that, unless they're really upset with you, or the truck. And who doesn't love a 4Runner??
Just a side note, clean those battery terminals real well. Not just the outside, "look-good" part, but the inside, where they wrap around the terminals out of the battery. A brass brush does the job like a dream.

Hope that helps a little..
Pat☺

 

I really appreciate it. And I'm an EMT, I have to park in a part of town full of crackheads that don't like us...could be that, and yeah, I'm pretty embarrassed with how I've let the truck look cleanliness wise. Didn't plan to drive it until I worked on it more, then events happened and I needed to, will definitely replace it, and do a full degrease/detail of the engine bay. And that wasn't bossy, it was extremely helpful.

 

Like Pat said...bad.

If the electrical system isn't grounding through that, it may be grounding through some device or switch and will burn out or corrode that connection.

 

I'm not so concerned with the dirt, grease, etc. You should see my pickup...<ahem>
I'm afraid to degrease and clean it out. I'm afraid the engine will fall out if I do, honestly. I'm afraid the dirt and grease built up is all that's holding it together!
I just keep lots of paper towels on hand when I work on it

Having said that, I would be concerned with the corrosion built up on that ground bolt. Like I said though, for the lead parts, like the terminals, the terminal lugs that are on them and so forth, a brass brush will do the trick nicely, without unduly eroding the lead. For the steel parts, like the bolt and the hole under it, a steel brush will do it for ya.

Almost every auto parts store I've looked in lately has these sets of three brushes for a dollar. Steel, brass, ad nylon, with cheap plastic handles. They work surprizingly well, though. I don't know how many sets I have floating around. I use them all the time. When one wears out, toss it. No great loss. They even fit down through the battery terminal lug holes quite well.

Speaking of, if you have a little time, which I know EMTs don't have a lot of, and the right skills. Which I know EMTs DO Switch over to marine type terminals. They look just like the ones clamped on your battery now, but they have a screw post sticking up vertically. Cut the wires off the current terminal lugs, crimp a decent ring terminal on, and put 2" of heatshrink over it. Meltwall heatshrink. Yeah, I know, I should have told you to put the heatshrink over the cable before you crimp the ring terminal on. THEN slide it down onto the ring terminal and shrink it down. The inner liner of the heatshrink melts and flows into all the interstices (big word for the day!), keeping battery acid from getting inside the insulation and causing the strands of wire to break back under the insulation, where you can't see it. Which causes troubles that can drive you nuts. It also LOOKS much neater and more professional. It drives me nuts to see a cable with it's strands hanging out tangled around the bolt of a battery terminal. Then again, I spent my life as a radar technician, soooo...

McMaster-Carr has the meltwall heatshrink, ring terminals to fit the larger battery cables, the tools to crimp them with, and the heatgun to shrink the heat shrink down. You want the electronics heatgun, NOT the paint stripper kind! It SOUNDS like a large investment, at first, but once you have the heat gun and wire crimpers, the rest is cheap as heck to buy more of.

Anywho, not only does using the marine terminals look neater and more professional, as I said, it protects the cable from battery acid and such. Makes taking the cable off the battery, like for working on the electrical system, MUCH easier. They have a wingnut that holds the cables down. Quick on, quick off...

Switching to optima type batteries helps a LOT with the corrosion trouble, too. No, or MUCH less, acid vapor comes out of them. No acid vapor, no corrosion. Think about it next time you need a battery.

Good luck to ya!
Pat☺

 

I fixed the ground and have cleaned up the terminals. I will definitely do a more permanent replacement soon. As it turns out the reason it died was due to a bad coil pack, I appreciate all of your input. Thanks a ton guys!

 

Ah, easy enough.

Coincidentally I just did my wires and plugs on Monday.

Hope these pics help for part numbers; you definitely want to go dual electrode otherwise you'll be changing plugs twice as fast due to the wasted spark.