1999 Land Cruiser Suddenly Hard to Start (1 Viewer)

[jeckel30]

I recently purchased a 1999 Land Cruiser with 162k miles. It is in pretty good shape. I have had it a few months and it has fired up every time. In the past week I have had a problem starting it. When I go out after it has sat for hours it will fire up every time. If I stop and try restarting immediately or within 10-20 minutes it will crank hard but won't fire unless I give it gas. I have to hold down the pedal for a minute so it won't die and then it will catch and run fine. As soon as it idles ok, if I look under the hood, it smells like a lot of gas.

At first I though it was the immobilizer until I realized it would start while holding the gas. I ended up checking fuses, and keys, and relays before holding down the gas pedal worked. I checked hoses for cracks and can't find any. What else should I be looking at? I have searched a bunch on the forums and don't see too many people with this specific issue as compared to the key/immobilizer issue.

Also what relay clicks under the passenger glove box when starting? It seems pretty loud and I am not sure if it is related.

 

[PabloCruise]

Sounds like air/fuel related?

 

[jeckel30]

Sounds like air/fuel related?

Yeah, it seems most likely. I am not sure exactly where to start.

Has anyone had a fuel filter give this issue? I may replace since it is easy.

 

[DirtDawg]

I would replace fuel filter if you haven't yet and see if that helps. Also getting someone else to crank it while you look around the engine (with the cover off), can lead to simple solutions. It also sounds like you might have one of two problems. One could be a fuel leak causing hard start up, but I would imagine you would be experiencing other issues as well. Maybe a bad fuel pump? Its clearly a fueling problem and I doubt its related to the injectors.

 

[Julian Stead]

Sounds like it is over fueling for some reason,I would check air filter, oxy sensor, MAF sensor and engine temp sensor. If you have techstream you can read live data and check for codes.

 

[suprarx7nut]

I would check codes. Do you have a scanner? If not and you have an Android I'd recommend a cheap bluetooth OBDII adapter and the $5 torque app. I think Reading codes and watching OBDII info would lead you to the right answer here faster and in a more cost effective manner than poking around randomly.

 

[jeckel30]

I would check codes. Do you have a scanner? If not and you have an Android I'd recommend a cheap bluetooth OBDII adapter and the $5 torque app. I think Reading codes and watching OBDII info would lead you to the right answer here faster and in a more cost effective manner than poking around randomly.

I have an Actron scanner and it shows no codes.

 

[Phthom]

Check your fuel pressure. If residual pressure is bleeding off to 0 that could explain your prob, as well as no codes. Filter wouldn't be bad enough to keep it from running unless it would run terribly when eventually started.

 

[Julian Stead]

My guess is oxy sensor issue..

 

[Julian Stead]

Have you removed the plugs, it does sound like it is flooding. When you put your foot on the gas pedal it probably starts because your giving it more air not fuel, the strong smell of fuel almost confirms this. When the vehicle cold starts the oxy sensor is open loop so the engine doesn't use the info to regulate fuel mixture, when it warms up its closed loop and then uses the oxy sensor data so this might be why cold starts aren't an issue. Just abit of an explanation to my thoughts on this.

 

[jeckel30]

My guess is oxy sensor issue..

That may be a good point. I am not sure if they have been changed. My gas mileage has been lower than expected. About 11-12 highway.

 

[lethal1]

Any verdict on this @jeckel30 ? I am having the exact same issue with my '99

 

[ton504]

Ive ran across leaky injectors. They will leak fuel into cylinders and cause a hard start until the vehicle sits long enough for the fuel to leak past the rings.

 

[Salty75]

Any resolution to this? Having the exact same issue.

 

[Bigfish100]

Clean the throttle body. You’ll be surprised how well they behave afte.

 

[fooldall1]

Clean the throttle body. You’ll be surprised how well they behave afte.

This. Easy and probably will fix the issue. Any O2 sensors being out would (should) throw a code- even if it's just the heating circuit in the sensor. Any other sensor issues would likely throw codes which could be easily explained. Also, check the vacuum lines.

 

[Biga27110]

hmmm in for solution.

 

[RandomUser]

Haven’t had this issue with my LC, but I have had it with my Camry as well as my buddies 4Runner. Cleaning the throttle body fixed it both times (for the Camry I also replaced the idle air control valve. It can stick when there is a lot of soot in there). The Camry also ran poorly (idled low and would randomly die while idling) and replacing the O2 sensors (air/fuel ratio sensor for that model particularly) fixed it, but I had codes for it.