2000 Land Cruiser Starting Problem

[thomasjoy]

Hi,

I have a 2000 Land Cruiser which has a typical starting problem.

I have a uphill driveway and I park the Cruiser there. If I leave the it there for couple of days it will not start. First I thought it is the battery and I replaced it with the original Toyota battery. The interesting thing is, as soon as I bring the car to the normal level, I put it in N and bring it down , it will start.

Otherwise there is no other problem. When it has the problem, the starter will not crank at all, like a dead battery.

Any body has seen this type of problem?

Now a days I park it in the street, normal level, not up hill. So no problems.

Thanks in advance.

 

[NMuzj100]

Sounds Like a loose connection somewhere. Have you tried to check all the electrical connections including the grounds ? Have you tried backing into your driveway instead of pulling in and do you have the same problem ?

To those more knowlegable ? Could this be starter contacts effected only when the truck is at an angle?

 

[Jim_Chow]

How's your tranny fluid level? Could it be that a sensor thinks it's low and tells the starter not to start? I presume you tested the battery on an incline to ensure there are no plates exposed due to low battery fluid?

 

[thomasjoy]

I did not check the transmission fluid level. Will it cause this sort of trouble. I will check it today and make sure. When I have this problem, all the dash board lights comes on, I wanted say the battery connection is still there.

But it act like a dead battery, starter will not respond at all. As per an auto mechanic, it could be the battery cells which was not getting enough water( or acid ) while it is in the inclined position.

Thanks,

 

[rph74]

It does indeed sound like starter contact symptoms, but it's weird that it only happens on an incline. It could be coincidence. When I had starter contact problems, I could go for weeks with no symptoms, only to have starting problems come up suddenly for a couple of days. Then the problem would go away again. This cycle continued for some time.

 

[Jim_Chow]

I'm suspecting the battery on the incline (cells not getting enough water) if the dash lights are on. Do the headlights turn on when on the incline? If not, I'd suspect the battery. The dash lights might come on (ie, a bunch of them) if voltage is insufficient. This theory will be further reinforced if the headlights don't turn on, as they take a lot more amps to run. Another way to test is to jump the battery from another car w/ the LC parked on the incline. If it starts up, it's the battery.

 

[calamaridog]

Thomas,

If it turns out to be the battery then you can install a drycell sealed style battery, such as the Odyssey, which will operate at any angle.

 

[rule303]

I had the starting problem once, but it went away.

 

[thomasjoy]

It looks like a starter contact problem, as one of you suggested. I had the same problem today while it was parked on the normal ground level. It did not start for some time and after 5 or 6 attempts it started.

Is it possible to change the starter contacts only? I am afraid if I take it to the dealer, they may ask me to change the whole assembly, which will cost me around $500.

Thanks

 

[ATLcrusher]

If they'll do it for $500, I'd jump all over it. Mine wants more like $900...

 

[rph74]

It looks like a starter contact problem, as one of you suggested. I had the same problem today while it was parked on the normal ground level. It did not start for some time and after 5 or 6 attempts it started.

Is it possible to change the starter contacts only? I am afraid if I take it to the dealer, they may ask me to change the whole assembly, which will cost me around $500.

Thanks

Yes you can change the starter contacts only. I would also have the plunger replaced too-cheap insurance. Have an independent shop that specializes in Toyotas do this for you. I believe that this is a common problem for all Toyotas..both my LC and 93 Lexus SC300 needed this done. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[carson7]

arghh.. have a 99 with 80k on it and it just started doing this 60 days ago - has happened about four times - I cannot recreate the problem - just happens sometimes.

Is this not a do it yourselfer type job? My dealer wants $400 to just take the starter out - they say you have to remove the intake to get to it.

I must vent a bit - I have owned numerous toyotas with great luck.. but this tlc has been a major disappointment.

Throttle control sensor went out
driver side power seat broke
power antenna gears went out
tailgate cables broke
gas guage is somewhat functional - never gives a correct reading

and now the starter!

with only 80k on it.

I think I got a lemon.

Carson

 

[carson7]

oh.. and can you somehow just change the starter contacts on the vehicle??

thanks
Carson

 

[calamaridog]

Figure $200-225 for a remanufactured Toyota starter plus 3-4 hours actual labor. Your looking at around $500 total being a very fair price from a mechanic...

There is a good write up in the FAQ if you want to do it yourself.

$400 to remove the starter? Some of the guys on this board have done the whole job in 3-4 hours and they want $400 just to remove the starter? Must be the new math...

 

[rph74]

oh.. and can you somehow just change the starter contacts on the vehicle??

thanks
Carson

Yes you can, and SHOULD just change out the starter contacts and plunger. Contacts are $25 and Plunger $15 (others tell me). I just did the contacts because I was not aware of the plunger. E-mail me if you have any questions, I'm the guy that did the write up on the FAQ.

Sounds like you've had bad luck with your LC-sorry to hear. The contacts problem seems to be VERY common, just a matter of time on these rigs.

 

[carson7]

small world

my contacts came in at the dealer today so I went to work on it tonight.. everything went fine, until I snapped one of the vent tubes off of the starter.. didnt realize I broke it, so I took the other one off to see how it went back on when I realized I had broken both of them. I decided to play it safe and order two news ones - dont really want to be back in there anytime soon.

If anyone knows of a good alternate that I could use, let me know - I am sure I will have wait for the vents through my local dealer.

overall the project went very well up until that point. I spent quite a bit of time cleaning the intake tract and intake ports - mine were filthy - used a shop vac and a rag to clean them up.

as for the small world comment - recognize the name triston brownfield.. he is a neighbor of mine and he came by tonight.. had this post printed out for reference and starting looking over it - said, I bet that rph guy is a pharmacist.. then he saw the springfield, mo - he thinks you guys were room mates at school.

anyways - thanks for taking the time to post this up.

Carson

 

[rph74]

my contacts came in at the dealer today so I went to work on it tonight.. everything went fine, until I snapped one of the vent tubes off of the starter.. didnt realize I broke it, so I took the other one off to see how it went back on when I realized I had broken both of them. I decided to play it safe and order two news ones - dont really want to be back in there anytime soon.

If anyone knows of a good alternate that I could use, let me know - I am sure I will have wait for the vents through my local dealer.

overall the project went very well up until that point. I spent quite a bit of time cleaning the intake tract and intake ports - mine were filthy - used a shop vac and a rag to clean them up.

as for the small world comment - recognize the name triston brownfield.. he is a neighbor of mine and he came by tonight.. had this post printed out for reference and starting looking over it - said, I bet that rph guy is a pharmacist.. then he saw the springfield, mo - he thinks you guys were room mates at school.

anyways - thanks for taking the time to post this up.

Carson

You've gotta be kidding me!!!! Yes, that was my roommate in college. Tell that dude that I said hi! FYI I broke one of the vent tubes on my starter and didn't bother to replace it. It was getting late, and I just needed to get the car put back together. Glad to hear that everything went well on the repair for you.

 

[rule303]

Carson, I had a lemon too. Throttle position sensor, warped brakes, alternator, power seat works intermittently, starter contacts, whistleing wind noise, exhaust shield rattles, and other things I can't even remember. All by 63k! Maybe lemon is too extreme, just bad for a Toyota. I'm waiting for the exhaust manifold leaks next. I still like the vehicle but my wife won't drive it and I can't say I blame her since it left her stranded 3 times in 2 months. So its for sale.

 

[carson7]

I'm with you.. not that bad, just not what I expected from a toyota - particularly in this price range.

We are going to keep ours - with gas prices, the used market has tanked here in the midwest for used big suvs. We test drove an H3 the other night - my wife really thought they were "neat" and the off road capabilities seem real strong, but I think we are going to try and get 150k out of our landcruiser for financial reasons.

Now off to fix the antenna and power seat!

Carson

 

[rule303]

Yeah, I'll take a beating selling it. Only good thing is I got a steal on the Expedition we replaced it with. A 2003, 27k miles, Eddie Bauer for $19000. Ford wanted $35,000 drive out for the exact same thing in a 2005. Not as nice a vehicle by any means, but still has a year of warranty left and makes the wife happy. The LC is still the nicest driving SUV I've ever driven. Smooth and refined. The newer Expeditions have really improved over the old ones though. Not the tanks they used to be.