95 4Runner just dies while driving - no apparent reason

[ssccchef]

First of all, thank you to everyone for taking the time to read and (hopefully) respond. Basically, what happens is this: I'm driving my rig, and all of a sudden, the RPMs drop to 0, then I coast for a little while with nothing happening, then the engine dies. Most times, once I sit on the side of the road for a bit, I can crank on the starter for awhile and it starts right back up. I have replaced the fuel filter so far, and I have put a bunch of fuel injector cleaner in with the past couple tanks of gas. Neither has helped. Any ideas please?

I appreciate your time.

-W

 

[2ndGenToyotaFan]

That could be any number of things... Sounds electrical though... Check the trouble codes and let us know what you find. Troublcodes.net Trouble Codes OBD & OBD2 Trouble Codes and Technical info & Tool Store. By BAT Auto Technical

Welcome to Mud!!!

 

[4banging]

feel your pain

I had the same problem with an 86 mazda i had. I was able to put it in neutral, turn off the ignition and coast for a while then switch the ignition back on put it in gear and it would come to life. That worked for a while then I ended up doing the same as you, pulling over and waiting a while.

Suspect the ignition module. It's housed in the distributor and if it's faulty you'll have to replace the whole distributor. But I would start your checks there. If you don't already have it download the 4runner service manual and troubleshoot the distributor with your multimeter.

 

[circlethedragon]

Sounds like an electrical problem...but I'd check the codes.

 

[Bogo]

Could also be vapor lock in the fuel system. How is the fuel pressure at the engine? You could also try getting gas from a different gas station for awhile. A higher water content gas will make some engines vapor lock. It boils in the fuel line at a lower temperature than gas does. An Escort GT I had had marginal fuel pressure, some under hood insulation that was blocking airflow, and was burning a bit on the lean side. The combination meant that moderate to high water content gas would vapor lock it on 95+F days. I got a higher pressure fuel pump, and removed the under hood insulation. I kept the lean burning as I liked getting an extra few MPG.

Also look for other things that may be adding a bit of extra heat under hood.

 

[circlethedragon]

Did you ever find the problem?