When it rains it pours.....

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Brentbba

Brentbba

Former Golfer
10 Year 15 Year 20 Year
Joined
Mar 27, 2003
Threads
448
Messages
11,078
Location
OC, CA
FAWK!!!

I've had a code 26 Rich Fuel Mixture for a couple of weeks now. It won't throw any other CEL code in the diagnosis tree using a voltmeter so I finally gave up and took it in Tuesday to Capistrano Toyota - I'm semi-convinced that it's got something to do with the DS O2 sensor harness they spliced/repaired abot 10 years ago. I stripped off all the old electrical tape on that repair to inspect it and all the splices looked solid. One wire has an outer sheathing like a coax cable does. It goes nowhere, but Moj here on Mud confirmed that on his '94 that outer sheathed cabe went nowhere on his at the sensor to! DAMN! FIL wants me to stick an Ohm meter on that outer sheathing to see if it's properly grounded, but the truck is at Yota right now. Recommendation because Yota couldn't get any other code either with their vaunted computers was a good throttle body cleaning and and replacing ingnition wires (Mine were very old) with a complete tune up. Great - $$$ Picked her up and I'm not more than a mile away from the dealer and the CEL reappears. CRAP!!! Turn right around and return to the dealer. Pull back into the service drive and the service writer (who I've know for a long time) comes back out to see the CEL and it goes out right in front of both of us! They pull it back to the shop and she's still kicking out a 26 so the tech is 'going to spend more time' on her today! At least they are as stumped as I was! I hope it's not an 'open' on the E1 circuit - that could be a bear to find and I also hope to hell it's not the ECU! That'd be even more $$$. ARRRGGGGGHHHHHH!!!

To top all this off, the touch screen on my Garmin StreetPilot 2730 just completely stopped working yesterday - dead as a doornail! Manual says grab the remote to get into the recalibration screen and follow the instructions. Instruction one - touch anywhere on the screen to start the recalibration process - :doh: the screen doesn't work! Called Garmin this morning - flat $170 to repair/replace. Oh well - cheaper than a new unit and outside some of their ZUMO units for motorcycles according to the tech I was talking to (I have yet to research), none have the GPS AND XM funtionality I love about the StreetPilot 2730.

With my luck right now something bad will happen moving my daughter into her new apartment in Norcal this weekend! We drove up last weekend with the CEL on and off the entire trip and the first apartment she'd put an app. in on we couldn't get the resident manager to return calls on whether my daughter was approved for her to move in last weekend...so we went looking for another place - found one she's approved on (with my cosigning financially) that she can move in to this Saturday. Her classes start Monday - cutting it a little too close! Looks like we'll have to drive the :princess: 350Z to Norcal and renting a damn UHaul cargo van instead of taking the truck and renting a cheaper trailer!

Bad things do happen in three's - no one come anywhere near me right now! I'm cursed!!! :bang::bang::bang:
 
...so f'ing depressed over this and other things, for the first time I've actually contemplated stripping everything off, selling the accessories and junking her! F!$!%#$!%$
 
I could use a rack!!!

Kidding aside you may have already looked into the main wire harness loom at the back of the intake as a potential sourse do to heat and fatique. Others seem to have had strange code issues assoiciated with this harness. Also the fuel injectors could need service. Maybe pointing out the obvious but worth a try.
 
I'd have thought the dealer would have gone right to injector service and not the throttle body too.

I'm afraid it's an electrical gremlin somewhere. Good to know on the wiring harness near the intake. Thanks! She's still at the dealer. Almost noon and I haven't heard a word yet...not a good sign with an issue like this.
 
Brentbba said:
...so f'ing depressed over this and other things, for the first time I've actually contemplated stripping everything off, selling the accessories and junking her! F!$!%#$!%$
Click to expand...

If you do that then you will fall victim in a couple months to me laughing and pointing when you say you are in the market for another 80. Don't do it bro!!!

She's just acting up because she hasn't had her dose of off-road abuse. A few bottoms out on whoops a few drops off some ledges and she will be happy again.
 
I know she's pissed. She doesn't like 1000 miles on I-5 and she hasn't seen dirt since...I can't fawking remember...oh yeah, Coyote Canyon for an evening before the summer shut down with Stan, Scott and Kim. I gave her a new set of meat, beautiful BFG KM2's, extended her diff breathers, gave her a bath before last weeks trip north, repainted her center hub caps to look brand spanking new, the whole nine yards! I've even got plans to give her a tools only drawer under the fridge so she can have her own set of tools! I put a brand new bandage on the 10 year old splices to the O2 harness to make her feel better also! She's still pissed. :bang:

Yota has now had her almost 2 days and they can't find her issues either. I guess it's supposed to make me feel better that a trained :wrench: with fancy diagnostic computers compared to my $10 analog voltmeter and an FSM can't find the problem either. :meh:

I need a drink tonight! :cheers: Maybe two :cheers: :cheers: or three :cheers: :cheers: :cheers: ...or...
 
Dude, Brent.. take a break. Park your 80 and walk away for a week or two. It's not your daily driver and if it's driving you nuts like this... you don't have to deal with it 'right now'. I've been dealing with a battery problem on my truck and the minute i start getting like you.. i park her and think about something else until i come back to my senses.

Have a cocktail or 8. LOL
 
I'd like to do that Dave, but she was 'supposed' to get me back to Norcal to move my daughter again tomorrow. She obviously just doesn't want to make the drive north, not to mention working her ass off up the grapevine again! hehehe She really, really hates the grapevine!
 
Miata for an 8 hour road trip would be a killer for the :princess: . If it were just me, I'd be top down, music blaring. Need to either rent a trailer (need for the truck) or rent a van to move all her shiat out of storage to her apartment.

We're going to take the Z and rent a van at this point. :princess: wants to go to help Katherine move in, clean up, etc. :princess: thing, otherwise I'd fly up, use daughter's car and rent a damn van myself. Oh well. Long story Dave...don't have kids!!!! Dogs are good!!!

Besides, I love driving, especially in the truck!
 
Did PCH before kids in a Mazda RX-7. That was a blast. Long, long time ago. I think it took 9-10 hours that way vs 7 via I-5. Loads prettier tho!! Even the 101 has more character than I-5!

Hell, as far as I know at this moment, Capistrano Toyota will have the beast for the weekend! Unless they find something in the next 4 hours, they've got her for another 72! No call from them at all today. Tells me they haven't found squat yet and they don't want to call this time unless they've got something concrete because they know I know more than their average customer about the truck thanks to this board and you guys!
 
Hmmm...just got a call. They still can't figure it out either, but have their head master tech on it. He's also questioning the inboard O2 sensor (the one with the spliced up harness. Advisor said they pulled the sensor off and tested it independently(?) and it was inoperative. Ohm meter said it was ok, but the electrical could be bad. They are ordering a Bosch on their dime (because it's about $30 cheaper than an OEM) to test things and confirm or rule out the sensor itself as part of their diagnosis. He knows that I know that MSRP on an OEM is $278 and I told him I can get an OEM O2 sensor for $208 (Dan) w/o telling him where my source was and he knows I've replaced it myself. Asked them to take an ohm meter to the outer sheathed wire in the blue encasement of the white wire on that harness too to see if it's properly grounded. FIL thinks that could be a potential cause of this intermitent problem and or the reason this sensor frys so frequently. Hell I just replaced this very sensor March '08!

He asked if I'd ever had my valves adjusted. Said No. Wondering if he's fishing for a way to charge me $$$$ for that. There's no clattering and the engine is quiet as a mouse when running, so why would a valve adjustment do anything? Hmmm......
 
Geez... in further news.. i just spend 4 hours tearing my dual battery system apart to find out what my problem was(wont start off batt #2). Turned out a bad ground.. after testing 50 different things, on the phone with blueseas testing my battery switch, taking batteries into load testing, etc etc etc.

Fun times eh Brent!
 
Hang in there Brent and remember KISS - maybe it is just a simple grounding issue. I hope you get it worked out AND it's not expensive.

I have to say, this whole electrical thing makes me a little nervous about these trucks. There are only so many years of washboards roads and river crossings that electrical connections can handle before they become troublesome. I think we'll all be experiencing these sorts of problems in the coming years/decades.
 
Maybe we should "Pimp " Brent's ride while he's on the road? We could keep and eye on the rig while it's in the shop and drop some spinners on it for kicks!
 
Brentbba said:
Hmmm...just got a call. They still can't figure it out either, but have their head master tech on it. He's also questioning the inboard O2 sensor (the one with the spliced up harness. Advisor said they pulled the sensor off and tested it independently(?) and it was inoperative. Ohm meter said it was ok, but the electrical could be bad. They are ordering a Bosch on their dime (because it's about $30 cheaper than an OEM) to test things and confirm or rule out the sensor itself as part of their diagnosis. He knows that I know that MSRP on an OEM is $278 and I told him I can get an OEM O2 sensor for $208 (Dan) w/o telling him where my source was and he knows I've replaced it myself. Asked them to take an ohm meter to the outer sheathed wire in the blue encasement of the white wire on that harness too to see if it's properly grounded. FIL thinks that could be a potential cause of this intermitent problem and or the reason this sensor frys so frequently. Hell I just replaced this very sensor March '08!

He asked if I'd ever had my valves adjusted. Said No. Wondering if he's fishing for a way to charge me $$$$ for that. There's no clattering and the engine is quiet as a mouse when running, so why would a valve adjustment do anything? Hmmm......
Click to expand...

I hope they figure this one out, electrical gremlins can be a total PITA.

As far as valve adjustments go:
I don't know what miles you have on your truck, AND I don't know if the gas trucks tend to loosen or tighten valves over time, but I know the diesels get tight over time. It's imperative (on the TD engines) that the valve clearance be checked on a semi-regular basis, if you want to get primo performance and economy from the engine. And, if you wait too long, the valve can actually burn from not contacting the seat long enough to transfer heat.

You might want to inquire around as to whether they tighten or loosen or better yet, just go ahead and check the clearances.

Since you say there's zero valve clatter, I'd say they either are OK, or they may be too tight.

Dana
 
Back in town.

They finally called me late Saturday afternoon after a battery of tests on the inboard O2 sensor. Despite it not throwing any codes at all and the impedence cold being at factory specs, they said under testing the sensor was failing. I'd replaced that very sensor March '08. It is the same one that's failed before. They replaced it at 'close' to cruiserdan's cost to us and didn't charge me any labor as we'd already done a tune up, replace the plug wires and cleaned out the throttle body. Yes...they still made money despite two days with their master tech on the truck.

Picked her up this morning when they opened and brought her to work. She's running just fine. Guess when I can afford it (between the truck and moving my daughter in and helping her purchase a few things for her apartment, I'm as broke as Dave is!) I'm going to have to purchase that O2 sensor as a trail spare part! At least after the exhaust pipes cool down, it's an easy installation.

They 'claim' to have removed the wiring loom I put on and tested the ground on the outer sheathing wire of the blue/white wire going to that sensor and the outer sheathing wire is grounded per the service advisor. Probably won't happen until next weekend, but I'm going to crawl back under and check that myself too! For those that said it - yes, electrical gremlins are a PITA! I still wonder why this one sensor fails so frequently. It had been about every 30K. This last one didn't last that long! Oh well. What puzzled me and why I eventually took it in was that the diagnostics never threw anything but a code 26 -rich fuel. It had the Toyota master tech (their best guy) puzzled for two days also, even with their computers. I'd have thought that the sensor would have eventually thrown a 22 or 28 (can't remember which sensor is which). It didn't for me or the tech, yet the new sensor seems to have done the trick. I know from the mileage on the truck that they drove the hell out of it testing. I took it back with 11 miles on a fresh tank of gas and picked it up this morning with 41 on the trip meter. Glad they tested it so much and don't mind at all. They obviously hadn't the first time around.

Time will tell on this one. Truck has 197.5K on her and is 15 years young this month. Purchased her brand spanking new in August, 1994. She was built in Japan in July, 1994.

Dana - no valve clatter at all. She runs very very smoothly and always has when running fine. Hope Stinky is doing fine!
 
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