Very touchy throttle

So I just bought an 85’ 4runner for my first car. I love it so far but one thing bothers me about it, the throttle is really touchy. It seems that if I push really slowly it will be alright, however this takes a lot more effort that it does in any other manual I’ve driven. Is this just a thing with these 4Runners or is it my car? If it’s normal is there any way to change it or will I just have to get used to it? Thanks.

 

Yes, this is a normal problem. If you look at the throttle body, where the cable from the gas pedal comes in, there's a spring right there. You can easily see which spring it is by either turning the wheel the cable connects to, or have someone sit in the driver's seat and press the gas pedal, in and out slowly, so you can see exactly where all this is is, and exactly WHAT spring is the problem.
The spring isn't the strongest to begin with, and gets weaker over time. You can easily go to a hardware store, and get a new, stronger (stiffer, harder to stretch), spring to put in. I've even seen some threads where the person still wasn't happy with 1 stronger spring, and put in two to stiffen it up even more.

It will help us get the right pictures to show you exactly what we're talking about if you can tell us just what engine you have. Is it the fuel injected 22RE, or is it the carburated 22R?

Good luck, and keep us in the loop
Pat☺

 

Hey thanks a lot for the reply, I have the 22re in mine. So what you’re saying is it’s a spring thats making it feel like it had almost a breaking point where it just revs like crazy?

 

Yes. It feels like just a gentle touch on the gas pedal makes it seem like the engine revs to red-line, right? Then it's the spring.

Alternatively, if it seems you need to press the pedal harder than you think you should to get the flapper valve to move, and then suddenly it turns loose from not moving, and the pedal revs the engine up hard? That's due to the valve in the throttle body the pedal opens and closes, controlling the air into the TB, getting sticky. A few shots of carb cleaner onto the flapper valve's pivot points to clean them, followed by a little WD-40 or similar will clear that up. Just pull the large air tube that ducts the air from the AFM (air cleaner assembly) to the throttle body. The flapper valve is readily see-able in the throttle body. Large, brass colored circular plate right at the opening to the throttle body where the large air tube connects. You can see it move when the gas pedal is pressed by an assistant.

Then again, it may be I'm misunderstanding your stating of the problem. If I'm missing the whole situation, can you state it differently somehow so I can be more accurate? I realize you're new to Toyotas, and may not know all the names of the different parts involved. No problem, just be as detailed as possible. We'll try to take it from there, if possible. Welcome to the wonderful world of 4Runners, BTW.
Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words

Good luck, and let us know what's going on.
Pat☺