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wild goose chase

Discussion in '3rd Gen 4Runners (1996-2002)' started by mousemeat, Feb 3, 2021.

  1. Feb 3, 2021 at 8:10 PM
    #1
    mousemeat

    mousemeat [OP] New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2020
    Member:
    #17209
    Messages:
    1,184
    Gender:
    Male
    Memphis, TN.
    Vehicle:
    1997 4 runner limited
    upgraded suspension, large all terrain tires
    somewhat....always an adventure....anyhow, make a long story short...my '97 limited CE came on..no big deal....read the codes, turned out one of my ignition coils, was going bad. Replaced it..infact, replace all of them....CE went away...2 days later, came back on...code suggested I had a misfire...check everything...it was ok...wiped the memory...ran ok..next day. Light came back on....this time, I could tell it was having a mis fire..and running rough, especially at idle.
    decided to pull the plugs. 1. the plugs were 'wet '.....2. WRONG Plugs in my '97. yup. wrong.
    first mistake..#$%^ing autolite...the main glitch ? single grounded plugs..where I needed double grounded...pick up six new plugs, swapped 'em in..and voila,back to it's old self. ran
    well...and strong..to Nashville, and back to Memphis. problem being, the previous owner, for whatever reason, put the wrong plugs in....I bought the 4runner last year. and it ran like a top for the past 6,000 miles...then it went south...funny, how it seemed to run ok, for the past year, and then the problems arrived....but at least, there's a happy ending....
     
    JWalk, Malinois38 and SR5 Limited like this.
  2. Feb 3, 2021 at 8:17 PM
    #2
    SR5 Limited

    SR5 Limited New Member

    Joined:
    Sep 18, 2018
    Member:
    #7180
    Messages:
    12,279
    Vehicle:
    1996 SR5 Limited
    Good for another 300,000 miles!!!
    Team Skeletor....,,,
     
    Bob and mousemeat[OP] like this.
  3. Feb 3, 2021 at 10:21 PM
    #3
    mousemeat

    mousemeat [OP] New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2020
    Member:
    #17209
    Messages:
    1,184
    Gender:
    Male
    Memphis, TN.
    Vehicle:
    1997 4 runner limited
    upgraded suspension, large all terrain tires

    amen, to that....300,000 trouble free.....lol
     
  4. Feb 4, 2021 at 10:38 AM
    #4
    mousemeat

    mousemeat [OP] New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2020
    Member:
    #17209
    Messages:
    1,184
    Gender:
    Male
    Memphis, TN.
    Vehicle:
    1997 4 runner limited
    upgraded suspension, large all terrain tires
    actually, not so far fetched....those engines are virtually bullet proof...as long as you take care, change oil, religiously , etc..a friend has a '92...with over 600k..on the original motor...sorta mind boggling...will my 4 runner, hit additional 300k ? probably. only I won't be around to witness it...my skeleton might....lol.....
     
    JWalk, Malinois38 and Bob like this.
  5. Feb 5, 2021 at 6:42 PM
    #5
    treyus30

    treyus30 New Member

    Joined:
    Dec 4, 2020
    Member:
    #18312
    Messages:
    123
    Gender:
    Male
    First Name:
    Trey
    Vehicle:
    '99 Limited & '99 Tacoma PreRunner
    The stroke I just received from your ...punctuation... aside, dual grounded plugs are only required to prolong service life due to the high intensity spark Toyota spec'ed out for these engines. When you go to Iridium, for instance, it no longer makes a difference. What does matter is your gap. Nothing about being single or double is going to cause them to be wet. If you didn't find the reason, expect the problem to return.
     
  6. Feb 5, 2021 at 6:49 PM
    #6
    SR5 Limited

    SR5 Limited New Member

    Joined:
    Sep 18, 2018
    Member:
    #7180
    Messages:
    12,279
    Vehicle:
    1996 SR5 Limited
    I tried a set with four prongs. I burned all of them off of one......
     
  7. Feb 5, 2021 at 6:50 PM
    #7
    SR5 Limited

    SR5 Limited New Member

    Joined:
    Sep 18, 2018
    Member:
    #7180
    Messages:
    12,279
    Vehicle:
    1996 SR5 Limited
  8. Feb 6, 2021 at 8:16 AM
    #8
    mousemeat

    mousemeat [OP] New Member

    Joined:
    Oct 8, 2020
    Member:
    #17209
    Messages:
    1,184
    Gender:
    Male
    Memphis, TN.
    Vehicle:
    1997 4 runner limited
    upgraded suspension, large all terrain tires
    yeah, punctuation was ' BAD '...as I hate typing this stuff on my phone....ultra tiny virtual keyboard......you know the drill....

    my gap was correct...but the plugs were the wrong ones...installed the correct plugs, voila! problem is gone...in fact. just recently drove from Memphis, to Denver, at 70 mph, ( a little faster when the state troopers weren't lurking around) and the it ran strong..just pulled the plugs, and they were 'dry '...i believe it was a series of glitches, and it all came to a head....
     

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