Toyota - Rav4 :: 1997 - Bucking / Hesitating At Speeds Below 25 - 30 Mph
Feb 16, 2012
My wife’s ’97 RAV4 has 135,000 miles on it. Two days ago it started bucking/hesitating (feels more like bucking, and its worse if you try to give it the gas) at speeds below 25 -30 mph. No loss of speed/power when going uphill. Its worse when the engine is cold.
I cleaned the throttle body with spray cleaner, no change. I added Prestone fuel system cleaner to the gas and have driven 20 miles since then. Very little if any change so far. I always use good gas (Chevron regular) and the car has been well maintained (primarily by me).
Timing belt, seals and both bearings were replaced two years ago. Just about a year ago I changed the plugs, air filter, distributor cap and rotor. The fuel filter has never been changed, and the spark plug wires have never been changed. What I can try next? Where is the fuel filter located? I have the Toyota repair manual. It shows a pic of the filter, but not where its located. I have one ready to install if that could be the problem.
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Intermittent problem, noticed mostly at low speeds, where car will buck or lurch forward. Most noticeable when accelerating after a slowdown, i.e. applying gas after coasting. No check engine lights, oil & transmission fluid is full. Car has 105K miles, tranny & coolant flushed every 30K, oil changed every 3K, tuneup w/plugs& wires @ approx. 93K, timing belt @ 70k. This car is a gem, mostly driven on the highway that has been perfect until now. Things I've considered doing: replacing timing belt, transmission solenoid, computer sensor that controls tranny. My suspicion is its tranny related but maybe not. Is there a way to check/set the timing on this car? I remember years ago using a timing light on my chevy. This is weird, it will run perfect smooth in the morning and rough with lurching in the afternoon. Could be a total coincidence but it seems to run ok when its cool and not so when it is hotter.
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My 97 Rav4 shut down on the highway yesterday. Checked the oil when I lifted the hood. It has only been 4500 since the last oil change, but the oil was barely registering on the stick. The engine will turn over, but will not start. Do Toyotas have an auto shut off mechanism when the oil gets too low or is my Rav4 toast? There were no warnings, temperature, low oil light, nothing.
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My 1997 Toyota Corolla has recently began hesitating when starting. When I turn the ignition, her idle seems normal, but then goes 'down' and it feels like she's going to die. But then the idle/revs go back up and she's fine. However within the past week, she dies when starting (usually the first start or two of the day). She turns over, but then 'fizzles out' and dies. However when she does this, a small tap on the gas pedal revs her up.
This does not occur every time I start her. In fact the more I use her throughout the day, it seems she starts normal. There are no issues with RPMs/Idling when driving.
I've taken her to two mechanics and they could find nothing. Fuel pump, fuel line, throttle body, etc. All fine. When hooked up on the computer the only thing that showed a slight reading is the idle air control valve. But they can't be sure that's the problem.
Of course she hasn't died for the mechanics, just me as it's sporadic.
When I turned her on today she didn't die in the morning like she has all week, however the idle was so low that we were waiting for her to die. Slowly the revs picked up and she was fine!
I put fuel injector cleaner in a few days ago and got an oil change yesterday. That's it.
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I have a 1997 Toyota RAV4 with 137,500. I got it in 2004 with 93,000 miles. Since I've had it, it burns about 1 quart of oil every 1,000 miles or so. I don't think it's been getting worse since I've had it. I had the compression in the cylinders checked last year, and the compression's good in all four of them. What the problem might be? It the problem worth repairing, or should I just keep adding a quart of oil every 1,000 miles? Also, does burning oil damage other parts of the car?
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I had a new fuel pump installed on my 1997 Honda Civic (145K miles) last week after it started hesitating and bucking one day and then the Check Engine light came on. I picked the car up last Thursday, and it runs and starts, but I still feel "something off"...it seems to have small surges of power/lack of power while I drive. Again, always starts and runs but it just doesn't feel right.
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1997 Rav4 with 185k miles burns some oil. I replaced the PCV valve thinking that may be the issue. That seemed to stop the visible smoke at a cold startup but alas, the problem still persists. We bought the car for a song at 180k so I don't feel I'm out much. The previous owner took incredible care of the car so it is solid in most areas.
I did learn the previous owner followed a dealer recommend oil change interval and changed the filter with every other oil change so this may explain some things.
My real question, if the engine does need a refresh, what is the best option? I've not at all afraid of tackling a major overhaul myself and, in the past, have had pretty good luck with aftermarket rebuilt short blocks. But that was years ago. The dealer cost for a crate motor is outrageous and not justified for a '97 anyway. So at this point, I'm just looking for some advice from others who may have been down this road. Again, the rest of the car is solid and we don't have much money in it at this point so would like to keep it as our 'second' car for awhile.
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Two years ago a mechanic told me that my rear differential mount was broken - hitting the floor board. He told me this was not dangerous - just annoying. This is a car I rarely use but now considering using more. It currently has 170000 miles on it driven in the mild climate of California. Just what is involved and what should the cost range be?
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I have a 1997 Toyota Rav4. 2nd owner. No accidents. Regularly maintained at a mechanic. No issues until this one. I searched the forums looking for an answer, seen similar but not exactly my issue. The car has an intermittent starting problem. This never happens in the morning. It only happens when the car is driven a short distance. When the key is turned to start the car, the engine does not crank. All the electrical comes on. We had the starter rebuilt. I have had it towed to my mechanic five times. Each time, when it is unloaded from the tow truck, it starts right up. We have left it there overnight and all day. They cannot replicate the problem. I drove the car to a friend's house 1 mile from mine and it would not start for 24 hours so I had it towed to the mechanic. Again once it was unloaded it started right up. A couple months ago we did a major service with a timing chain/belt. It did not happen for a couple months. Now twice in a week it has happened. My mechanic will not do anything more until it fails completely.
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Several weeks ago someone backed into my '97 RAV4 in a parking lot. Body shop charged around $900 for the repair (estimate indicates labor for both headlights, but doesn't look like they replaced them). This afternoon one of the low beam headlights burned out. I went to change both sides just to be safe. On both headlight assemblies, grasping the wire assemblies to the low beam bulbs, the headlight assembly on both the left and right side is loose within its housing. I've changed the bulbs in the past, this is something new. Take it back to the body shop? What happened????
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I recently purchased a 1997 Rav4 (3F-SE Engine) with 162000 miles. Overall, it is a great car. The only problem (besides a clutch, which can wait) is that it hesitates/bucks between 1500-2100 rpm while accelerating. This happens usually on a shift change from 1st to 2nd, or while in 2nd and after decelerating to make a turn. This only happens after the engine has warmed up, i.e. the temp gauge is above 25%. When cold, there is no hesitation at all. It just passed emissions testing. Check engine light is off. I recently replaced the TPS (and adjusted it properly), with no change in symptoms. This car does not have a MAF sensor.
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On the way home yesterday I was caught in a deluge. I ended up having to go through one spot where the water was pooled, but not really that deep. Anyways, 45 minutes later I arrive home, park the car, and 15 minutes later the car horn starts blowing constantly. This went on for several minutes, stopped and started a few times, then eventually stopped. Nothing I tried would make it stop, it just eventually stopped on its own. So as not to wake the neighbors last night I pulled the fuse to the horn. With the fuse back in, the horn still works, what caused the problem?
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Here are the facts about my problem:
- 1996 Park Avenue 3.8 V-6
- 104,000 miles
Problem: When it warms up it begins to hesitate (at all speeds) when the accellerator is pushed s-l-o-w-l-y. It bucks and acts like it is kicking in and out. A typical example is rolling down a flat stretch of road at 65 mph with the cruise on. Here comes a small hill. As the vehicle begins going up the hill the cruise automatically tries to accellerate the engine to compensate for the hill. It begins to buck hard. I put my foot on the accellerator and can accellerate through the bucking and it smooths out. A few more facts.
- Problem ONLY happens when it warms up. Typicall this may be as much as 10 miles down the road.
- When it gets fully warm it will hesitate taking off from a stop light. Again, just small short hesitations. Even putting your foot into the accellerator it will not totally smooth it out.
- I have replaced all of the ignition coils, and the ignition module below the coils.
- One other very strange deal. When it was screwing up on me really bad and I was replacing the coils and the modules, I revved it up out of frustration. When I got to 4,000 rmp it began to cycle in and out. Almost like a 'whaaa whaaa whaaa whaaa whaaa and won't go beyond 4,000 rpm.
- The diagnostic guy at Autozone told me it may be the a MAP sensor, the throttle body sensor and my uncle suggested the crank sensor.
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Since our weather has returned to the cold side......my truck has started bucking and hesitating at 45 mph with EOT @ 130 and ECT @ 140. I can gas on it and it will clear up/let off and it would start up again once it gets below 50 mph. Once the deltas reach 150+ it clears up completely. Its never done this until this week. FICM volts are steady @ 48V. What is causing this or what to look for?
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I had the timing belt, water pump and thermostat replaced on my '97 RAV4. The next morning while braking at a red light I heard a rapidly repeating sound that sounded like metal on metal. The car never made that sound again but now I'm hearing a noise coming from the passenger side of the engine (timing belt side). When the engine is cold I don't hear it. After driving a while its starts, then once the engine warms up it generally goes away (except for this morning which was the coldest morning since this started, temps in the 40s).
I was only hearing the noise when the car was stopped either in drive or reverse (reverse sounded louder) if I lightly let up on the brake pedal (there's no pulsing in the brake pedal). Once under way the sound goes away. This morning it was making the sound virtually every time I came to a stop (once the car warmed up) even with my foot firmly on the brake pedal. I recorded the sound Saturday while standing still with the car in drive and my foot slightly easing up on the brake pedal. The sound starts at the 20:30 mark, what it could be?
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I have a 92 Honda CX hatchback, 5pd with 140k on it. Since I bought the car used about a year ago it's had a low speed stumbling/bucking issue. For the most part, it's only when driving slow and steady but occasionally at highway speeds it'll do it as well. It's as though the whole engine just cuts out for a second. Giving it more gas always brings it back but it's incredibly annoying, especially in a parking lot with a cup of coffee or something in your hand.
For starters, the rotor, wires and cap are all very recent. I pulled the ECU codes and it indicated #7, Throttle Angle Sensor. Bought a new one, calibrated it, reset ECU and drove on. No change. Car still bucks and the CEL comes on occasionally. At first, I suspected the plug to the TPS since it was loose. I pulled new wire and soldered directly to the ECU and TPS. No change. Of interesting note, when the CEL would come on, it seems the TPS falls offline and the car runs great! I disconnected it for a tankful and noticed my 40mpg/hwy go down to 25mpg. Completely unacceptable for a car so painfully slow.
Another observation, the stumbling doesn't start until the car warms up. Also, if it's particularly humid/raining, sometimes it won't do it at all. A lot of people have suggested the O2 sensor, distributor, fuel pump/filter. I don't have money to just start throwing at this thing and of many similar issues I've read of others with the same car, nobody seems to have a solid fix.
I've replaced the TPS, completely cleaned the throttle body and IACV, checked for vacuum leaks and even opened up the ECU looking for cold solder joints. It looks newer than new inside. Like I said, with the TPS disconnected, car runs great but the mileage goes south.
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Driving around town it doesn't happen too often. Like if I am starting from a stop it feels fine but when going up a hill or passing on the highway it bucks and shakes and doesn't want to go over 3000 rpm. Also, the check engine light is on and it flashes when it's really bad. I took apart the intake and didn't see anything weird. I am about to take it in to see what the code says because it's been getting worse.
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My girlfriend has a 1993 corolla, with a little over 200,000 miles on it, manual transmission. It has been running great until a couple days ago. Driving back from Seattle, we noticed the car hesitating while driving. With the gas applied, it seemed as if the car was hesitating forward and backward, it seemed as if the engine wasn't getting enough gas. This happens in all gears, but less so in 5th I think. The next morning, while stopped with the clutch in, the car seemed to be always on the verge of dying out, with the RPMs dropping, and then revving back up constantly, right before it seemed the engine would die. The engine hasn't actually cut out yet, but it seemed very close. We shifted into neutral and the same problem was happening, so I don't think it's a clutch problem.
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I have a 2008 Toyota Rav4 all wheel drive that has 80,000 miles on it. It's been having a lot of problems lately, namely the water pump. I got it replaced at our local mechanic's about 3 weeks ago and all was fine until I tried to turn on the heat last night. Only cold air blew out and then came on intermittently and then just stopped again. The fan works fine, it's just not blowing hot air. Not sure if this is related to the water pump being replaced? Do I need to flush the heater core? There is no leakage. I am really getting annoyed with all the issues the car has been having lately and don't want to spend a lot more money to fix it at this point. How much would it be to replace the heater core?
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My 2004 toyota rav4, manual transmission, 70,000 miles has been problem free. Now when i turn the key , nothing, no sound , dead. sometimes the 2nd or 3rd try 'it'll start right up, and run like nothing's wrong. other times will not start at all. 2 hrs later , try it and starts right up,. the battery has been replaced and it changed nothing. The mechanics are stumped and say they can't do anything till the problem repeats itself, and it starts fine, at their garage. I've been stranded and don't want that to happen again. What's wrong? The clutch switch?
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Noticed radio LCD getting distorted. Today my LCD just went wacko, does not show the station number but some square marks and slightly visible compact disks numbers.
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