I have a 94 4runner with 3.0 L V6. A couple of times I tried to start it in the morning before work and nothing happened. But when I tried again it started.
This morning I tried again and I would get a clicking sound for 2 seconds then nothing. kept trying to start with no luck. I figured it was the starter so I replaced it. Same non starting problem. So I replaced the battery. Still same problem. What could this be???

check your battery cables..... are they corroded or are the terminals corroded? b cuzz that will cause that...if they are remove your pos and neg wires and clean all of them w/ a wire brush and wate.........corrosion will climb way up into the insulation so if you have corrosion its a good idea to cut the insulation up a bit to see if its climb spread,if it has you should replace them. good luck lemme know how it goes ;)

wate = water ;)

Check the starter relay.

Where is the starter relay located? What does it look like?

Normally it is in the fuse box by the battery and is a cube with 4 contacts. You have to pull the cube out to access the contacts. There are two pairs of contacts - the matching pairs are opposite each other.

One pair of contacts always has continuity and the other doesn't unless battery voltage is passed through the pair with continuity. Then the open circuit should close. If you have trouble starting, look for the open pair to stay open.

Thanks for the ideas, I pulled the fuse and cant tell if it is bad. All contacts look good. put it back in but no start. Tempted to connect contacts with wire but not sure if this is a good idea. Decided not to. Anyone know how much $$ a replacement is or trick to tell if fuse is bad.

I also cleaned the terminals well with wire brush and checked wires for corrosion and still no start.

Not a fuse. Relay. You have to test continuity. It will always look ok.

Can you believe it. It is not the starter relay either. I am now replacing the positive wire connector to the battery hoping this is it. Anyone with any other suggestions? Helllllllp

When it won't start, tap the starter with a wrench or a small hammer and see if that gets it to start.

Get this!!! I replaced the positive terminal wire attachment. Thought this could be it. When I turned the ignition key no start, just a click then nothing. really nothing. cant even get a reading. nothing works! can't even get the windows to go up. :banghead:

Hello,

I am new to this forum. I have a 98 4RunnerSR54WD and 1994CamryXLE. I have experienced this on both of my vehicles. It is a $25.00 fix. I went to the dealer and gave them my info on my vehicle and purchased the Starter Contacts for the vehicle. I then removed the starter and replaced the contacts one at a time matching each as I went on. This took care of the problem. :smile:

:banghead: To date I have replaced starter, battery, battery cables. I am able to jump start vehicle from my wifes Landcruiser. Runs when I take cables off, but as soon as I touch brake with my foot to put in drive the whole car cuts off. I mean really dies. No power to use windows, dash lights, nothing... It totally dies like this if I try to start it on its own after I disconnect and reconect battery. Not a clue what the heck this could be... :banghead:

do you have an alarm?

This almost seems like a case for a witch doctor.
You have to ward off all evil spirits. Try an exorcism. Try installing some gargoyls around your truck. Crack an egg on the bumper and look at it, if it comes out black, that's bad news.

a "pickled chicken bone" necklace around the mirror should do the trick

I think I am going to take (tow) it to the dealership in a few days. Runs but if I turn on blinkers, push brake pedal down it cuts off. However, I am able to do this as long as I have the jumper cables hooked up to my other car? Any last minute suggestions before I give in to dealership prices for this fix.

maybe you have a bad connection somewhere and your not gettin' enough juice.it seems to me that if you can run it off of two batteries and it works and as soon as you disconnect one it will fail,your gettin just enough to start and keep the engine running any more draw such as (brake lights...etc) and it quits.if i had that problem in my house i would look for a split or damaged wire or connection. otherwise i a have no F'N clue goood luck :);(

Maybe something with the voltage regulator/alternator. You could take your alternator to AutoZone or somewhere that tests alternators and stuff.
It's free, and at least you could rule that out.
Try to remember if you did anything to the vehicle around the same time this problem occured, (eg. change radio, add off-road lights, any recent work). Sometimes, if you hook something up wrong, it could really F things up.
Make sure the alternator and alternator belt are in good shape.

Here is your fix
So try this!
near the battery is a thick wire at goes to the fuse box right off the left side of the positive terminal if you are facing the vehicle.
Replace that wire with your own thick wire If u can't make one your self then have Someone do it for u because Toyota only sells the whole harness!
This wire is broken or is breaking down inside
It feeds ALL your power to everything even the 12 volt poer to the starter.

might want to check fusable links. (particularly,one from motor to firewall.)

Any last minute suggestions. Starts with jump from car. If I turn any electrical option on car cuts off totally, though if I turn on A/C, Headlights I can disconnect jumper cables and drive car(Not Far, I'm scared it will die in middle of intersection).
I have checked wire and cut back wrapping from terminal. Looks good. Also wires that have corroded from inside and have problems heat up real quick when power is running through them. These have no heat coming from them. There is no power to anything unless I jumper cable to another car. Could it act like this if positive to battery is not tight or globed with grease.
Electrical problems suck soooooo Fkn bad!!!!!!!!!!!

have you tried snake oil?

check the fusable link from motor to firewall. have had the same thing sounds like with mine. it's just a wire.

did u try my fix?

Toyota Tech, Just bought a circuit tester. When it stops raining I will go through and check the wires especially the black large one goung to the relay box beside the battery. I hope that is the wire thats bad. I'll post the results.

Circuit tester probably won't do the job. All it will test is continuity. Continuity doesn't tell how much current the wire will handle. It may need to carry 10 amps when it will only handle 100 ma. Will still look continuous. Replacing it is the only sure way to tell if it is the problem, unless the wire is just plain broken or cut. I doubt that would be the case without damage to the insulation that you can see.

Also, it you are testing continuity, be sure and isolate the wire so that there is no other circuit that could carry current and make the wire look good, when in actuality, the wire is bad and there is another path for the current to flow.

Dudes, You wont believe it. It was the black wire coming off the battery to the relay box. Replaced and Viola. Starts right up every time!!!!!!!!!!!!Thanks for all of your help guys. After 3 weeks Snake oil actually started sounding like a viable option.

Good call ToyotaTech

i think itwas bad juju in your gas tank ;) but maybe toytech was right

I had the same exact problem. Toyotech's fix worked perfectly. In fact someone had attempted it previously but the fix was shabby at best. Now the whole electical system works perfectly. Thanks for the help.

i just wanted to thank the toyotech... i had the same problem unfortunatly i didnt read this until after i replaced the starter.. thanks man worked like a charm... like another guy this fix was attempted before on my 89 4 runner and did a crappy job with to small a gauge of wire. i took it down to a 4 gauge and problem solved.