93 Corolla suddenly dies

[simboa]

Hey all-

I have a 93 corolla with ~140k on it. It's engine runs great....when it's running. The other day, I came out of the grocery store and it turned over fine but wouldn't start. I left it overnight and tried again in the morning. It started up just fine, but then after about 4 miles, it died. No sputtering, shuddering, or odd sounds. It just turned off and wouldn't start again.

I've tried several times with the same result. After sitting for a few hours, it'll start and run perfectly for a few miles and then die with no warning! Battery is good and I checked the fuel pump and it appears to be working fine. Doesn't seem to be overheating either.

The roads here are rough, so maybe a loose connection? If that's it, I haven't the fainest idea where to check...

Any thoughts? Thanks!

[Brian R.]

First thing I'd try would be the ignition coil.

[simboa]

I'll check (multimeter, right?) Wouldn't that cause the car to run rough, though?

[Brian R.]

Multimeter may not tell the story. Multimeters testing the resistance at 9 volts doesn't reproduce the operating conditions of 40K volts.

I would just replace it with one from Toyota. Other brands are unreliable. Coil doesn't give any particular symptoms necessarily. Hard to diagnose. However, it is a really common part to break and cause crappy running.

[simboa]

Just swapped it out- yep! Definitely the problem. Also have a small oil leak, but a small o-ring should fix the problem.

Thanks!