Hello All,

I have a 1991 yota 4x4, that was my dads, and mine since he passed and driven since I turned 16. It has been sitting for a few years at this point so it might require a great deal more work than just the engine, but the issues it was having is, it seems to have just seized up?

It wasnt leaking oil, wasn't smoking or making any strange noises, it has 191k on it, but thats not insane for an old yota.

I was driving home, and all at once, it just shut off on me (going down the interstate) and I was able to roll to the side of the road and since then it wouldn't turn over. It acts like its hung up trying to turn over and just made a clicking noise (similar to when the solenoid switch was bad).

I assume its going to be a new engine or an engine rebuild, but everyone I talk to about it basically says good luck since its the 3.0 v6 model.

Any tips as to what would have caused this or, a rebuild guide to follow (figure I'll make it a weekends project)

thanks in advance for any help!

 

Uh, are you sure the solenoid switch is NOT bad?

What you describe sounds a lot like a dead battery. If it was not charging at all, you could have just run it flat driving down the road, and there wasn't enough to keep it running (or turn over the starter).

"First principles, Clarice. Simplicity." Do the easy stuff before you think of rebuilding something.

 

Thats what I had hoped for, but after replacing the battery still no luck. It makes that noise like it is tryin to turn over but cannot, so I'm thinking / some have told me it sounds like the engine has seized up, so I'm thinking there's more to it than just the dead battery.

 

Instead of thinking, do a little observation. Measure the voltage at the battery with everything off, then with the key turned. (You'll save a lot of money if you do this test BEFORE you replace the battery.) If the voltage drops below, oh, 11v, your battery doesn't have enough umph to turn the starter.

Seized up? If you really think that, it's easy to test. Remove the plugs (to eliminate compression) and turn the crank with a 19mm (?) wrench. It should turn fairly easily.

With key off, measure the voltage (at the big stud) right at the starter. It should be battery voltage. Now turn the key; if the voltage drops a lot (but didn't at the battery) you've probably got a bad starter cable. If the voltage doesn't drop, the solenoid isn't closing, and we're back to where we started.

This isn't that hard. Asking for "advice" is even easier, but it won't fix your truck unless you come up with some basic data.

 

You say you were driving then all of a sudden it died then you couldn't restart, just click click. Did you check the alternator? Check the battery voltage and if less than 11 v, swap it out with another with 12.5v or more to see if it'll start then check voltage with truck running at the battery to see if the alternator is powering the ignition and charging the battery. Maybe a bad alternator.

 

Concur with ^^^

It's not that bad, so don't be discouraged. Sounds like a simple electrical problem; simple if you methodically troubleshoot as recommended ^^^
Toyota components are usually made to last a long time. It's how they are put together or connected to each other or neglected (by people who rush or take shortcuts) that causes problems.