Sick 1980 Corolla Tercel

All related I'd say. Lets start with #3, the running on. This is generally caused by carbon build up in the combustion chambers being overheated, and even when the ign is off, its hot enough to cause the running on. This only happens with carburetted engines like yours. With fuel injection, the ECU turns off the fuel and so there's no way that the engine will run on.

So, why is the carbon getting so hot? The most common reason is running very lean, and for a 1980 vehicle, this generally means the carb is sucking air in from wear in the butterfly spindle or some place else too. I'd suspect that the idle speed is a bit high, another symptom of wear.

As the engine is running so hot internally, even though the cooling system is working, I'd bet the coolant is actually hotter than it should be. So the overheating is the problem to solved FIRST, as this may well be what's making engine cut out.

I don't recall if the 1980 Tercel has a coil/ignitor integral in the distributor assembly , or if its the older coil and sparkgap distributor type. Verify this.

So ... take it to another shop certainly: these guys are idiots who only know how to change parts, not diagnose the problem. You don't have to buy new Toyota parts, unless there's no-one that can supply a rebuilt 1980 compatible unit, if you even need one at all.

Have the new shop check

- carb settings and look for any wear. Be prepared to get a rebuilt carburator.

- verify the timing and spark advance in the distributor. This may need replacement anyway.

- have the compression and leak down tested. There's a possibility that you are blowing a head gasket. If so, then the head has to come off for a full service including valve stem seals.

Stewart DIBBS

To my ears, the idle speed sounds right, but then it could have been a gradual change and I haven't heard any difference.

It's separate units, the coil/ignitor is separate from the distributor.

Well, that's certainly a list for the experts! I'll take it to a different shop tomorrow (Monday) and see what happens from there.

Thanks!

Graham McNicol

It's going to be one of the three items going bad, probably not all three at once. He isolated it down to one of those three and wants to 'shotgun' replace them all so he doesn't have to check further.

It's probably the coil or ignitor. If you have the right tools, you can do it, but most people don't have a way to see the signal from the distributor to see if it's the sensor, the ignitor, or the coil failing. I don't... (Unless a good Fluke 33 DMM can be used?)

The distributor could be due for a rebuild anyway due to wear in the bearings, but the damned thing can be practically falling apart and still put a spark through at about the right time. That could wait for next month.

Have them quantify the repairs into things that have to be done now, things that have to be done in the near future, and things that can wait for the right time - like doing the water pump and radiator work while they already have the car taken apart for a timing belt change. They might find a bunch of stuff that needs repair but isn't causing your immediate cut-out problems.

I've seen over-zealous mechanics hand people a $5,000 laundry list of repairs for an older car, and the owner freaks and scraps the car. When most of that can be done one piece at a time, and the car is good for another 100,000 miles.

Even if you spend $100 a month on a maintenance item or minor repair, it's still a WHOLE LOT cheaper than new car payments.

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Ignitors usually fail completely, not intermittently.

I tried starting it this morning, first time in 3 days, and it won't start. Engine turns over but it makes no attempt to catch.

Oh well, time for another tow truck.

Graham McNicol

I was thinking the same. I remember Toyota had a campagn for some bad parts they had in the 83 Tercel. Had to be towed from a McDonalds pickup window when the car died during lunch time. It probably cost Big Mac a few hundred bucks waiting for my car to get moved.