Rav 4 D4D Poor Starting When Hot.

[rambler]

Hi,based on the great info.posted by all,the symptoms point to Scv valves almost definately! I can find them online and from local suppliers for approx £200 for the pair,does anyone know dealer price or of any recommended suppliers for less??? Thanks again for the help people!!!

Hi Rothers6

Welcome to the club

I had my SCV's changed about 3 years ago now,so unless they have gone wrong again ! ! ! ,but for the last few days it has started each and every time after a good long drive and a hot engine & attempting to start several times after,each time it has fired.

So.....tbh i'm confused,kind of concerned,but also slightly relieved that it....seems fixed.

Will ask Mr t to give a full diagnostic tomorrow in that area,as its being serviced.

[Rothers6]

Hi,having just this morning fitted my new Scv valves and road tested extensively the fault of poor starting when at working temp.and hot still exactly the same. There is also a noticible lack of power at low revs. 2000 rpm and sluggish until 4000 and then takes off after 4000. Possible turbo waste gate??? Any help is appreciated.

Rothers!

[rambler]

Well.........an update !.

The Rav went in for its 120'000 service on Tues,and for a further look into the hot starting issue.

Before i took it to Toyota,i took it for a half hour drive south on the A12,just to get that engine to normal operating temperature.

I pulled into the dealership,let the engine / turbo settle down for a minute , then turned it off.

Reported into the service dept,they had their head technician awaiting my arrival,we went over to the Rav with all his meters / leads etc etc.

He removed the Battery cover,tested my new Yuasa proffesional Battery,said its 110% ok..tbh better than it should be,....he then said lets try starting it up then......just to see what happens.

I let the glow go out,depressed the clutch,and turned the key in anticipation.........awaiting a poor start,BUT no.....it started within 3-4 good strong cranks,no problem.

He then tested Battery to earth, and various other tests useing jump leads ( no other car involved ) ,a analogue meter, and whatever he could do find an issue.

I left the Rav with them to do the service the following day.

The service was done,( I've checked the various filters) all were changed apart from the fuel filter ( not on this service according to worksheet).

Went to collect it tues evening,and they let their let their technician work on it for 2 hours......f o c,he had cleaned up all earthing points , leads and checked for resistance etc etc.

So i paid the bill,and since then,to my delight,it has started each and every time i've attempted to hot start it !.

I've driven it up and down the main roads near here,given a thoroughly good work out ,and every time i've turned it off,given it 5 mins to 15 mins......its always started again.

I also got a pleasant phone call from the dealership manager,saying that IF it happens again,and if thier diagnosis was wrong,he will instruct his service department to give me a full refund.

He's very confident that they have got it right.

I've met Tim the manager there several times,he's a good man,and knows me fairly well,and i felt very reassured when he said that to me.

So........i will now be driving my Rav4 to Cumbria this saturday,as my confidence is growing with it daily.

[Tech01]

So, just what did they track it down to? Simply new filters? I'm still unclear what fault they found.

Chris

[Big Kev]

The worst of this scenario is that no actual fault seems to have been identified....the law of sod seems to have clicked in. Problem is it is a very easily reversed law, and can / does so very regularly. Hope not, Jamesy.....has taken an inordinate amount of time for your wee car to fix itself........

Big Kev

[rambler]

So, just what did they track it down to? Simply new filters? I'm still unclear what fault they found.

Chris

The worst of this scenario is that no actual fault seems to have been identified....the law of sod seems to have clicked in. Problem is it is a very easily reversed law, and can / does so very regularly. Hope not, Jamesy.....has taken an inordinate amount of time for your wee car to fix itself........

Big Kev

Well chaps,seems a clean up of the earthing points?.........i don't really know,but all i can see for myself is that it now starts each and every time i need it to ,am typing this on my smart tv ,so any any typing errors i apololise for ,perhaps something was a miss on the old starter motor????.........time will tell

[Johnyboy]

Hi,

Had exact problem with our 2001 diesel rav, spent a fortune on it, new starter motor, glow plugs, Battery. It would start from cold and run fine, pull over and stop engine, try to re start, starter turns over like it has a flat Battery, wait 10 min, starts instantly with no problem. Took it to Toyota in the end and was told it needed a new ECU, cost £900!!! i sold it for £1000. Good luck!!

[Johnyboy]

Hi,

What was Toyotas Diagnosis!!!

[rambler]

Hi,

Had exact problem with our 2001 diesel rav, spent a fortune on it, new starter motor, glow plugs, battery. It would start from cold and run fine, pull over and stop engine, try to re start, starter turns over like it has a flat battery, wait 10 min, starts instantly with no problem. Took it to Toyota in the end and was told it needed a new ECU, cost £900!!! i sold it for £1000. Good luck!!

Hi,

What was Toyotas Diagnosis!!!

Hi Johnyboy

Well just recently Toyota fitted a second replacement starter motor,they claimed it was definatley an electrical issue.

The alleged issue was that they fitted a new starter motor back in may last year, but apparently this didn't draw enough amps to be able to turn the engine over.

So they fitted this replacement starter motor on guarantee,and it draws 600 amps instead of 300 amps ???? each time I turn the key to "hot start " my Rav.

Now.....I have tried hot starting my Rav since this was done,and.....yes...it.....has....improved A LITTLE.

I STILL say that my Rav has a hot start problem,yes the new starter gives it far more life , but its not as it should be and to be honest i'm reluctant to spend more on it , other than servicing costs.

Toyota have in their words "made it start ", but in my words its " not solved the underlying problem ", so I will live with it and continue driving it with the pleasure it gives me.

Then when I eventually see a manufacturer make a vehicle that makes me think ' WOW AGAIN ' ,i'll trade mine in or sell it on we buy any car.

[doujoy1944]

Hi to all,

On a problem like you have explained a friend of mine had this problem and was told by the local Toyota dealer that a new high pressure injection pump was required but after testing the sensors in the pump myself I found a fault in the diesel temp sensor, this was replaced and it solved the problem.

Doug.

[Johnyboy]

Cheers Jamie and good luck. J

[rambler]

Hi Doug

I have always felt that the problem was fuel related, so its the fuel temp sensor within the fuel pump itself ?

I've no idea how much these cost ?

If this cures the problem, it's worth paying out for.

[CJ Barnes]

Doug/Jamie,

We seem to have a very similar problem on my wife's RAV4. When starting from hot, the engine will initially crank over normally for a second, and then struggle as if the Battery were weak. The problem is intermittent, sometimes going away for weeks at a time. We initially changed the starter motor and the Battery. The problem is still there. Earth terminals have been checked/cleaned, and I've inspected wiring as best I can, but you've got my interest regarding the fuel temp sensor.

I'll be honest it doesn't make sense to on the surface, but at this point I'll give about anything a go. Where would I be able to acquire one of these? I rang the dealer and they are unable to supply the sensor, conveniently only an entire pump assembly for the tidy sum of £950 plus VAT...typical.

I did find and order a temp sensor, part number WS1035, so hopefully that's the one. I'll report back on how the replacement goes, and the ensuing results. Cheers!

CJ

[rambler]

Doug/Jamie,

We seem to have a very similar problem on my wife's RAV4. When starting from hot, the engine will initially crank over normally for a second, and then struggle as if the battery were weak. The problem is intermittent, sometimes going away for weeks at a time. We initially changed the starter motor and the battery. The problem is still there. Earth terminals have been checked/cleaned, and I've inspected wiring as best I can, but you've got my interest regarding the fuel temp sensor.

I'll be honest it doesn't make sense to on the surface, but at this point I'll give about anything a go. Where would I be able to acquire one of these? I rang the dealer and they are unable to supply the sensor, conveniently only an entire pump assembly for the tidy sum of £950 plus VAT...typical.

I did find and order a temp sensor, part number WS1035, so hopefully that's the one. I'll report back on how the replacement goes, and the ensuing results. Cheers!

CJ

Ok CJ .....look forward to seeing what happens ....cheers.

[mikez1]

Did you ever manage to get this fixed?

[rambler]

Well , I had a missed call from Colchester Toyota earlier , apparently my Rav has been running all day today and they have tried starting it on numerous occasions with the engine at temperature.

And they still have no result, 4 days of "testing" and they cant find anything.

So they have asked me to call them Monday morning.

[CJ Barnes]

Well, after (finally!!) being able to duplicate the problem, our local auto electrics shop replaced all the high current leads (power and earth) in the electrical system, but still no fix.

I have not replaced the diesel temp sensor yet. The sensor I ordered was mislabeled, and was in fact a coolant temp sensor. Still puzzled how this could even be the problem... But I have the part number for the sensor now, just trying to find one here in the UK. Dealer still wants to sell me an entire pump....

To make matters worse, now the turbo has started to whistle and hum. I know maintenance costs are expected over time, and we've had a good run with this vehicle for almost 3 years. But it's getting a bit frustrating to have things start to pile up with no fix for the initial problem as of yet.

So to sum up, no real update to the problem I guess, just a little vent for my sanity's sake... Will keep you all posted.

[FROSTYBALLS]

Try sending Parts KIng a personal message, detailing your vehicle and the part you want - for Parts King see the Community page, Sponsors Corner, Lindop Toyota

[mikez1]

Hi all,

Been working away so need to catch up on this thread later, just seen the last page...

CJ, do you have that part number available please and I'll see what I can find?

My turbo has also started whistling but it's so high pitched it almost sounds like air... Definitely a different sound from what it used to be....

I'll catch up on the thread later,

Cheers

Mike

[rambler]

Well, I just made that phone call.

They wish / need to keep my Rav4 for longer for further investigation, as unfortunately its not playing up.

I also told them that these threads on here have had some suggestions , fuel pump sensor , fuel priming pump, just trying to help them.

I got the feeling that they didn't appreciate this, but if it brings this all to a conclusion easier & quicker , then I'm all for it.

If they are reading this, then all us Rav4 D4D owners are looking for the answer, and any help for either party ( private , Toyota or anybody ) is as far as i'm concerned a great help.

Then we can all move on with our lives, and enjoy our Rav4's again.

[mikez1]

I've been told to try the cam/crankshaft position sensor as it can apparently give the wrong readings when it heats up causing issues. I noticed on mine when it doesn't fire up, that it sounds like its not quite catching and the engine rocks quite a bit. I got stranded at a petrol station yesterday for 5 - 10 mins :D. I also seem to be using more fuel on a long drive.

I'll report back once I've tested it out to see if there is any improvement, hopefully the part will be here tomorrow.

[rambler]

Yes......re the fuel thing,i agree .....I seem to be using more fuel on longer drives as well.

Be interesting to see about that crankshaft sensor.......

[mikez1]

Replacing part tomorrow so will let you know the outcome once I've given it a hot start....

Just done a lot of reading and someone else with a rav4 that had intermittent start issues when hot was due to the crank sensor being covered in garbage ( a light coolant leak that crusted up around it so that it intermittently interfered.

By close of play tomorrow I should have the cam sensor replaced and the crank sensor checked to make sure it is clean. If that doesn't work then I'll do the crank sensor. I refuse to be beaten by this problem.

[rambler]

How did you get on then please mike ?

[CJ Barnes]

Just been thinking, has anyone that has this problem replaced the starter a second time? I'm just wondering if possibly I got a dud starter, or one of less than superior quality that is struggling when the engine is hot.

mikez1, a late response to your request for the part number on my fuel temp sensor:

Denso P/N 179730-0020

Regarding fuel consumption, we are getting about 310 miles before the fuel light comes on. I've worked it out at roughly 26mpg(UK) / 22mpg(US). Is this about right? Seems a bit low to me, but I never started looking at this until fairly recently.

On an equally unproductive note, I've had no luck finding a loose air or vacuum line in the turbo system, so I've booked it in for a proper look on Tuesday. Hope it's one I can't see, rather than the turbo packing up. Will keep you posted and start a new thread on that if necessary eventually...