Toyota Yaris Vvt-I 1.0L- revs die when driving

[Fudgecake]

Hi folks,

I recently bought a Toyota Yaris VVt-I 2003 from a local garage. They said that there wasn’t anything wrong with the car, however the timing chain is very noisy! Despite this nothing else seemed wrong. However, I’ve recently noticed that my car’s revs stop working. No light comes on when this happens, and it can happen at any given moment. For example, I can be trying to get to 30 mph and suddenly I’ll get to about 15 or 20 mph and then I have no revs and the car begins to slow down. I originally thought that it was the timing chain as it does rattle very loudly, to the point where I have to have the radio quite loud to drown out the sound of the car, and it only seemed to struggle to move off once stopped, however now it seems to stop revving whenever it feels like so I’m now not too sure if it’s the timing chain itself. The oil and water are both full currently, and it seems to be doing it more often now that I have a full tank of petrol. Before it was normally on the way back from somewhere if the engine was still warm, now every single time I drive the car the revs stop at some point, it doesn’t matter what gear I’m in or how fast I’m going the revs will just stop. When this happens, if I put my foot on the clutch the revs come back, however when I then take my foot off the clutch the revs stop again. I refuse to drive the car now because I don’t see it as very safe to be driving myself to work and back as I have to drive on a busy road which has a speed limit of 40mph. My dad thinks it could be the fuel filter, or that it needs a new timing chain. It’s already had new spark plugs fitted and a new air filter. I also have a new oil filter that needs fitting. It’s due an mot next month so would like to have it fixed before hand. 
 

Does anyone know what the problem could be?

[Yarso]

Unfortunately there are a few things it could be, but blocked fuel filter (or possibly blocked fuel outlet in the tank) could cause those symptoms. Typically if the fuel supply is very restricted, the engine will run Ok at idle (because that takes very little fuel) but the fuel pressure sags away when you try to apply power. I doubt the fuel filter would be expensive and should be easy enough to change, and you may get an indication from how much crud is in the old one as to whether you may have a lot of debris in the tank.

[bathtub tom]

If you bought it recently from a garage, then they may have some responsibility, depending how long ago and how much you paid for it.. When did you buy it and or for how much?

 

[Fudgecake]

I bought it last month. But they said it was sold as seen. So I’m not 100% sure what I can do, because technically they sold it as working perfectly when it’s not. 

[bathtub tom]

If you paid a sensible price for it, then they can't say it was 'sold as seen'. I suggest you consult your local trading standards or citizens advice bureau for advice.

Have you looked at reviews for this 'garage'?

 

[FROSTYBALLS]

Irrespective of 'sold as seen', should have some grounds under the Consumer Rights Act 2015. See the first six months section of - https://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/regulation/consumer-rights-act

[furtula]

Noisy chain means car was not looked after. Chain should last the lifetime of the car with regular oil services, that's it.

As for the loosing revs, you say they come back once the clutch is depressed, do you feel unusual slowing down when you lose revs, like the car is braking, or just normal slowing down?

 

As said above, seek legal help. I would not waste time or money trying to fix it. Garage obviously knew about this, so they said it's sold as seen.

[flash22]

The timing chain is just the tip of the iceberg when you turn the car on does the engine warning light come on then go off, i would get any codes read and get a pre MOT check done one to see what else needs doing

with this age of car someone may have taken the bulb out of the dash

I would say the timing chain issue is the problem and the lack of servicing, what you describe is a bad vvti solenoid, if you rev it to 3-4K rpm the revs die when you come off the throttle (snap the throttle) - the solenoid(s) get clogged with the lack of oil changes - these dont always throw a code either

Another common issue is a worn throttle pedal (the sensor wears in certain positions) again it doesn't always throw a code

[Fudgecake]

When I say the car slows down I mean that the car suddenly goes slightly quieter and then begins to act as though I’ve just taken my foot off the accelerator and am just allowing the car to stop by itself. It doesn’t feel like it’s breaking per say, but having said that the breaks are abysmal on the car, so definitely need to get them replaced, you can’t feel the car breaking without having your foot all the way down on the break pedal. I did however only pay £400 for the car.  
 

flash22 I shall look into this, as I have had someone I know who works for VW put one of the machine reader things, but it just said there was ‘no communication’ and wouldn’t come up with any codes of any sort. When I start the car up, all lights come on and then go off again, so I know that the eml does work. The way the revs sometimes come back tend to be either if I pump the accelerator, or change gears. Sometimes however this doesn’t work and the car stalls itself. Normally when this happens the engine management light is the ONLY light which comes on the dash. If it’s not the eml it’s normally JUST the oil light. When it stalls hardly ever do all the lights come on. 

[flash22]

First step is to get a scanner or reader to read the ECU - it could just be as simple as a blown DLC fuse once you can talk to the car you will know what's going on (it can point you in the right direction)