Tercel4WD.com

Yes, this is normal. When you are driving in 2wd, the drive shaft to the rear differential is spinning, but it's being driven by the rear wheels instead of being driven by the transmission.

My '81 1st generation Tercel originally had a points-type distributor. I replaced it with an electronic distributor from the 2nd gen Tercels. It fits perfectly. The only thing to modify is the wiring, since the points-type system is 6 volt. There is a big resistor in the engine bay to drop the batte...

Thanks guys. It was the starter, spins over fast now. After clearing fuel lines and tank she runs pretty good excepti assume front diff is shredded. After got it running last night put it in gear on the lift and grinding in the front. Rear wheels spin when in 4wd. Any advice on tracking down a fron...

First I'd check that the battery isn't dead. If it shows around 12+ v on a meter, then it should be ok. Then I'd check the connections on the battery and make sure they are tight and not corroded. If that's all good, then one thing with the automatics is that the transmission selector has to be in P...

To do a basic diagnosis for a clogged radiator, run the engine until it shows the high temperature that the gauge has been showing you lately. Then feel the radiator with your hand. It should feel hot or at least very warm evenly all along the middle of the flow path of the radiator. On my '85 van, ...

I had an '84 Camry that was fuel injected. Same with my '85 Toyota van. I think the 3rd gen Tercels still had carbs.

I was using a torque wrench at work 2 days ago. It was one I had used before without a problem. I was turning a bolt and it seemed that I was applying more torque than the setting (25 inch-pounds). I put the socket in a bench vise and turned hard, but it never clicked. I tried several settings and i...

That flap that opens and closes in the top of the carb is the choke. When the engine is warm, it's supposed to stay open. The throttle plates that open and close when you press the gas pedal are deeper in the carb. You might need a flashlight shining down into the carb to see them properly. They sho...

That temperature seems about normal. Once it's warmed up, the needle should sit around the halfway mark. And 15 minutes at idle is a reasonable amount of time to warm up. I'd even expect it to warm up a bit faster than that. That idle speed is really high. It should idle at 600-900 rpm depending on ...

I think that's the thermo switch that sends a signal to the computer for emissions stuff. It shouldn't make your car overheat. You could probably unplug it and not really notice the difference. How long does it take to get hot? How high is it on the temperature gauge in the dash?

Check and see that the choke breaker diaphragm is working. When you start the engine, the choke is closed. After about 1 or 2 seconds, that choke opener is supposed to open the choke just a bit. If it doesn't, there will not be enough air for the engine to run and the engine will probably stall like...

I'd park the car, take off the air filter cover, start the engine, wait for it to seem like it's about to stall and then spray something like carb cleaner down into the carb. If the engine starts running again while you're spraying then I'd suspect a fuel delivery issue. I don't know if the Weber ca...

Years ago, I bought a six-point (rather than the more common 12 point) socket just for this job. No problems since. I think it was Tom here who ground his 6-point socket down so there was no chamfer on it, just because the fill plugs are so short. I've never needed to go that far but I've always re...

Years ago, I bought a six-point (rather than the more common 12 point) socket just for this job. No problems since. Oh, I definitely only use a 6-point socket on these things. When this happened on my '84 wagon years ago, I tried everything from a torch to a chisel to try and get the rounded-off pl...

On mine the drain plug is a 24mm and I've never had a problem with them. The fill plugs are 17mm on the 1st gen. I don't remember what the fill plug size on my wagon is. I feel like the smaller size is more prone to rounding off.