Tercel4WD.com

I had the same issue. Try squirting carb cleaner down the carb while starting. Or starter fluid. Wear safety glasses and have a fire extinguisher handy...

Also it has an auto choke, need to set that by flooring the accelerator once before starting.

Thanks everybody for all your help. I finally got this car cleaned up and running OK. As you can tell from the above timeline, working on old cars turns out NOT to be my cup of tea. So I sold the T4WD. It is amazing what a cult classic these things are, I sold it for $1200 which is about a $300 prof...

Thanks for all the comments. Compression is good, above 175 psi on all cylinders. It does seem like the black on the air filter was coming from the fresh air intake, not the PCV tube. The leak isn't bad. I drove it around today and it isn't dripping on the driveway. Good idea on the dipstick test, I...

No I didn't. If I replace them, and the crankcase isn't ventilated properly, will the new seals get damaged?

Update and more help requested... I changed out the air filter, fuel filter, and PCV valve, and got all the doors and windows working (needed a new driver's regulator). Then I drove it around a bit. It starts and runs OK, and the transmission shifts well (auto). Problems - There is an oil "seep...

Great score! Nice looking car. The cam timing looks correct on your photo. You may not have a blown head gasket with those numbers. Why are you still taking it apart? When you are checking the timing with a timing light it is common to paint a mark for the crankshaft so you can see it. OK, thanks f...

I found this picture on Autozone's web site.

I do have the manual. I can't look directly through the hole in the pulley because the freon piping is in the way. In the manual it appears that the hole in the pulley should be straight up. Mine is not straight up. In the manual it shows one triangular mark on the head. I see three triangular marks...

irowiki wrote:Looks like you're running rich!

Yes it does, but I haven't even started to worry about details like that yet... Right now just trying to get it basically running to see if it's worth more effort.

I finally got around to looking at the Tercel some more - drained the coolant and removed some stuff to start removing the head. I looked at the top of the pistons as suggested here. They all appear similar. They are not steam cleaned. If anything, No. 1 is grungier than the others. Here is the cool...

(I am copying this post to this thread, to keep my entire project in one spot.) Compression test: No. 1 175-176psi No 2-4 177-178 Was able to get the engine running with starter fluid, and it kept running, so spark and fuel are at least present. With these compression numbers, other forum members su...

The PO stated it had a blown head gasket. The symptoms were a sudden severe loss of power and also diagnosis by a "mechanic" based on a sucking sound. The coolant was low when I drained it. The No. 1 spark plug isn't rusty but it does have some grungy deposits on it, No. 2 a bit as well. I...

I finally started my head gasket replacement, and there is an air conditioner pipe in right in front of the timing belt cover. Will I be able to access the timing belt and remove the head with this in the way? I also posted photos of the plugs. No. 1 has some grungy stuff on it, the others look sort...

I read of problem similar to this on a motorcycle forum... It turned out the ignition coil was bad. Thermal expansion and contraction due to temperature caused the erratic behavior.

dlb wrote:dhally, what the hell is your profile pic of??

Lol, I found that picture by googling "hammerhead". Hammerhead is an attitude I have been accused of...