1986 4wd and hello

[Ellensburg]

Howdy folks,

I'm picking up a 1986 Tercel 4wd today which I have been told has a bad fuel pump and has been sitting for two years. No other information was available on it, but it looked very straight and relatively rust free, not to mention the price was right (free). This will be my third Tercel 4wd, but first in the internet age. I'll pull the fuel pump over the weekend, but am wondering if there are known issues with fuel delivery. I have a foggy memory of having fuel delivery issues on one about 10 years ago...

Are there any known faulty fuel system components? Have any of you ever installed a fuel cell with electric fuel pump? Has anyone ever installed manual choke / air mixture components?

I'd like to bypass all O2 sensors, EGR, and other emission control systems to simplify things and gain better fuel efficiency. Thoughts?

[irowiki]

Welcome!

Pull the fuel level sender and check the tank for rust. If there's no rust, you might be good to go on fuel delivery. You may check the fuel filter too! I've heard of the hard lines becoming plugged and needing to be unplugged.

Most of the emission systems on this car actually help smooth running or fuel economy, so beware! The EGR system is safe to remove.

[dlb]

welcome, ellensburg. where are you located?

if you don't like the various emission components, you might try a weber 32/36 DGEV carb swap. it's quite a bit peppier and gets the same mileage as the stock carb (high 20s to low 30s mpg). they are more or less bolt on, and there are quite a few threads here on the forum detailing how to install them. you can get a weber with an adapter plate (they call it a conversion kit) for reasonable prices if you're in the US. the cost is a bit more if you're in canada.

the only issue i had with my weber was icing in the first 5 minutes of cold weather driving. i found it really irritating so i personally prefer the stock carb, what with all its warming features that help prevent icing.

some folks on the forum have gone the manual choke route, both on webers and stock carbs, but i think that was usually just because the auto choke had failed. can't remember for sure. i don't remember anyone installing an electric fuel pump but just do a search on here, you might find something. irowiki has a first gen tercel that a PO put an electric pump in the trunk of but you don't want to do that.

[irowiki]

Yeah I'm trying to fix that eventually!

[xirdneh]

pour a couple of teaspoons of gas into the carb
try starting
if it fires right up and dies
at least you know the engine runs
repeat the process a few times
if it never takes off on its own you know for sure its not getting fuel

also can disconnect fuel hose between carb and fuel pump
have someone crank it over while you watch for fuel squirting out
if it squrts fuel then the carb must be clogged

if no squrt then fuel pump could be it

[Ellensburg]

Thanks xirdneh for the tips, I can't wait to start working on this beauty tomorrow morning.

It's got 215k, but is in remarkable condition otherwise. Very little rust, recent oil change, new muffler, new fuel filter, new alternator, clean air filter, etc. I'm charging the battery overnight, but I have my doubts on bringing the battery back to life. It was reading 9.5v when I picked it up, with a 10amp charge after 3 hours it's up to 11.1v. We'll see. How do I put a picture on here?

[dlb]

to post pics, i upload them to photobucket and copy the 'direct' code (highlight the code and press ctrl + c) for the pic i want to use. then when i make a post, i click on the IMG button that makes these things:

(img) and (/img)

and paste the code between them (put the cursor between the two 'img' things and press ctrl + v).

there are lots of other photo hosting sites too, like flickr, and there's a way to upload your pics directly onto this forum's server too but i've never done it.

[ARCHINSTL]

What dlb said! See also https://tercel4wd.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=5828
Tom M.

P.S. Welcome to the Club!

[Petros]

welcome to the forum,

usually the fuel pumps are very reliable, they do fail but it is rare. you want to diagnose it BEFORE you try and fix it.

Drip fuel into the carb, or the engine start spray, and see if it will run breifely. That will verify if it has no fuel or no spark.

take a length of fuel line and run it from the "in" side of the fuel pump to a gas can full of good fuel (strap it down securely with bungees or duck tape, you do not want a fuel spill, or have someone hold the can back from the engine). And see if it will run that way. I have found sometimes the rubber sections of fuel line can crack and suck air instead of fuel, it it runs off the fuel in the can than it is either a leaky fuel line, a plugged up fuel filter, or as mensioned a blocked fuel pick-up screen in the fuel tank.

You can inspect inside the fuel tank from a hatch under the rear carpet, remove the fuel sender from under the floor hatch and inspect the inside of the tank with a flash light (no open flames!). if there is rust and crud in the tank or on the fuel pick-up the tank can be drained and washed out without removing it. if the tank has a lot of rust in it than it should be replaced or taken out and delivered to a place that can boil out the tank and coat the inside to prevent future rust issues.

Are you in Ellensburg WA by any chance? An Ellensburger?

[xirdneh]

another technique i have done is
use a small old lawnmower gas tank
( the cylindrical shaped type)
run hose from tank to carb center stud (for air filter housing)
hose should fit just snug over stud
elevate gas can and gas will gravity flow
the stud will let some gas seep by
enough to start car and keep it running

[danzo]

Did you get your car running yet? Where do you live? One of us may be close enough to help out in person.

[Ellensburg]

Thanks for all the replies. Ellensburg, WA it is, and I was able to replace the fuel pump and hit the road. Runs great, and is in great shape considering it's nearly 30 years old. I'm getting it licensed today so I can be legal.

[scrapz253]

Awesome! We should meet up sometime. i've been meaning to head over that way for a while now. I miss the green. its fun over here in the desert of the tri-cities. but im from tacoma....

[Petros]

ellensburg would be a great place for a meet up. lots of back woods trails around there.

[scrapz253]

fairly central location too