cannot get engine to idle

[xirdneh]

i'm bout ready to install some DuPont sparkplugs in this thing.

i recently picked up a tercel for 250.00 with an engine that had one bad cylinder. it ran but did not idle. i pulled the engine replacing it with one i salvaged for 35.00. it has abt 125,000 miles on it. it ran and idled fine in the car it came from but does not idle now.
i pulled a carb off one of my good tercels and reinstalled it in this car and it still would not idle.
i checked compression and all cylinders are within 4 psi of each other.
i tried switching distributers with no luck either.
i blocked off the egr hole at the intake manifold . that changed nothing.

i decided to experiment with the vacuum hoses.
on a good running tercel i disconnected and plugged alll vacuum hoses and the car still idled perfectly.
so i tried the same on the trouble car and it changed nothing

to keep the engine running i have the idle turned up just enough to keep it running.
backing off the screw just a little bit causes it to die

one clue that may or may not mean anything
i noticed that pulling a vacuum hose letting more air into the manifold increases the rpm considerably

i had assumed the old engine would not idle because of the bad cylinder
but maybe that was not the reason

i'm stumped

[xirdneh]

[quote="xirdneh"]i'm bout ready to install some DuPont sparkplugs in this thing.

true to form i looked at the most difficult things first.

the last thing i tried should have been the first.
while the engine was running i spreayed carb cleaner around the base of the carb and where the intake manifold meets the head .
the engine revved up whenever i sprayed near the intake at the fourth cylinder.
i removed the intake manifold.
the spot where it was sucking the carb cleaner through was very clean.
laying a straight edge across the ends of the manifold showed a slight warpage in that area.
hopefully a new gasket and another , flatter, manifold will fix the problem.

[JOE]

if you stick with toyota spark plugs you will never have a problem. They don't like anything else. trust me.

[Chris]

What are some of the issuses that you have found with non-Toyota spark plugs? Doesn't Toyota use Nippondenso &/or NGK from the factory?

[xirdneh]

What are some of the issuses that you have found with non-Toyota spark plugs? Doesn't Toyota use Nippondenso &/or NGK from the factory?

i do not know for sure but i think someone did not catch the fact that DuPont makes dynamite spark plugs.

i have used mostly NGK's for the last 18 years on these tercels with no problems.
i have used Champions and Autolites too and noticed no difference.

[xirdneh]

i replaced the manifold gasket and intake manifold. the air leak is gone but the engine still will not idle. i have tried several carb's that work in other cars and they all seem to be dumping a lot of gas when i look down the throat. all of the carbs idle down to a medium high idle but backing the idle screw off just a tiny bit causes car to die.
it just seems to be sucking to much gas.
i'm wondering now if the timing belt is off one notch. would that cause the problem?

[SirNik83]

The timing and the carb settings are always tochy.. at least on the 3 tercels i've owned. it always takes me a while to get it tuned in. they do not like to idle unless the timeing and and carb are set perfectly. i know the feelings you are having. i had the same feeling when i paied $100 for a brand new carb and it sitll wouldn't idle... but playing with the timing while i was adjusting the carb, i finaly got in tuned in. and now it idels great at around 500rmp.

[xirdneh]

to keep the engine running i have the idle turned up just enough to keep it running.
backing off the screw just a little bit causes it to die


problem solved
the solenoids on the carb were switched
the two wire solenoid should be on the drivers side of the carb
the single wire solenoid on the passenger/aft side of carb
they were just the opposie

the car would not idle with them being switched

whats odd is the two cars that i used as a guides run and idle just fine with the solenoids switched.
but one of the cars has the "B" vacuum switch hose disconnected
when connected the car dies
so it must control one of the solenoids

i wish i knew more about how those things work
i plan to correct all of the solenoids

ps does anyone know why i cannot get the "search" funtion to work on this website?