Just picked up my first 1986 tercel wagon 4x4

[Paultercel]

Hello everyone!

I just picked up a 1986 toyota tercel! Bought off a cool older guy in ohio. Said he was on the first season of the deadliest catch tv show. Also said he just finished 2nd place in the ididarod. He was pretty wild to say the least. Anyhow i bought the tercel and right when i got it back to michigan the damn thing wouldnt start back up. After some trouble shooting i replaced the distributor And ever since it has bee. Driving like a charm. Only problem is it is a cold blooded animal and 2 days ago it had a REALLY rough time driving in the rain. Sputtering, bad idle, ect. But today, sunny and warm, drives like a champ. Any one out there have any ideas on how to remedy this situation! Any sort of input would be greatly appreciated!!!

Thanks

[dlb]

welcome, paultercel.

poor running in the rain is an odd one. my first guess would be to remove the distributor cap next time and look for moisture in there. i'm not sure how it would get in there every time it rains though, usually this only happens after washing the engine down and spraying the distributor really good. maybe check the cap for cracks, and make sure the dizzy has the gasket that goes between the dizzy housing and the cap.

[Paultercel]

Thanks dlb! Well it is a brand new distributor right out of the box oem toyota part.
So im not sure thats the problem...

[irowiki]

It might be missing the seal though! or maybe the spark plug wires aren't seated. Did you replace the plug wires too?

How much did a new OEM distributor cost?

[Petros]

welcome to the fourm!

is the distributor actually brand new? or is it rebuilt? half of the re-manufactured distributors I have seen were crap out of the box, so I will not buy them and advise against it. A well used factory distributor is way more reliable than a re-manufactured one any day. Or you can rebuilt it yourself for a lot less money.

check all of your connections and contacts, including the ground wires (verify all of the ground wires are in place, there are several of them). Also, clean the outside of the insulator parts of the spark plugs off if they have dirt and grease on them, it will allow the spark to go to ground rather than through the spark plug gap in the engine.

On many older cars sometimes corrosion builds up within the connectors and it tends to trap moisture, usually going away after the engine runs for a min. or two (when the connection warms up). if that is the case I have found that spraying all of the electrical components with LPS1 or CorrossionX, spray will stop that. these will displace moisture and improve conductivity of the joint, without causing it to short out. These also works well for starting a wet engine by spraying it on all of the wires and contacts.

good luck.

Post pictures when you get a chance!

[Paultercel]

Oh man it was expensive. 400 bucks!!!! I didnt replace the wires. Maybe i will replace the plugs and wires over the weekend that could help?

[Paultercel]

Yea as far as i know it is a brand new toyota part. I will post a picture here.

[dlb]

did the new dizzy come with a new cap? i think they are generally sold separately but some places may be different.

[Paultercel]

Here is the full engine

[Paultercel]

What is the dizzy?

[irowiki]

Dizzy = Distributor.

If they weren't new, I'd replace the rotor, cap, wires, plugs, then make sure it is timed properly. Also check the vacuum advance.

When I did this to my latest wagon she runs like a dream now!

[Paultercel]

As far as I know it was the full assembly. Got it from the dealer in waterford michigan. They hunted one down from out west.

[Paultercel]

I will be putting new plugs and wires in this weekend. I figure it will solve some of these issues. How can i check the vacuum?

[Paultercel]

Also put in new ignitor. She fires up but only drives well after the temperature needle gets to mid center.

[dlb]

How can i check the vacuum?

suck on the hoses that go to each vacuum diaphragm. you should not be able to suck air through. if you can, the diaphragm is ruptured so the hose going to it should be plugged until you can replace the diaphragm.

Also put in new ignitor.

isn't the ignitor part of the dizzy? if you bought a new dizzy, you should not have had to replace the ignitor in it. or do you mean ignition, as in the where you put the key?

She fires up but only drives well after the temperature needle gets to mid center.

check all cold running components, ie choke, choke breaker, AAP, etc. each of these is covered in the factory service manual (FSM), available for download here.

https://tercel4wd.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=8103