1995 1.8l Corolla Sputtering And Stalling In Drive With Too Much Or To - Pre-1997 Toyota Corolla and Geo Prizm

Hi Everyone,

I've Got a 95 Automatic, 1.8L that has been working fine until it recently began giving me problems.

The problem began with a slight hesitation in Drive when slowing down. Revving made the problem disappear, but a few stops later the vehicle wouldn't stop. I gave it a lot of gas in neutral and got it to start, then it stalled out on me again at a stoplight. Managed to get it started again after cleaning out the throttle body a bit, but it still wants to stall out on me if I depress the gas more than halfway, or if I'm idling at a light or stop sign. Basically too much or too little power, and it wants to die.

Today I changed the fuel filter after the car had been sitting for a few days, and the following happened:

-Car drove normally without hesitation for 3-4 miles, including multiple starts/stops, uphill/downhill, all gears and speeds up to 45mph

-After entering a parking lot and slowing down from travelling at ~30mph, engine hesitated 3 times until parked.

-Did not want to start afterwards, took 3 long tries. Stalled out multiple times on way back home, taking more tries to restart each time. Vehicle lost power, sputtered and died at increasingly more frequent intervals no matter how much gas was applied, but seemed more likely to die with the following events:

--------->Coming to a stop at a light or stop sign (applying too little gas) - revving in D,N or P helps somewhat

--------->Turning at a low speed

--------->Going up a hill

--------->applying too much gas

It seems like once it sits for a bit, it will start and operate normally for a limited time, directly proportional to how long it has been sitting.

What I've done so far/ruled out:

-Tested the battery and it works fine.

-Cleaned battery cables

-Checked air filter, looks fine

-Spark plugs/wires/distributor+rotor replaced about 15k miles ago.

-09/17 - fuel filter replaced

-09/17 - checked PCV valve, "rattle" present

-Tested driving in all gears (P,R,N,D,2,L) - hesiitation present in all after a few minutes.

-Check vacuum hoses using fishexpo101's dish soap method

-Pull plugs and check for proper gap/discoloration

Hello and Welcome to the forum.

From your description - could be either a fuel supply or ignition related issue. Plug the spark plugs and see how they look - not anything that looks unusual (ie, spotting, shiny spots, wet/oily deposits). Verify that the sparkplug gaps are OK and that the plugs are not excessively worn out - even being off a couple of hundreths of an inch can cause some drivability issues.

Could also be a clogged PCV valve causing the driveability issue, clogged EGR system another possibility. You mentioned it was OK in reverse - does it stall at all drivign in reverse? If it seems fine in reverse, revving the engine in park and neutral OK, and only stalls in drive (assuming that you have a 4-speed auto) - could have a transmission logic or mechanical problem. Try accelerating in L and 2 - see if it stalls in those gear selections. If you hadn't had the transmission serviced in a while (most run 30K drain and refill intervals - some even more often depending on driving conditions - pna drop and filter replacement at 60K intervals), might be a good time to consider one.

Hello and Welcome to the forum.

Thanks!

From your description - could be either a fuel supply or ignition related issue. Plug the spark plugs and see how they look - not anything that looks unusual (ie, spotting, shiny spots, wet/oily deposits). Verify that the sparkplug gaps are OK and that the plugs are not excessively worn out - even being off a couple of hundreths of an inch can cause some drivability issues.

Will pull the plugs and take a look.

Could also be a clogged PCV valve causing the driveability issue, clogged EGR system another possibility.

What's the easiest way to check these myself?

You mentioned it was OK in reverse - does it stall at all drivign in reverse? If it seems fine in reverse, revving the engine in park and neutral OK, and only stalls in drive (assuming that you have a 4-speed auto) - could have a transmission logic or mechanical problem. Try accelerating in L and 2 - see if it stalls in those gear selections. If you hadn't had the transmission serviced in a while (most run 30K drain and refill intervals - some even more often depending on driving conditions - pna drop and filter replacement at 60K intervals), might be a good time to consider one.

Just drove it around the block, hesitation became present in all positions (P,N,D,R,2,L) after a minute or so.

Bikeman982

Could be anything - common problem with many possible causes.

Ignition related - plugs, wires, distributor, etc.

Fuel related - pump, filter, lines.

Might even be clogged injectors.

Everything must be clean and properly adjusted, or there will be operating problems.

Could also be a clogged PCV valve causing the driveability issue, clogged EGR system another possibility.
What's the easiest way to check these myself?

The PCV valve is a one-way check valve. Easiest way to check them is to first remove it and see if it rattles (it should). Then blow into one end and then the other end (make sure to blow through a pipe of tubing or similar - that part is usually coated with combustion blowby gases and oily fumes). Should only pass air in one direction and block it in the other.

Since the car exhibits this hesitantion in all gears - I would concentrate on the ignition portion and fuel delivery aspects. Could be something simple as a clogged fuel filter (common sign is running fine at idle, but poorly at speed). Though your situation seems a bit more advanced/complicated. Definitely sounds like a vacuum leak - these can pop up all of a sudden as well. One quick check it is spray the hoses is a solution of water with a few drops of dish washing soap mixed in a spray bottle. Spray each one of the vacuum hoses, try to use enough to completely saturate the outside of the hose so that it completely covered all the way around. Concentrate around fittings and T's, around the airbox hose, between the intake manifold and the engine, between the intake manifold and throttle body. Do this while the engine is running - if you hit a hose or mating surface that is leaking, the water will be pulled into the crack via capillary action and temporarily seal the leak. You should hear exactly when this happens because the engine idle should improve significantly. Shops use a similar tactic with a propane tank and an appropriate wand - there the engine will race once a leak is discovered, since propane is an accelerant and burns very aggressively. Though I find that it is less likely to cause mistakes if you use plain water vs gassing oneself with propane.

original post updated with latest info - some more things ruled out, car ran fine after sitting for a few days and then problem presented itself in the same order with car hesitating, refusing to start, and stalling out.

sounds like a fuel pump to me.

Problem appears to be resolved, OP updated with info/probable cause.

the water in the headlight would only affect the headlight circuit which is not at all connected or related to any of the circuits that run the engine.