2000 Estima - intermittent solid engine light on

[2000estima]

Hi all,

I have owned Previa's, Tarago's and now have a 2000 Estima - V6, MCR40, 200k, grey market import from Japan, I bought it in 2014 in QLD.

It's in very nice condition and has been a champ, but recently has developed an issue that I have not been able to solve and I'm hoping you're collective wisdom will help...

I've had this issue for several months now and it's getting worse: The engine light comes on intermittently, but usually after about 20 minutes of driving. It does not flash. The light sometimes goes off, and comes back on later. When the ELO the car loses power and sputters a bit - it has the feel of not enough fuel. When the accelerator is pressed - it stutters briefly, but then accelerates just fine. But if I hold at any speed, it sputters.

So, I took it to my local Toyota dealer to have the OBD codes read, but they were useless. They said that it's too old and a grey market import so they could not get any info from the car.

I'm thinking that since the car runs fine until ELO that it's most likely a sensor gone bad, but which one? and maybe it's something else?

Questions:

1) Is there an OBD2 code reader that can interface with this vehicle?

2) Anyone had similar issues? How did you solve it? Any guesses as to what the problem is?

All thoughts appreciated

Cheers,

Thomas

[campbeam]

On 6/26/2020 at 4:12 PM, 2000estima said:

So, I took it to my local Toyota dealer to have the OBD codes read, but they were useless. They said that it's too old and a grey market import so they could not get any info from the car.

This is what happens when you have a grey import; no dealer support. Your vehicle is post 1996 so it is OBD2 compliant. You could go to SuperCheapAuto and pay them to read the error codes. Also it is a CEL [Check Engine Light].

Alternatively, you could buy a basic OBD2 scanner from eBay and read the codes yourself then do an internet search using the search term "Toyota error code XXXX".  

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Car-Scanner-Tool-EOBD-OBD2-OBDII-Diagnostic-Engine-Fault-Code-Reader-Scan-MS309/114244316335?hash=item1a997decaf:g:RXkAAOSwRu5e1Hj2 

This URL may also be relevant. 

https://blog.firestonecompleteautocare.com/maintenance/why-is-my-car-sputtering-when-i-step-on-the-gas/

[rionada]

Cheers mate! I'm checking with the ebay seller to confirm that the reader will work for my 2000 Estima.

Also, thanks for the article on sputtering... mine ONLY sputters after the CEL comes on which makes me suspect a bad sensor, but which one? or Two...

I suspect the mass airflow sensor or an O2 sensor, but I'd rather confirm with codes before paying the money and doing the work.

Do you have a guess?

[campbeam]

Guesses can be expensive. Best to do a proper diagnosis before starting to replace parts. However, I would be inclined to start by cleaning the mass airflow sensor MAF It is a regular maintenance item so worthwhile doing. Something else you can do, is to remove the O2 sensors and clean them.

Tip/trick that worked for me was to use brake fluid as a penetrating fluid when removing the O2 sensors. Got that one from the internet which was presumably posted by a Toyota mechanic based upon his experience.

[Scott Martin]

Hi

My Tarago is doing the same thing. The code will come up P0171 which is a mixture fault. I've replaced O2 sensors filters fuel pump and cleaned the MAF. I'm thinking maybe the throttle body or the fuel injectors.