Car won't start - Toyota Yaris Forums

rkvin21 · 01-22-2010, 01:09 PM

OK so on my way home I heard a pop come from my car and the check engine light started flashing. I pulled over and checked under the hood to make sure nothing was loose or out of the ordinary. The light came off and I went to autozone to read the code and it was a cylinder 4 misfire. Continuing on my way home it happened again and the check engine light stayed on. Now when I was nearing my house I had no choice but to go threw this puddle that was approx 7in-8 in deep. My car stalled and would no longer start. I got it towed back to my house. I am assuming hydrolock. I tried starting it this morning and every time I try to try to turn it over all the lights die on the dash and I don't even hear the starter. Any ideas? I would prefer to do it myself but if I must I will take it to a professional mechanic.

Thank You
Ryan

rkvin21 · 01-22-2010, 01:20 PM

I just went out and checked my oil and it looks fine so maybe there isn't any or just not much water in the engine.

*tomato* · 01-22-2010, 02:10 PM

Just curious, what happens if someone gives you a jump, will the car start then?

You did say "all the lights die on the dash and I don't even hear the starter" that's what my car used to do when the battery was dead.

it's gotta be more than that since you describes those "pops' but you know, starting with the simple stuff first

bump for some help here, anyone?

rkvin21 · 01-22-2010, 03:01 PM

I used a multimeter on the battery and its fully charged. Unfortunately due to no garage, bad weather, and a need for a vehicle. I am having it towed to the auto repair shop and i'll let you know what the issue is. After getting off the phone they think that it is possible that the starter got wet.

Yaris Hilton · 01-22-2010, 04:01 PM

If you're using your multimeter to measure the voltage on the battery at rest, that doesn't tell you much. A bad battery can put out full voltage and miserably fail a load test. See what the voltage is during cranking.

talnlnky · 01-22-2010, 04:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yaris Hilton

If you're using your multimeter to measure the voltage on the battery at rest, that doesn't tell you much. A bad battery can put out full voltage and miserably fail a load test. See what the voltage is during cranking.

agreed!

TheSilkySmooth · 01-24-2010, 03:42 PM

Never ford deep water - especially if you have a CAI; bye-bye engine and no warranty. at least the yaris air intake is pretty high - you MAY be ok - but the alternator is down there. Did you put aftermarket plugs in the car - most of them are coil killers if they are not iridium denso or ngk.

rkvin21 · 01-25-2010, 12:53 PM

Well the area I had to go through normally isn't deep at all when there is water. Some neighbor redid the road but obviously did a bad job if the area is deeper than it used to get. Anyways the mechanic called me and told me that the engine seized up and he can't manual crank it to get any water out. He suspects a blown valve. This could have something to do with the cylinder 4 misfire I had beforehand. So as of right now it looks like I'm looking for a new car. Hope my insurance helps pay for it and the gap coverage I paid for does too.

SilverGlow · 01-25-2010, 01:50 PM

None of this makes sense....8 inches of water is not going to kill the Yaris engine...I cross those sized puddles and worse routinely in Oregon, and never a problem. I suspect your engine sucked a valve, but water in the engine...no way...the air intake is too high for just 8" of water even if one considers splashing high. How many miles do you have on that engine? Did you ever race the motor? Did you ever have the valves adjusted?

rkvin21 · 01-25-2010, 01:56 PM

Well I also don't have any mud guards either cuz I went through a ditch and messed up my bumber. I have a new one but haven't gotten around to replacing it. I guess you could say I raced the car but that's just cuz I shift in the higher rpm range. Its a very big coincidence that my car stalled right in the middle of the puddle. I never had the valves adjusted and it has a lil over 51k miles.

Yaris Hilton · 01-25-2010, 01:58 PM

If you have the stock intake, I don't see how you could get enough water into it to hurt the engine while going through a puddle like that. Running a cold air intake down below the bumper would be a different matter, of course.

TheSilkySmooth · 01-25-2010, 02:08 PM

FAIK -Insurance doenst cover engine damage - better hope warranty does! Sound like your car has been really beat. The dealer should not be trying to hand crank over the engine with plugs in it - he should have pulled them right off. AFA crossing the puddle - the water can "wave" into ther grille and you'll get a couple-10 OZ in there - BAM! broken engine - not warranty covered. Hope you got plenty of cash to fix this!

SilverGlow · 01-25-2010, 02:14 PM

Yea, I doubt insurance is going to cover any damage, nor will the Toy warranty....a brand new engine installed MSRP's for nearly $7,000.00! Running into ditches, running (maybe too fast) into puddles, shifting high in the RPM range....sounds like junior will pay a mighty high price for growing up...sadly the best way to learn lessons consists of a lot of pain in youth...time to grow up son...you can't afford not too...seriously.

rkvin21 · 01-25-2010, 02:38 PM

yes it has a cold air intake. FYI i went slow(like 1mph; crawling) threw the puddle to avoid a possible hydrolock and I did not take it to the dealer cuz as far as I am aware the warranty is up or so I was told. I will check my paperwork to see if there is any extension. Also I don't appreciate the "junior" comments. You don't know my age. I'm probably younger than you but your post could have done just fine without them.

SilverGlow · 01-25-2010, 03:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rkvin21

yes it has a cold air intake. FYI i went slow(like 1mph; crawling) threw the puddle to avoid a possible hydrolock and I did not take it to the dealer cuz as far as I am aware the warranty is up or so I was told. I will check my paperwork to see if there is any extension. Also I don't appreciate the "junior" comments. You don't know my age. I'm probably younger than you but your post could have done just fine without them.

I was being nice because reading all your posts it seems like the writings of a teenager. No offense intended, but it is what it is.

How can you go 1 MPH and get water in the engine...the more you write the less sense it all makes...sorry, but true. ;-)

And why would you put CAI on a Yaris...now THAT speaks to your young age right there, and in volumes!! What did you gain? 1-2 HP?

Have a nice day, and do report back on what they had to do to mitigate the problem and what it costs.

Hershey · 01-25-2010, 10:41 PM

Your car should have a transferable 5 year / 60,000 powertrain warranty ( www.toyotaownersonline.com/warranty/ ) . I would check with a TOYOTA service center since you have 51,000 miles and it is an '07. Another reason not to drive through high water is that it can damage your exhaust system , such as the catalytic converter. Learned this the hard way when I drove a 2000 Prizm through cold snow piled up on the road from a snowplow and it made the car stall . This was due to very warm catalytic converter passing through the cold snow . After that the PRIZM ( Corolla ) would lose power ( almost stall ) whenever there was a lot of water on the road during a heavy downpour . The honey comb system inside the converter is ceramic and the extreme difference in temps can make the comb system crack , so I was told . Makes sense .

auxmike · 01-25-2010, 10:58 PM

Sounds like you would have been fine if not for the CAI.

TheSilkySmooth · 01-26-2010, 02:08 PM

If you have under 60K miles UR under warranty. Put the stock intake back on and make it look like its been there since new. I was a bad boy once, I was making my exhaust backfire on my 5.0 'stang and ended up melting the cats. I barely made it home. SO I took the air injector pump off and dissassembled it, then i purposefully broke off a vane in the compressor, then reassembled it with the broken part in there. Started the car, the pump seized and broke the serpentine belt on the engine. I calle dthem and said - tow this thing away it doesnt run. They fixed it all for free. New cats and Y pipie, new airpump and new belts. Initially, they gave me some crap about running leaded gas (which I did NOT do) and said they were going to test the fuel at a lab. I said FINE, test away :)

01-22-2010, 01:09 PM	#1
rkvin21 View User's Garage Drives: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 52	Car won't start OK so on my way home I heard a pop come from my car and the check engine light started flashing. I pulled over and checked under the hood to make sure nothing was loose or out of the ordinary. The light came off and I went to autozone to read the code and it was a cylinder 4 misfire. Continuing on my way home it happened again and the check engine light stayed on. Now when I was nearing my house I had no choice but to go threw this puddle that was approx 7in-8 in deep. My car stalled and would no longer start. I got it towed back to my house. I am assuming hydrolock. I tried starting it this morning and every time I try to try to turn it over all the lights die on the dash and I don't even hear the starter. Any ideas? I would prefer to do it myself but if I must I will take it to a professional mechanic. Thank You Ryan

01-22-2010, 02:10 PM	#3
tomato Super Moderator View User's Garage Drives: Yaris 2DR LB 07, MT, Abs. Red Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: San Francisco Bay Area Posts: 5,155	Just curious, what happens if someone gives you a jump, will the car start then? You did say "all the lights die on the dash and I don't even hear the starter" that's what my car used to do when the battery was dead. it's gotta be more than that since you describes those "pops' but you know, starting with the simple stuff first bump for some help here, anyone? __________________ Follow Bamboo the YarisWorld Traveler here

01-25-2010, 10:41 PM	#16
Hershey Drives: 08 Yaris sedan auto / Fit auto Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: northeast Posts: 2,897	Your car should have a transferable 5 year / 60,000 powertrain warranty ( www.toyotaownersonline.com/warranty/ ) . I would check with a TOYOTA service center since you have 51,000 miles and it is an '07. Another reason not to drive through high water is that it can damage your exhaust system , such as the catalytic converter. Learned this the hard way when I drove a 2000 Prizm through cold snow piled up on the road from a snowplow and it made the car stall . This was due to very warm catalytic converter passing through the cold snow . After that the PRIZM ( Corolla ) would lose power ( almost stall ) whenever there was a lot of water on the road during a heavy downpour . The honey comb system inside the converter is ceramic and the extreme difference in temps can make the comb system crack , so I was told . Makes sense . Last edited by Hershey; 01-25-2010 at 11:43 PM.

01-25-2010, 10:58 PM	#17
auxmike Drives: 2008 HB, A/T, Power W/L/M Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: LI, New Yawk Posts: 2,063	Sounds like you would have been fine if not for the CAI. __________________ Never take eyes off opponent - Bruce Lee

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01-22-2010, 01:20 PM	#2
rkvin21 View User's Garage Drives: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 52	I just went out and checked my oil and it looks fine so maybe there isn't any or just not much water in the engine.

01-22-2010, 03:01 PM	#4
rkvin21 View User's Garage Drives: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 52	I used a multimeter on the battery and its fully charged. Unfortunately due to no garage, bad weather, and a need for a vehicle. I am having it towed to the auto repair shop and i'll let you know what the issue is. After getting off the phone they think that it is possible that the starter got wet.

01-22-2010, 04:01 PM	#5
Yaris Hilton Half a Bubble Off Plumb Drives: 2009 Yaris Sedan Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bristol, Tennessee, USA Posts: 1,593	If you're using your multimeter to measure the voltage on the battery at rest, that doesn't tell you much. A bad battery can put out full voltage and miserably fail a load test. See what the voltage is during cranking.

01-24-2010, 03:42 PM	#7
TheSilkySmooth Drives: 08 3DR 5M Bayou Blue; 09 Fos Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 622	Never ford deep water - especially if you have a CAI; bye-bye engine and no warranty. at least the yaris air intake is pretty high - you MAY be ok - but the alternator is down there. Did you put aftermarket plugs in the car - most of them are coil killers if they are not iridium denso or ngk.

01-25-2010, 12:53 PM	#8
rkvin21 View User's Garage Drives: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 52	Well the area I had to go through normally isn't deep at all when there is water. Some neighbor redid the road but obviously did a bad job if the area is deeper than it used to get. Anyways the mechanic called me and told me that the engine seized up and he can't manual crank it to get any water out. He suspects a blown valve. This could have something to do with the cylinder 4 misfire I had beforehand. So as of right now it looks like I'm looking for a new car. Hope my insurance helps pay for it and the gap coverage I paid for does too.

01-25-2010, 01:50 PM	#9
SilverGlow Banned Drives: 2007 Yaris Hatchback Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Southern California Posts: 189	None of this makes sense....8 inches of water is not going to kill the Yaris engine...I cross those sized puddles and worse routinely in Oregon, and never a problem. I suspect your engine sucked a valve, but water in the engine...no way...the air intake is too high for just 8" of water even if one considers splashing high. How many miles do you have on that engine? Did you ever race the motor? Did you ever have the valves adjusted?

01-25-2010, 01:56 PM	#10
rkvin21 View User's Garage Drives: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 52	Well I also don't have any mud guards either cuz I went through a ditch and messed up my bumber. I have a new one but haven't gotten around to replacing it. I guess you could say I raced the car but that's just cuz I shift in the higher rpm range. Its a very big coincidence that my car stalled right in the middle of the puddle. I never had the valves adjusted and it has a lil over 51k miles.

01-25-2010, 01:58 PM	#11
Yaris Hilton Half a Bubble Off Plumb Drives: 2009 Yaris Sedan Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bristol, Tennessee, USA Posts: 1,593	If you have the stock intake, I don't see how you could get enough water into it to hurt the engine while going through a puddle like that. Running a cold air intake down below the bumper would be a different matter, of course.

01-25-2010, 02:08 PM	#12
TheSilkySmooth Drives: 08 3DR 5M Bayou Blue; 09 Fos Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 622	FAIK -Insurance doenst cover engine damage - better hope warranty does! Sound like your car has been really beat. The dealer should not be trying to hand crank over the engine with plugs in it - he should have pulled them right off. AFA crossing the puddle - the water can "wave" into ther grille and you'll get a couple-10 OZ in there - BAM! broken engine - not warranty covered. Hope you got plenty of cash to fix this!

01-25-2010, 02:14 PM	#13
SilverGlow Banned Drives: 2007 Yaris Hatchback Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Southern California Posts: 189	Yea, I doubt insurance is going to cover any damage, nor will the Toy warranty....a brand new engine installed MSRP's for nearly $7,000.00! Running into ditches, running (maybe too fast) into puddles, shifting high in the RPM range....sounds like junior will pay a mighty high price for growing up...sadly the best way to learn lessons consists of a lot of pain in youth...time to grow up son...you can't afford not too...seriously.

01-25-2010, 02:38 PM	#14
rkvin21 View User's Garage Drives: 2012 Toyota Yaris SE Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Gilbert, AZ Posts: 52	yes it has a cold air intake. FYI i went slow(like 1mph; crawling) threw the puddle to avoid a possible hydrolock and I did not take it to the dealer cuz as far as I am aware the warranty is up or so I was told. I will check my paperwork to see if there is any extension. Also I don't appreciate the "junior" comments. You don't know my age. I'm probably younger than you but your post could have done just fine without them.

01-26-2010, 02:08 PM	#18
TheSilkySmooth Drives: 08 3DR 5M Bayou Blue; 09 Fos Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 622	If you have under 60K miles UR under warranty. Put the stock intake back on and make it look like its been there since new. I was a bad boy once, I was making my exhaust backfire on my 5.0 'stang and ended up melting the cats. I barely made it home. SO I took the air injector pump off and dissassembled it, then i purposefully broke off a vane in the compressor, then reassembled it with the broken part in there. Started the car, the pump seized and broke the serpentine belt on the engine. I calle dthem and said - tow this thing away it doesnt run. They fixed it all for free. New cats and Y pipie, new airpump and new belts. Initially, they gave me some crap about running leaded gas (which I did NOT do) and said they were going to test the fuel at a lab. I said FINE, test away :)