Toyota Celica Hesitation

barbarah1

My 1988 Toyota Celica has 98,000 miles on it and is driven less than 3000 miles a year these last few years. The flywheel and starter are in need of replacement but it's still starting properly the majority of the time. The compressor is going to fail soon as it has begun to run loudly since November last year. Prior to the compressor problem, I had the distributor and spark plugs replaced. Aside from the occasional squeal as it's started and the fact that it runs a little loudly, it's been a very reliable 13 year old car...until now. As I accelerate, the car has been hesitating. First I noticed this was happening in rainy weather, a friend suggested the distributor may have a crack in it. I checked it and it seems flawless. Today, the car actually died on me 3 times within a mile. It sounds as though it's choking and then just dies. I was able to restart it and barely made it home. Any ideas what could be causing this and...well, what such a repair might cost?

focus21

I owned a 1987 Celica which produced the same problem that you are experiencing. At the time it was under warranty and taken in for service... twice.... the second time it was fixed... it would die or not start, seemed like mostly in the mornings and on damp rainy days.... it proved to be a sensor around the carbration/injectors that needed replacing... do not remember the exact sensor name.... but the replacement fixed the problem.... hope this helps...

newmaixma

I have a 86 celica which has similar problem:

In rainy days, sometimes it chokes especially on lower gears. I have to rev it before I engage it on first gear to avoid the problem.

Also somtimes it is a little difficult to start the engine, in the first couple seconds after it started, the engine also seems to choke a little bit. Then it returns to normal or I have to put some gas in.

focus21, if you found out what sensor you replaced, please let us know.
barbarah1. did you fixed the problem.

Thanks in advance.

black01coupev6

My boyfriend had a 88 Celica GT that did the same thing to him..he said that it needed new plug wires... Just a suggestion.

llslice

I own an 88 Celica w/140k miles.I too had your problem on damp mornings.I had changed the distributor cap and rotor and all was fine till one damp night it would crank but not start.If it did start it immediately died after I let up off the gas.I popped the hood and had someone turn the key and I saw arching coming from the wires.(Allied Signal only 5k miles) From now on I only use NGK plugs and wires,they're a little more expensive but you get what you pay for.Also the distributor cap may have hairline cracks in it that is not visible to the eye that moisture may seep in.Hope this helps.

newmaixma

Thanks.
My garage changed the wires and distributor a while ago, but I still have the problem.