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Originally posted by KING # 1

Thanks europa for quick reply,

Car started fine, but when is too cold, car RPM drop down to 800 RPM and you feel car will be died, but car not shutting off and you feel like vibration and jurk on car when you stop on stop sign.

when i drive car for 4 to 5 minutes and car gets warm everything is fine no hesitation no jurk........its happens 2 to 4 times when its too cold outside.

I have no idea, why its happens, i am really in worry, may needs a transmission or not? i am parking my car on driveway.

Please reply me.

Thanks

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Is this happening when the car is idling on a red light?

From the description and the mileage on your car, looks like all you need is a new timing belt.

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Originally posted by KING # 1

Hi Guys,

My car 2004 Toyota Matrix XR with 187,000 kms, I noticed when outside too cold like -20 or more car is going almost to died. but still car engine is running, after sometime when car get warm everything is fine and no problem to drive no noise.

I don't know what is the problem, may be time to change Spark plug or needs tuning or something else.

If anyone have idea, please let me know.

Thanks in advance

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Let us start with the car first. It is a Toyota Matrix XR 4 cyl with 190000 klicks on it. You should have the hand book and the manual also.

The following are the easy fixes and check points that you should do first.

A car that has so many klicks on it will have a little wear and tear on it. That permits a blow by into the crankcase and usually clogs the PCV Valve. That is the easiest and the cheapest fix. If it is found clogged then replace it with a new one. It does not call for a mechanic to accomplish this feat. Cost under ten bucks. I pay 1.99/ 2.50 for a PCV Valve. Please check with Canadian Tyre.

Next time when you do your OIL Change in September or October please ask for a Winter Grade oil such as 5 W 30. (Why these two months, because winter starts after this and you are getting prepared for it.) This oil will stay in a fluid form to provide you with the initial coating of the lubrication on to the cylinder liners and seal and provide you with good compression, which you lack now. But do another oil change in the spring to get back to the normal 10 W 30/40 as recommended by Toyota. 10 W 40 grade becomes GEL in cold weather. It takes away the heat in the summer fast. Hence this suggestion.

The coolant levels have to be checked first before start, at least once to make sure it is topped up. This also plays a crucial part in transmission of the heat and any air lock will create a false reading in temperatures as the car warms up. That will also make the operations sluggish. So, please check this level. When you top up with Antifreeze, use concentrated stuff and not dilute it. That tweaks it a little. This will facilitate the initial cold mixture evaporation in the system.

A car that is five years old will have a battery that needs looking into, This is the most important point that you should check FIRST. Initially when you crank your engine over, it drains your battery a little and the first operation of the Alternator though might be to keep the car running, falls behind if it starts to charge the drained battery, which cannot accept the charge in a hurry, because it is OLD. (If it is that old) These current day batteries are totally sealed and do not render to topping. But I still remove the two caps with a very fine screw driver and top up just enough DISTILLED water into the cells. It some time takes up to a liter of water. When this takes place you will have to charge the battery and peak its performance. For this you will need a Battery charger. Most of us do not own one to do such a maintenance. Once you have good 12.5 volts of charge in the Battery, I will say that you are now at the next level of trouble shooting. Once you get the battery charged, you are O.K. from now till August or September. If You can do minor jobs, then get a slightly "higher CCA rating" the next time you put a new one. But make sure that the same shape and size of the Battery are identical. Because it has to go back into the same space provided by Toyota. Try and buy an EXIDE or Kirkland, they are good brands. AC Delco is another one.

After this we are getting into serious stuff.

First you check and see when the last tune up was done. If it needs one it is to be done always before October of an year, before the onset of the winter, it also takes a toll on the Engine system. So, keep it in good tuned state prior to the onset of the winter. Some of these systems use newer Platinum Spark plugs. Any other NON recommended stuff will create electrical resistance unsuitable to the 'on board computer' and its operation. These electronic systems call for specific parts and DO NOT Substitute them for another make or cheaper one or even Expensive parts. They are meant to have the same configuration and none other.

Some mechanics use cheaper Hypalon cables that breakdown during the extreme cold weather conditions and they do not convey the High Voltage charge to the Spark plug. Even a milli second delay will retard the sparking sequence, and it will not enable you to reach the idle speed the computer initially wants to maintain. So, be specific or go to TOYOTA people for the Tune up and pay their price. Or find the specifications and buy it yourself from Part source and conduct your own TUNE UP. (Some mechanics will accept owners parts.)

Also if you have traces of water in the fuel, it will not reach the idle speed as the fuel starts to crystalize at the start of the injection when it hits the cold air from the manifold. So for a change, you can get a fill of HIGH Octane fuels at an increased cost of 20cents per liter and top up your Gas tank and see if it helps. High octane fuels, 93 octane, have better ignition quality and does not freeze quickly as the lower grades do, which has 87 octane content. BUT this is for ONE such topping only and for the current needs. You should not change the grade of fuel for its regular operation for subsequent fill ups.

There are other insulating sprays that are available on the shelf that you can spray on to the body of the ignition cables to improve the insulation quality. But that has to be decided and done under a mechanic's supervision if recommended.

Also if you can detail or clean around the engine, please use a tooth brush and a little Varsol, Iosol (or kerosene) just to get the gunk out of the throttle valve and around the top of the engine to get things in to shipshape condition.

People have spent hundreds of dollars trying to find what it is that is causing this sputtering and idling problems. When the mechanic takes the vehicle into the shop and under warm conditions and does the repairs and let you take it you will feel that the problem has been solved and the next morning or the day after it will re occur and you will spend a like sum once more the next week to get out of it. When the vehicle comes out of a warm garage, it is fixed at a higher temperature and even the meter that does the testing cannot detect or trouble shoot the conditions that you experience outside on your drive way when you first start the vehicle in the morning. And the Mechanic is not there to witness and diagnose the problem then.

Best thing as suggested here you can get a Block heater to get you on the road from home. But there is NO plug in at the location where you park at work to get you back home, so you will be back to square one and the problem can occur on your way back and it will be in the night and there will be no mechanic also to help you with your problem.

There are other serious solutions to if it is found NOT to be this simple solution. This needs to be resolved as soon as possible to provide you with the confidence that you need to have with that vehicle. Otherwise you will have the same doubts lingering on your mind.

These are the early signs of bigger problems that are yet to come. Which means it is time to part with the vehicle for a newer one. So, take it in stride.

Hope this solves your problem first and helps you a little.

Freddie.

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Originally posted by KING # 1

Thanks freddie for detailed reply,

I remember now on one and half month ago i did a power wash on engine, will this effect performance of car?

Is it time to change spark plugs, b'cos i purchased this car on last year in Feb.08 and mileage was 176,000. I put on only 11,000 kms in a year. I am not sure that previous owner has changed spark plugs and did a tuning on car. i was new in this country, i found car was on good shape, so i purchased. Now internally i feel that person has cheated me??


thanks all of you for reply.

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Please get a small bottle of Gas line Anti freeze under two bucks. Some times it comes as a three pack of plastic bottles. It contains aliphatic and cyclic hydro carbons. What it does is mixes with the water in the Gasoline and homogenizes the water content and enables easy burning of the gas. It causes no harm. It is about 150 ml in each. That should do the trick for now. You must have gotr a bad shot of gasoline.

The car will run another 125000 kilometers for you look after it well. At this rate you will have it till 2020. get it under coated and run it. Do the suggested maintenance by Toyota.

Now for suggestions, if you are getting good mileage as specified and you are happy, get the spark plugs etc in early summer, before you take it for a long drive. That should keep you going till next September/October. Ask the Mechanic to check the compression and give you a set of readings the next time he does the spark plugs. That will tell you if you have a bad cylinder. The weather is slowly improving and I am sure it will get warmer from now on.

doing High pressure or power wash for the engine is .O.K. Next time do it by hand and take good care of it. Spend a good fifteen minutes a week and check every thing over. That should keep you going here with that car. They are good ones. Good luck with the car.

Hope this helps you a little.

Freddie.