won't starts when hot

Asked by johnwren Aug 08, 2009 at 09:40 PM about the 1990 Toyota Pickup

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

I have a 1990 Toyota pick-up.  When the motor is hot and I shut the truck off, it will not start until the motor cools down.  I replaced the battery and battery wire and clamps.  (I know this isn’t part of the problem but,)  I did a tune replacing everything; plugs, plug wires, cap, rotor, etc.  All I can think left to replace is the starter.  (The truck will start if I get a jump start when it’s hot)  I don’t want to continue the hit and miss process.  Has anyone else had this problem?  Thanks for the help.
sfcjohnwren@aol.com

10 Answers

755

Heres the thing. How hot is it? When a motor gets "hot" the metal expands. When this happens, it causes a large amount of friction. Once it cools down,The parts contract(srink) his is why it will start when cool.You need to find the cause of the over heating. Low coolent level Bad thermostat Bad water pump Bad raidator Blockage in the system All the tune ups in the world wont help. aaaand if occures to much, The motor will eventually die

13 people found this helpful.
340

My 1991 toyota pick up does the same thing. Only in the summer. I have been told a million different things could be the problem. Have you found any solutions?

34 people found this helpful.
85

had a 87 2wheel drive that done same thing,eventually figured out it was starter sticking when motor got hot.

8 people found this helpful.
130

same problem 1990 pickup sr5 replaced almost everything.. the issue happens mostly when it hot. the engine just clicks and doesn't turn over. Add a little power and it start every time. from what i read now it could be a starter relay or the ignition switch... did you solve your problem?

13 people found this helpful.
100

the wire on your starter is loose or dirty, not the hot wire but the one that clips in . My 91 toy truck did it 4 ever , Just click,click click then start every so oftern. i climbed under and found the wire would vibrate loose and fixed it permanently..never had that problem again.

10 people found this helpful.
20

it is the starter motor if it clicks. touch the battery cables with the back of your hand after trying to wind it over. if its boiling hot you need a new starter

2 people found this helpful.
60

got 93 pickup won't start when hot but only like in traffic with ac on then i shut off try and start 1 click nothing , if i let it cool or jump it starts but again this is only on very hot days

6 people found this helpful.
10

I have a 1990 4 Runner will run for 20 minuets the dies wont start for hours till it cools off, it ended up being the distributor. So far so good knock on Wood. also an easy way to check the fuel pump is in the diagnostic cap jump pins marked B+ to FP on the left hand side.

1 people found this helpful.
40

1992 4x4 ,4 cilinder manual transmision,starts ok then driving for after one hour o so dies on driving or at stop sign,i startit for minutes and wont start at all what it can be.REPLACED FUEL PUMP CLEAN GAS TANK,INLINE GAS FILTERS EVEN DID THE HEAD GASKET, AND THE TIMING BELT OVER 3000,IN REPAIRS WHAT CAN BE THE PROBLEM?

4 people found this helpful.
10

If this is helpful to anyone, my 1990 Toyota SR5 V6 has that same problem. I live in the Pacific Northwest, and this problem only occurs when it gets above 75 degrees. I have been stuck in so many parking lots waiting for it to cool down enough to start. Sometimes I only have to wait 15 minutes. Sometimes it's over 2 hours depending on how hot it is. Since the problem was intermittent, no mechanic could really find the issue. I recently had my engine completely replaced and I thought I wouldn't have that problem anymore. Wrong. Yesterday was our first hot day at 80 degrees. I had a few errands to run. On my second stop, yep, I get back in my truck and no starty. I raised the hood (it seems to help things cool down faster) and 20 minutes later I got her started. I'm so tired of this. Made an appointment with the mechanic for June. I too think it's a starter/ignition problem. I'm bookmarking this thread so they can read it. Perhaps it will be helpful.

1 people found this helpful.

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