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Hi All, been meaning to write for a while about a problem I had with the 1KZ-TE. I was getting the occasional hesitation, then starting one morning I got clouds of black smoke (obvious overfuelling) then on subsequent attempts when the ignition was switched to "run" I could hear an irregular clicking from the engine bay. Traced it with an educated fingertip to the spill valve solenoid on the IP. Spill valve obviously stuck closed and sending the lot to the injectors. Tried to pull codes from the diag connector, but no joy. Eventually it fired up normally and ran for a couple of weeks without trouble, but died (dead cut) on the Mrs on the highway. When I got there I dug out the jumper I had made and retrieved the code18 which indicated Spill valve, SPV circuit or ECU. Thought about a spill valve replacement but something in the failure mode made me think again. A bit of research unearthed issues with 1KZ ECUs, mostly in Hilux Surfs, so I decided to pull the ECU and replace all the capacitors. I regularly fix electronic equipment (from irrigation controllers to a recent PC UPS that would not charge the internal battery) by going straight to the caps. Well, eight months and a few long towing trips later the old girl has not missed a beat.
It will probably become more common as these Prados age because caps all dry out eventually. All the removed caps "looked" OK, no bulging tops or leaks.
Be aware that it is solder through double sided board, but if you are semi-handy with an iron you should get by. Also be advised that they are all bipolar caps - except one ; as I found out on Sunday afternoon after having ordered them in from my electronics wholesaler. You won't find all of them at J-car in the voltages and values that you need!
I have said it before: go as far as you can with diagnosis before you start throwing parts at the problem!
I have also said (often) that I would rather be lucky than good!
It will probably become more common as these Prados age because caps all dry out eventually. All the removed caps "looked" OK, no bulging tops or leaks.
Be aware that it is solder through double sided board, but if you are semi-handy with an iron you should get by. Also be advised that they are all bipolar caps - except one ; as I found out on Sunday afternoon after having ordered them in from my electronics wholesaler. You won't find all of them at J-car in the voltages and values that you need!
I have said it before: go as far as you can with diagnosis before you start throwing parts at the problem!
I have also said (often) that I would rather be lucky than good!
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