Lamprey

Hello. New to the forum. 94 ES300 with 157K on it.

Strange happenings the past month:

Told during routine oil change to replace fuel pressure regulator but car was fine so I didn't do it then.
Car died about three weeks ago while driving for 15' at highway speeds. Like it suddenly ran out of gas. 3 hours later it started up and drove home fine.
Replaced fuel pressure reg myself. Car ran great for a couple weeks.
Then in past week it's died twice in similar circumstances to the first time. Both times it will start up and be drivable after it cools down.
Up until this time I've been thinking it's either: fuel pump, fuel filter, fuel pump relay...but that code seems to indicate otherwise.
Tranny mechanic who rebuilt the trans suggested maybe an ignition problem. Both fuel pump and ignitors typically don't go back on these cars, but...

Thinking to take to the local Midas for a diagnosis. Can't spend too much on this 16 year old car but also would rather keep than have to shell out $$$ for another car.

ANY opinions are truly appreciated. Thanks much.

MikeLex

P1300 means Igniter Circuit Malfunction. P1300 is one of those codes that trigger fail-safe mode in the ECU. The fail-safe operation for P1300 cuts the fuel. That's why you felt like it was running out the gas. My 94 Camry V6 had the same issue and at first I thought the problem was the igniter. However, by checking the ignition coils connectors, I noticed a severe bad contact in one of them: by pressing and releasing the ignition connector coil number 6 (the 3rd on the front bank) I was able to affect the engine's rpm! Problem solved with a special dielectric grease. Of course it was a cheap and temporary solution. Nonetheless, it has been working great so far (six months now).

Lamprey

Very interesting, this is the first I have heard of this. I'm taking the car to a shop later today and will let them know. Will post back, thanks much.

94lxs

ive having that same problem it starts up nice and somtime die then let cool down then it starts back up . please let me know if it fixed your problem or what it might be!!

mark458

Was there ever a solution for this? I have a 94 es witht he same issue.

Lamprey

Hey Mark.

Well, yes and no. No, I never found out what was causing the malfunction after being told by a mechanic I trust "This will be an expensive diagnosis."

Yes, in that I decided to convince my wife to get another car and we bought an '07 ES350 which performs flawlessly! Then, I sold my '94 to someone (after a full, 100% honest disclosure of the problem) for $600.

I know that's not much help. But I am still curious...if you pursue it and find out what is going on, would you post?

Good luck!

mark458

I replaced the ignitor and it didnt help. I tapped the ecu with a hammer and 5 more codes popped up so Im thinking ECU

mark458

Beat the **** out of the computer and now the car runs great...

Lamprey

HAHAHA. You know something...this simply can't be explained by science (and I'm a scientist)...but HITTING things generally seems to make them work again. My wife swears I'm just an impatient idiot...but I can't count how many televisions, cell phones, and other electronics I have "repaired" by getting angry, yelling, and hitting them.

Glad it worked (and, BTW, the mechanic also tried to replace the ignitor now that I remember it...and it didn't work and he said, prolly the ECU...that's when I decided to get the new car.)

Hope she runs great from now on. Those 94 ESs were sweet rides. I love my new one, but kinda miss the old too.