1995 Toyota 4Runner Engine overcools

ANGLR200

MEMBER
1995 TOYOTA 4RUNNER
6 CYL
4WD
AUTOMATIC
132,000 MILES

I have an issue with the engine taking a while to warm up
(5-8 minutes summer, 10-15 minutes winter)
This can be annoying because the 4runner wont shift into overdrive until it reaches operating temperature.
Sometimes while on long downhill coasts, the transmission will drop out of overdrive because the engine cools down too much.

I have replaced the following without a fix:
thermostat
coolant (with flush)
coolant temperature sensor

Any ideas? Thanks
-Anglr200

3 Replies

RASMATAZ

MECHANIC
75,992 POSTS

Test the thermostat-The coolant temperature sensor controls the overdrive engagement in a given temperature between 122F deg to 162F deg.

Also check the TPS and VSS

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Tuesday, May 27th, 2008 AT 2:55 PM

ANGLR200

MEMBER
7 POSTS

Update: I ran the error codes for the 4runner and it came back with:

22- water temperature sensor fault
any ideas on where to check to remedy this?

"check the thermostat"
Im pretty sure its not the thermostat because it has done the same thing with 3 different thermostats.

Not sure how to check the TPS and VSS.
I also saw a rumor that these symptoms could occur from the HG being installed backwards and blocking partial coolant flow. Have you ever heard of this?
Thanks