Posted on 10/10/2018 4:37:20 PM PDT by wally_bert
Today on the way home on an 85 degree or so day, my 16 Tacoma's air temp sensor kept dropping steadily until it hit -34 outside.
The truck runs fine, no errors on the dash, performance seemed the same.
In the last few miles, it started registering a little above 0 degrees.
I got home no problem and changed the sensor out since I had a spare on hand. I did unhook the battery first. After swapping and powering back up, air temp was a steady 20 something degrees. No warning lights. Normal sounding and running. I found a default setting in the instrument panel and tapped it too.
After about an hour, I unhooked the battery again for a bit and hooked back up. Air temp was steady 45 degrees. Runs normal, sounds normal. No warning lights.
I guess I'll find out in the morning what's next. It's hopeful but probably naïve to think it will straighten itself out with some settling time. It's sort of like the idea a cutting up car runs fine when someone else sees it, hence my post here. It's been a long day and I've been up since 4:30 AM.
What I'm probably looking at is giving the dealer money that I'd rather not if it's still whacked. I'm no electronics whiz. This modern stuff is great until something goes out.
Anyone else ever run into this problem?
Any advice is appreciated.
Might want to visit https://www.tacomaworld.com/forums/3rd-gen-tacomas-2016.186/
Ask there, might get a better response. 2017 owner here, never heard of that before
A lot of things tend to mess with me and I do everything I can to stay out of sight and mind of people in general.
I succeed sometimes.
Also you can buy an OBD-II reader that works with a smartphone for $20 that will let you see any diagnostic codes.
Out of warranty.
I miss the free oil changes I got during the warranty time.
There is a woman at my office who has one like mine but a year older.
She has apparently never had any electronic gremlins.
If it still behaves, I probably will but I can’t stand something out of whack.
I hear ya, but sometimes it’s best to just ignore devices that are meant to indicate a problem. But keep a watchful on it for sure. It pays to be friendly with the mechanics at the dealership you buy cars at. I always start up a friendly conversation with one of them while I am in getting something simple being done, like change the radiator fluids for winter for example. Then I ask them if they know why this might occur and is it an expensive fix.
Bookmark
So funny!
My Mechanic, who I met as the only guy I trust on my BMW (BMW certified, and about the only one in the whole area that is) also used to work for a Toyota dealership.
The new Toyotas are utter garbage, and they are all plagued with electrical problems as a result of rust and corrosion. His dealer was forced to replace - FRAMES - due to their terrible handling of rust and corrosion issues.
And even the wiring fails from just ambient humidity.
Wanna see something scary ? The Sienna’s power doors open without warning at highway speeds. Yes, they do. Toyota won’t recall, so the dealership actually disables the power door feature.
Horrible tactics from this company. My mechanic has stories. My friend bought a 2014 Corolla (In 2014) and returned it within 4 months because the sunroof had rusted so badly it was actually leaking. Got another one, and within 6 months the rust was peeking out from under the plastic body cladding.
They are worse now than they were in the 80s when I owned them. The Toyota truck resale value is extraordinarily high - take advantage of that.
-34 is close to a complete open circuit reading. Outside air temp sensors are usually mounted in front of radiator. Because of the heat from radiators/condensers they usually don’t update temp completely until driven over a certain speed (High air flow) or vehicle sets several hours (Cold soak). Tomorrow it maybe okay or you may have resistance in the circuit if issue persists.
Sorry. Reply was intended for original poster. I haven’t commented in some time.
2016 Tacoma hit the lots in October 2015 with a three year b bumper to bumper warranty.
I’m pretty much done with modern computers on wheels and have been for some time.
After I got the insurance check for the Tacoma I lost in a flood I entertained the idea of getting a crate engine, transmission, and transfer case for my old blazer and run it. That got nixed.
My old vintage stuff I mostly fix myself except for the biggest of jobs.
It’s times like this I going to go forward with the plan to get them roadworthy. Some big and somewhat pricey stages but I love and understand Willys and AMC jeep.
Around Christmas assuming I have a job and the guy is still interested, I’ll send my Willys off for all the underneath stuff. It needs suspension, steering, transmission, all brakes, and emergency brake all done.
If I had a lift and some extra hands, I’d do most of what’s needed myself. I should have all the parts bought at least. My knees can’t take the concrete now.
He will treat it like a project vehicle. The guy runs a garage close by and it’s mostly his family that works there. I know the the wife/mother/aunt of the crowd so she will help him stay in line.
When the Willys comes back, I hope to have the CJ7 built up to the point for engine swap and final body.
Right now I have the old rusted fuel tank out and all the replacement parts in. The tailgate showed up today. I hope to get the assembled windshield frame ordered next week. That will be all the sheet metal in.
Breaking the bolts loose I used the mixture of DeWalt and Harbor Freight. Those HF impacts fit the best on those rusted bolts out of anything I had.
Eventually my old K5 will be buttoned back up. I hate being so picky. It’s a habit I picked up somewhere.
The only electronics are ignition modules. I can straight wire other stuff if I need to.
Thank you.
I’m still stuck on IT WAS 85 IN TACOMA TODAY????
I haven’t heard about any of those problems.
Overall my Tacoma is a solid build and I can’t complain. It’s also one of the few 6 speed manuals around. So I have some anti-theft built in.
Dittos, and that is a darn good life plan to use and go by.
Actually in my case it was around the bustling metropolis of Swansea, SC going back to Columbia.
LOL!!! That’s one of the simultaneously most clever yet most stupid things I’ve ever seen.
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