Hi, I have a 1991 Toyota Corolla that can run for about 15 minutes and then when it gets to full operating temperature, it dies. (this is from a cold start when car is just sitting there running, not driving). The problem originally occured a few years ago. On a trip out of town on a very hot day, the car died on the freeway. I had it towed to my mechanic. He did a temp fix and told me when it happens again I would have to get a new electrical harness. Well it is now happening again but my mechanic has since moved and I need to fix it. I'm trying to avoid the cost of tracking down an electrical problem (which I was quoted $200 just for looking). Any idea what might be causing this problem? I thought I remembered that it may have had something to do with the fuel pump in the gas tank. I had that replaced but I still have the problem. One thing of note: If I take the car out for a short trip and I try to start it and it won't start, I lift the hood to let it cool off and that seems to get it to start sooner than if I left the hood down. Hope that helps you diagnose the problem. Thanks
Have aftermarket cooling fans wired in. Just be sure to turn them on when it's up to temp. Only way to avoid further diagnosis or that harness.
I hope you've been checking your coolant & oil because what you're describing is a soon to be blown head gasket and/or popped radiator. I wouldn't be driving that thing at all right now as you're just doing damage.
When the car gets up to temperature, the fan goes off regularly and I don't think its operating any different than it used to before. As far as the coolant and oil, I've always kept them up, so I don't think its that. I have a mechanic that I use and he's worked on it a few times and I think he would have mentioned something if he noticed it. He's the one that replaced the fuel pump. He just doesn't know about electrical stuff. I have checked the wiring from the fuel pump to where it hooks up to the fuse box under the dash but didn't see anything that looked like a break or fraying. It seems that it was a simple fix for the mechanic that originally did the temporary fix on it. He didn't even charge me for it. That was probably to make up for having my car in the shop for 3 or 4 days. He was busy and wasn't able to get to it right away. That's when he mentioned about the electrical harness. I wished I had him point it out to me then.