Banjo

Hi Zoe ! Glad you got your KE-30's 3T engine running again. Connections between battery terminals & the starter motor are so important, as lots of current flows, between battery & starter motor, during cranking. As it's a circuit; the connections on the ground or chassis side, are just as important, as the battery positive (+ve) side. Cheers Banjo. We look forward to you posting some pics.

You look very smart with a tie ! Cheers !

What you haven't told us, is when you turn the ignition key on; whether the warning lights come up on the dash board. If they don't, then the problem is as I described in my previously post. However, if the warming lights come on, the issue is between battery & starter motor, which is a very simple circuit. Cheers Banjo

Most good mechanics, always disconnect the battery, or main fuses when working in a engine or mechanical issues in the engine bay. Maybe they didn't disconnect the battery, & the main fuse next to the battery terminal has blown. Five minutes with a multimeter, or 12 volt test light, will unearth, where your "no starter" issue lies. Let us know what you find. Cheers Banjo

The cables are pretty good, unless they have never been lubricated in their long lives, & they have suffered broken wires on the multi-wire cable inside, where you cannot see it. The aftermarket ones, I've found can pose a probem, where the inner core is too short or too long for the outer sheaf, & the adjustment provided is inadequate. Take your clutch cable right out. Clean in up externally, then spend 15-20 minutes, lubricating it, as I described above. You might be pleasantly surprised, & save yourself some money. Another good idea, seeing you were able to source two (2) of the circlips; is to fit both, side by side. So that both circlips take the load, grab a big thick steel washer, whose thickness is the same as the gap between the two washers. You might have to get one, slightly thicker than needed, & sand it down. When it is just the right thickness, then cut a slot in it, just big enough, so it will slip over the outer cable. When you've got the clutch cable adjustment right, then wind some good olde electrical or adhesive tape around both circlips & the washer in between; so neither the circlips or spacer washer, will ever fall out. Then your dramas will be over, for ever . . . . "clutch wise". Cheers Banjo

As Altezzaclub says, . . . . . the good olde hose clip. However, I have found that the forces on that hose clip, can increase significantly, if the clutch cable is not oiled/lubricated well inside. Because the clutch cable action passes through 180 degrees, it is also important to ensure the curve of the cable sheaf is smooth & doesn't move around, when operated. Hence, I attached a bracket to the tower, to accomplish this. It works well. Every year or so, I remove the cable; hold one end in a vice, & whilst jiggling it up & down, put oil into it in drops, until it appears at the bottom end. Never had a problem since. Cheers Banjo

Yep ! Very common problem, that "bloody" circlip. It's probably back on the road somewhere, although have a good look down in the engine bay, in case you were lucky, & it jammed or landed on a flat surface somewhere. It's dark now, but in the morning, I'll lift my bonnet, & take a pic of how I fixed it for good. I think off memory, I a small hose clamp around it, & stopped the circlip popping out. It worked, as that was years ago, & I've never touched it since. Cheers Banjo.

Sorry ! I can't help you with the pillar trim, but I must say, that is a beautiful example of a Corolla liftback; & I love the colour. Can't make out from the number plate, where You are in the world ? Hope someone, on this platform, can assist you. P.S. If you take off the drivers side pillar trim, which I guess is OK, & take a picture of it, & post same, maybe some one will recognise it, as being used on another model Rolla. Always a possibility. Cheers Banjo

We all do this at some time, but here is a variation of a method, I have used for years; which creates a wire join, in your engine bay; under the dash, or in the boot; that You will never have to revisit again, & will last as long as the car. https://youtu.be/lrIefG-bbj8 What is my variation ? Exactly the way this guy does it, but I then solder the joint, & the "shrink tubing" I use, has a heat activated adhesive on the inside, which will not let any moisture inside the joint; which could ultimately cause corosion to any exposed metal of the wire joint. Cheers Banjo

My best guess, is, that the two wires that come from the ignition barrel switch, to the coil +ve terminal, & the other end of the "ballast resistor", have been reversed. That would, I believe; create exactly the engine actions you describe, whilst trying to start. Either fit a ballast resistor, & wire up as per the wiring diagram, if your ignition coil, is a 9 volt model. If you have a "faulty" inition barrel switch, this can be checked out, without taking out the barrel switch. Take the two wires that come from the ignition switch to the coil & ballast resitor; & connect each of them to a small 12 volt lighting bulb, with the other side of the bulbs grounded to the chassis. Watch the lights, whilst turning the ignition switch to the start position, & then release to the run position, & it will advise if there are any issues. Both lights should come on, in the start position, & only one light on in the "run" position. The wire to the bulb that goes off, when the key is released to the run position, is the wire that should be connected to the +ve termininal of a 9V ignition coil. Hope that assists. Cheers Banjo

Hi Vincent, I gather you've had this problem/issue, with "starting the engine" for some time. You thought it was the points or distributor, so you fitted a new electroninic distributor. That didn't fix it, so you thought it might be the ignition coil, so you replaced that. Maybe I've got the sequence wrong, & maybe you changed the coil before the distributor, or maybe at the same time. However, none of these changes fixed the original issue. Altezzaclub has explained perfectly above why you need a ballast resistor. Do you not remember ever seeing one fitted to your engine, whilst you've owned it ? Here is a picture of a typical one. When you hold the key in the start position, two things happen. 1. 12V is fed to the starter relay, which closes its contacts, which contect the battery +ve terminal to the starter motor, which starts it cranking the engine. At the same time the ignition switch sends +12V to the +ve terminal of the distributor coil. Despite the coil being designed to operate on 9Volts, it will start, because the battery voltage usually drops several volts during cranking of the starter motor, with it's heavey load. I suspect that whilst you are cranking the engine, there is no 12V applied to the coil +ve terminal. You can check this by putting a test light between the coil +ve terminal, & ground/earth/chassis, & have someone turn the key & crank the motor. If you prove my asumption is correct, then the problem, is either a wiring error, at sometime, or the ignition barrel, has gone faulty. Alternatively, someone removed the ballast resistor previous to you acquiring the car, & has modified the wiring incorrectly. Cheers Banjo

Hi Vincent, Your issue is very simple. When the ignition key is held in the start position, the 12 volts is connected, directly to the positive (+ve) terminal of the ignition coil. When you let go of the ignition key, after the enginge has started, the 12 volts is then moved to the other end of the "ballast" resistor; the other end of which, is also connected to the positive (+ve) terminal of the ignition coil. If the ballast resistor is open circuit, or is not fitted at all, then the engine will shut down, as there is no power to the coil, whilst the ignition is in the "run" position. If you have a ballast resitor fitted, then short it out, & try starting the engine. If it runs OK, the the ballast resistor is open circuit. If the ballast resistor, is not fitted then connect the wire that would normally connect to the ballast resistor (if it was there), to the positive (+ve) of the ignition coil. If that doesn't fix you problem, then come back to us, as the fault maybe elsewhere, between the ignition switch & ballast resistor; or it maybe a faulty ignition switch. Let us know, how You go. Cheers Banjo

Welcome aboard, & thank you for joining our community. Where are you physically located ? Many of our members are globally located, & wheels are going to be an expensive item, to freight, depending on where you are based. Cheers Banjo

I found a DC motor speed controller on ebay, which controls the electric water pump, & flow of the coolant, from a trickle to full on. It handles a DC load of up to 10 amperes. With the radiator cap removed, you can clearly see the water flow change as the water pump speed is changed. It has a knob on it, which will be useful, as I manually try different flows & resultant temperatures, but also can be controlled by a 0-5V DC voltage, ultimately; from a controller, once a control system & program, is determined. So I started fitting sensors to the coolant system in several spots today. One on the hose leading to the top of the radiator, which will basically measure the temperature of coolant leaving the engine head, & entering the radiator. I already have a return line, at the back of the head, which returns hot coolant to the thermostat housing. I will fit one to that pipework, close to the rear exit from the head. Another will be fitted at the water pump, which is attached to the lower outlet from the raidator. This will allow easy delta T across the radiator, by sunbtracting radiator outlet temperature from radiator entry coolant temperature. The other place, I would like to measure coolant temperature, is inside the block coolant passages. The most convenient way to accomplish that, is to tap a temperature sensor, into a Welsh plug on the side of the block. It's simply a matter of drilling a hole & tapping it, in a Welsh plug, & then replacing an existing one. That will require the manifolds to be removed, to gain access to the three (3) off Welsh plugs on a K Series engine. So almost there, & should be soon starting the fun bit; which will be determining times & control program, to get the very best coolant temperature control. Cheers Banjo