just as it says...I messed up bad..poor judgement
driving the 7 home last night in the rain I encountered a very large puddle..hell it was a friggin lake..several cars ahead of me made it through..btw this is my road to my house so it was my usual route..I turned into it and as soon as I hit the water, which was up to my ankles, so basically the bottom of the door edge but not high enough to enter the car..the 7 came to a violent halt of course in the middle of this temporary lake...the starter would not crank but I had lights and all..a truck was nice enough to push me out..the 7 started up a few moments later but ran rough..it went back to normal running after a few minutes..I checked the engine bay and there was some wetness but the top and middle parts of the engine were fine and dry..next morning after I started her up she idled at 4000 rpm continously...and once underway there was surging and roughness..she basically accelerates by herself for awhile until fully warm..when the clutch is depressed she idles at 3000rpm..when the clutch is released she idles at 2500-3000rpm hunting and bouncing..tonight she started idling somewhat normal after a long drive, but still races crazy during startup
im baffled somewhat
any ideas? maybe things need to dry more?
im pissed at my decision to use her as a jetski

 

probably got some water on the dizzy

dunno about the idle thing tho

 

make sure you havent gotten any water in the intake too. yank the spark plugs and crank it over a few times just to be double sure.

 

check the passenger side floorboards..... thats where your computer is, and if the grommet plugs have been removed....., or if the ac drain plug has been shifted..... you get my drift

kenn

 

this is sounding plausible...the spark plugs checked out as did the intake..the moment I hit the water the car shut down..then it runs rough and doesn't hold idle normally..which is still the case..now after several days it runs somewhat normally but after each stop at an intersection, it will bounce the idle or run normal;
should I attempt to dry the computer and the surrounding area with a hair dryer? or is possibly the computer toast?

 

and something else..my windows are fogged up in the morning..without me being in the car..good indication of water in the interior..I'll pull the seat and the storage bins..good times..she's no titanic..wait a sec...lol

 

Completely dry out the carpet even if that means pulling it out and taking it inside for a few days. You don't want it to rust inderneath. Also at that time make sure the computer is dry.
Don't forget to check under your cap on the dist. for mositure as that is effect it also.

Good luck, and BTW - did you toss the jewel after you sank?

 

Good luck, and BTW - did you toss the jewel after you sank?[/QUOTE]
it was the first thing tossed..as I was looking for a life preserver..to exit my 7

 

Man The Life Boats!!!!

I dont think it would be mositure under the dizzy. If there was, why would it act normal then start acting up on stops. I think he needs to check the computer.

How long were you in the water? Water may not have came in through the doors, but there are holes in the floor boards, and under the storage bins were it could have leaked in at. So I would check there just like Fire said.

 

she was in the 'lake' for about a minute and a half..the starter would not even engage until I got pushed out..she has full power right now..hell she feels faster than normal..but she won't hold a normal idle consistently or startup normally without pegging the 4000 rpm mark

 

Yes pull the carpet and make sure it is all dry before installing it back in. Check the computer but make sure to disconnect the battery before unplugging it for saftey.

As for the cap, just check it and it would not hurt to get a new one. I had one plug that had moisture in its hole and under an idle it jacked it up but under hard pedal I guess the spark was stronger because it ran great. It did burn out finally and the car ran great then so your problem is probally ECU.
I think I have a spare GSL-SE ecu I could sell you if needed.
Good luck

 

pm me quote if you do indeed have that ecu! I have checked under the seats for wetness..it was dry..is the computer deep under the carpet? im having trouble locating it under the passenger seat..its nearly perfectly flat under that seat...im possibly going to buy new plugs and a rotor and cap for good measure..here's what she is doing now..upon cold startup she pegs 3500-4000 rpm and stays there a good 3 minutes..then she bounces from 2500-3500rpm constantly..once under load she surges while cruising until fully warm..then occassionaly she will hold a good 850 rpm and then hunt 1500-2000 rpm with the clutch disengaged..any throttle input while idling will set her off to hunting between rpms..she doesn't stall mind you..just won't hold a normal idle for any length of time..my feelings were if the computer got soaked wouldn't the car not operate at all? the mystery continues

 

idling high is usually from a vacuum leak, not sure how water would cause that tho.

there is also a solenoid on the drivers side that is meant to keep the car at a certain RPM, there is a yellow/green one then a black one with two cylinders under the intake manifold. make sure the vacuum lines are all attached properly and maybe check it as per the FSM to make sure its still functional.

 

I shall do that...im beginning to believe this a seperate problem that has used the water incident as an oppurtunity to rear it's ugly head...just a thought..also will disconecting the battery and/or depressing the brake after doing so clear the ecu's memory? im going to try everything I can to get to the bottom of this elusive issue

 

im not sure how it works on a SE but on my supra, yanking the battery for over 60 seconds resets the ECU. im sure if its removed for a few minutes it will reset.

put a heater/hair dryer/anything inside and leave it for a hour or so to get rid of any moisture. might not fix anything but it will help rid the inside of moisture.

 

here's a pic. the solenoid i mean is furthest to the right.

 

thanks for the pic..im going to open her up this morning and check everything out; as for the computer is it deep under the carpet? im having trouble locating it, so im going to yank the seat

 

The cpmputer is on the passenger side fire wall/floor board area.
Let us know what you find.

 

idk about putting a header or hair dryer in the car for any period of time...... wal-mart,k-mart,target, all sell things to dry out cars if you leave you windows open in the rain ............or you can goto lowes, homedepot they all sell silica <--- (think that is spelt right) its the stuff that comes in new shoes to keep the moisture out of them. sept its in a big bag good luck

 

I see...found it! that area is dry..lmao I was looking under the seat..I discovered a wet area under the passenger side storage bin..not excessive but quite wet..as I've stated the car actually works alright..it just won't hold a normal idle for any length of time..esp at start up which is odd considering she never activated the choke quite right since I've owned her but now she pegs 3500-4000rpm at startup which i'm assuming isn't too good for the rotary when cold...i'm going for those solenoids..possibly they got splashed and have failed..but this seems unlikely..they are exposed to moisture to some extent all the time..when I hit the water I can understand the starter getting soaked and not working momentarily..but the odd running situation seems lost on me..the engine got nothing more than a well saturated bath..damnit this pisses me off::shakes fist...i'm heading for the auto parts store for the ignition components and see what happens there..tho finding ngk's for her today is highly unlikely, but the autolites are plentiful

 

As for spark plugs I would clean yours before I run a set of autolights. In fact get a set for the 86 13b to run in your se. They are NGK BUR7EQ Leading and BUR9EQ Trailing. Those work better in my early 13b's as well as my gsl-se. Just make sure to put the trailing and leading in the right holes.


As for the idle, check your TPS and the variable resistor on the shock tower of the passenger side. DO NOT just turn either one if you don't know how to set them. See the FSM if you don't.
Then check your timing both leading and traiing, check all connections under the hood. Infact if you want to buy something for the car buy some .......... man I can't remember what it is called. Ask for a gel that is in a tube made just for electrical connections. I have some but can't find it. I unplugged all my connectors and put some of it in the connection then hooked them back up. It keeps moisture out and makes a better connection.

Also make sure to check on your TB for a coolant line on it. That system has something to do with it at an idle too. Mine is gone so I can't help you there.

One of these idea in this thread has to be the problem.
And buy the way the idle is suppose to kick up high when first started if the motor is cold then it will taper down after a few minutes. Again all my junk has been removed so I can help you there. Here is a pic of my motor and car

 

great info thanks! yeah I do realize the idle should kick up when cold..but on mine she won't go down til you put her in gear and drive, then after each stop and neutral she hunts continously..and to pinpoint the problem further she will hike up the idle after each startup even when hot..something got soaked good and has failed obviously..the coolant sensor sounds plausible as well..the car acts like it's cold all the time now..I will run those plugs as you stated when I can get some %#$@*!! Holidays! the timing seems to be alright the car runs good once underway when warmed up..she surges forward similar to 'unintended acceleration' when warming up..but she revs up nicely once driving warm..no backfires or stalling

 

Could be your TPS. That is easy to check and build a test jig.
Keep us posted on what you find.

 

I searched a bit and have taken a hard long look at Long Ducks stuck TB rods fix..my 7 does indeed go into a loop when cold and this continues even when warm..sometimes going back to normal..when warming up she pegs 3500-4000 mark and after a few minutes she drops and then rises and drops again..basically revving back and forth..this also continues when driving causing the 'surging'..im off to get some silicone and lube those TB rods up..easy enough and by far the easiest fix should that be it..crosses fingers..

 

alright..it's been sunny today so I've had the car completely opened up even the sunroof is off and have had the heater going..I first disconnected the battery for several minutes while i fiddled with connections and vacuum lines..all checked out..BTW what is that brass colored rod that has bends in it that connects to the throttle body on the front side..the throttle trigger is on the other side of it..it is very loose..anyways after pulling the cap and rotor and plugs again..it's been a sunny day as opposed to all week there has been rain and darkness..so i can see better today..all of those are fine..buttoned everything back up and started her..she shot up to 3,500rpm this time a bit lower..then gradually went down while surging..she then sounded peculair wish I could describe it..it was like she was blowing a lot of air..then she settled into normal idle..first time for this since the water incident..I took her on a long drive to get silicone spray and some lucas fuel cleaner..she ran fine the whole way..brought her back and she is idling normal and restarts normal i'm currently going to take the air hose off and clean the TB rods for good measure...im baffled literally