96 Tacoma skipping

I have a 96 tacoma that i have had for almost 7 years. A couple of months ago it started skipping and it does it all the time. The check engine light stays on and sometimes the check engine light flashes and the engine skips worse while the light is flashing. I have changed the wires,plugs, and the coil packs and nothing has helped.So a couple of days ago it was time for an oil change, so i changed the oil and filter and what you know skipping has stoped and the truck is running like new again. So a few days pass without no problem and then it starts again. So i take it to friends house and hook it up a machine and it says its misfiring on number 6. So i tell him what the problem i was having and he said i was using the wrong weight of oil (the same weight oil i have been using for almost 7 years). So i change the oil to the recommend weight and i still have the same problem.I went to pick up my stepdaughter one night from work and the truck ran great.As soon i got there and turned it off and started it back up it went straight back to skipping. So if any one has any advise to what my problem is it would be very helpful.

P.S sorry for the story lol.....this is my first time on a forum

 

Welcome to TW, I would say try changing fuel filter and maybe running an injector cleaner through a tank of gas and see where that gets you.

 

Yeah for a nasty missfire like that itll pry end up being an injector issue at this point since youve changed about every thing else associated with your spark delivery. I like to use a bottle of seafoam in the gas tank every now and again for injector maintenance. Might try that first like bossfoss mentioned.

Your buddy that thinks your weight of oil causes a severe missfire is a funny dude...

 

Thanks for the reply bossFoss I will give this a try the next day I have off of work. And bry838 my buddy was saying that there is variable valve sensor that works off of oil pressure that could make it skip. Since I was using thicker oil than what was recommended.

 

Just what weight were you using? 90w lol

Ive used 10w 30 lots of times and it wont cause any harm, i bet 15w 45 wouldnt even cause a "skip"

 

I don't think the 96 has variable valve timing.

 

It doesn't, his buddy is clueless. The 5VZ-FE is a very simple engine, no VVT. I'd get a leakdown test performed to check the integrity of the cylinders. Also, this skipping is actually misfiring and if you put that in the title you'll likely get more people to comment and help you out.

 

Mileage would help to know, but there's only so many things that cause misfires. Fuel, ignition, and mechanical problems are about it. I'd start with the plugs, read them and make sure they are the correct dual ground strap NGK or Denso's. Leak down test or compression test can tell you a lot about what's going on. If those both check out move the #6 injector to a different cylinder and see if the miss follows that cylinder. The same process works for ignition coils.

 

pull your PCV valve out while it's misfiring and see if it runs better. you will probably want to get a new grommet for it while youre at it.

 

First thing to learn is the W in the oil rating doesn't stand for weight. It stands for winter. So you won't sound like a noob and be like 30 weight oil etc

 

it is. they use the word winter because the 5 grade in 5w30 has a viscosity rating of 5 when it's at 0°f(-17°C). The 30 rating is the viscosity when the oil is at 212°f (boiling point/100°C). the higher the number, the thicker and slower it moves (or longer it takes to travel a certain distance).

 

So a guy needs to say viscosity in place of weight when referring to a heavier/thicker oil.

 

Well I stand corrected sir . Learn new things everyday.

 

Thank you for not taking my comment as some sort of reprisal, i didn't intend to be offensive either. I just like it when people have a clearer understanding and accept knowledge instead of remaining ignorant.

 

It BEHAVES like a 5 weight would when a 5 weight is chilled to 0, and it BEHAVES like a 30 weight would when a 30 weight is heated to 212. It's still much thinner hot. If it was actually 5 weight cold and 30 weight hot it would actually be thicker when heated to a boil, which doesn't make sense.

 

and that's exactly how it works. it is literally, thicker, when hot. thicker (literally, larger/expanded) oil offers the most protection when between engine parts. cam/crank bearings, cylinder walls, rod bearings, rockers/lifters/valves, etc etc. this is one of the reasons you shouldn't be so hard on your engine when it's still warming up to boiling point. but having a low rated will make sure the oil to get to where it needs to be before it gets too hot/thick to get to the important places.

normally, you should allow at least 30 or 50 seconds (IIRC) on cold start for the oil to travel back up to the heads, inside the cams/rockers, throughout all the crank parts and etc, before the oil at least gets to where it should be. then you should wait for it to get to boiling point where it thickens up and offers the maximum protection.

but yes, hotter oil does spread throughout the engine much faster. however, thinner (smaller/compacted) oil gets into tighter spots much easier than thicker oil. so the thinner stuff gets into the bearings, then it warms up, thickens up, and offers max rated protection afterwards.

 

Take 8 ounces of 5w-30 and pour it into a glass measure. Observe the viscosity. Then heat it on the stove and do the same pour test. It's thinner when hot.

5w-30 just thins out LESS than straight 5 weight or 5w-20 when it's heated.

 

Im agreeing with you but when you say less you mean from a Delta viscosity measure of the same oil. Not from oil type to oil type

 

To the OP. Is the plug on the offending cylinder very clean?

If so, I'll wager a compression test will show a bad head gasket. The 'clean' is from being steam cleaned.

Could be quite small, not causing a fast coolant consumption or coolant/oil mix yet. But don't wait too long to rule this out, you don't want it to get worse if I'm guessing right.

There are lots of threads for the oil babble going on here. Main point for you is that your oil selection has nothing to do with a miss.