SO, just to update I am still sort of hunting for the cause of this mysterious check engine light/intermittent hard starting. A few days ago I noticed that the sheathing on one of the wires running had rubbed off, so I put some electrical tape around it, but still had the same problem, so I decided to investigate this further.I removed the connector from the ignitor and as per my trusty Toyota factory service manual, I probed each of the contacts in the connector with my multimeter to check for voltage and ohms/continuity. When I got to the 3rd hole in the connector the multimeter continuity tester on the multimeter detected a short, and lo and behold, this was the same hole with the wire coming out of it that I had to tape. So I switched the tester to ohms and measured something like 50 ohms of resistance, seems pretty high.
All of the other holes in the connector tested fine for continuity. Also, when checked for voltage, the hole that had the chafed wire had about 5V at it, most of the others had 12. NOW HERE IS THE ISSUE, the factory manual I am using is apparently for a NEWER Avalon than mine... I think 98 with 6 COILS (mine has 3 and is a waste-spark ignition). Since the ignition system is somewhat different, I would expect the specs to be different as well. If anyone has a manual for a 97 or if they know what the correct voltages/resistance should be for the different holes in the connector for the igniter circuit, that would be GREATLY APPRECIATED. THANKS!
All of the other holes in the connector tested fine for continuity. Also, when checked for voltage, the hole that had the chafed wire had about 5V at it, most of the others had 12. NOW HERE IS THE ISSUE, the factory manual I am using is apparently for a NEWER Avalon than mine... I think 98 with 6 COILS (mine has 3 and is a waste-spark ignition). Since the ignition system is somewhat different, I would expect the specs to be different as well. If anyone has a manual for a 97 or if they know what the correct voltages/resistance should be for the different holes in the connector for the igniter circuit, that would be GREATLY APPRECIATED. THANKS!
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