[Hampston4]

Did as you said, cracked loose the bleeder screw and had someone depress the clutch, nothing. Did five pumps with the bleeder open and closing the bleeder each time and zero fluid came out.

 

[Hampston4]

I did notice a creaking noise when the clutch was depressed. I'm sure its been there the whole time, I just didn't pay attention to it. But this don't look good.

 

[FJtest]

With no pressure on the clutch pedal, fully remove the bleeder screw.

Poke a piece of stiff wire into the small drillway behind the bleeder screw to make certain that neither the bleeder screw or the drillway are blocked.

 

[Kaiju]

There may be corrosion in the bleeder screw or the machined passage. If you can't get anything to come out, you'll most definitely need a new slave cylinder. The master cylinder is probably toast as well since it appears regular fluid changes have been neglected.

 

[Aerosparx]

This may be way out in left field. However, after reading the first two posts from Hampston4 I can say the same thing happened to me although my FJ is a 2010 Automatic.

I had been staying with my daughter out in the country at the time. It was getting toward dark and figured to head for home. I got about 1/2 mile down the road and prepared to make a turn when the FJ went into idle mode. Pressing on the accelerator had no effect at all. I was able to turn around and head back to her place. By the time I got back to her place it was dark. Same symptoms: no acceleration, idle only and the traction control light came on.

Next morning went out, started the FJ, put it in gear and drove around her circular driveway a couple of times. Same signs as the 2nd post . . . dash looked like a Christmas tree. It was a 100 mile drive back home via back roads and freeway so I bit the bullet and had it towed to the dealer. Tow driver drove it up on the flatbed with no issues. However, when we got to the dealer the FJ went back into idle mode when he was unloading it off the flatbed.

Turns out it was the Throttle Body Assembly and had thrown the DTC for Throttle Actuator Control Motor. Just saying, symptoms are identical so it might be worth checking to see if there is a DTC. I hated to take it to the dealer but was not going to chance the drive home and get stranded out in the middle of nowhere.

 

[Hampston4]

This may be way out in left field. However, after reading the first two posts from Hampston4 I can say the same thing happened to me although my FJ is a 2010 Automatic.

I had been staying with my daughter out in the country at the time. It was getting toward dark and figured to head for home. I got about 1/2 mile down the road and prepared to make a turn when the FJ went into idle mode. Pressing on the accelerator had no effect at all. I was able to turn around and head back to her place. By the time I got back to her place it was dark. Same symptoms: no acceleration, idle only and the traction control light came on.

Next morning went out, started the FJ, put it in gear and drove around her circular driveway a couple of times. Same signs as the 2nd post . . . dash looked like a Christmas tree. It was a 100 mile drive back home via back roads and freeway so I bit the bullet and had it towed to the dealer. Tow driver drove it up on the flatbed with no issues. However, when we got to the dealer the FJ went back into idle mode when he was unloading it off the flatbed.

Turns out it was the Throttle Body Assembly and had thrown the DTC for Throttle Actuator Control Motor. Just saying, symptoms are identical so it might be worth checking to see if there is a DTC. I hated to take it to the dealer but was not going to chance the drive home and get stranded out in the middle of nowhere.

What did your throttle feel like when you pressed it? Did it respond or did you have zero throttle response? My throttle was responding but it felt like some was holding it back. Did you have the dash noises under the steering wheel area? Wouldn't be a bad idea to check the computer for codes but I never has a check engine light come on. Thanks gir your input. The symptoms are very similar.

 

[Kaiju]

You won't feel anything at the pedal since it's drive by wire. If the TB motor had a problem, it should throw a trouble code. I would however, check for codes at the OBD II port with a reader. The connector at the TB should be checked for a loose connector or corrosion. Also pull off the large air tube on the air box side of the TB and see if there's any dirt buildup around the throttle butterfly.

 

[FJtest]

When the engine ECU invokes 'limp mode', the maximum throttle opening is limited to some small value (5 %??) of maximum throttle opening so the vehicle is not totally stranded, but can be moved to the side of the road, etc.

One of the more common triggers for 'limp mode' is a defect in the Accelerator Pedal Position Sensor (APPS), the sensor that's directly connected to the accelerator pedal. This sensor has two independent channels, each channel reporting the position of the accelerator pedal. If the output voltage of these two channels doesn't stay perfectly synchronized, the ECU immediately triggers limp mode.

Similar to the APPS, the throttle body also has a two-channel position sensor that provides throttle opening angle to the engine ECU. If the output of these two channels doesn't stay perfectly synchronized, limp mode will be triggered.

 

[Aerosparx]

No Response at all; throttle was dead. No noises at all. Just limped along in idle the whole way back to my daughters house. Only thing I noticed was traction control light was on.

 

[FJtest]

So engine speed never exceeded 600 RPM at any time?

 

[Hampston4]

I was out of town for over a week and havent had a chance to do anything to my fj. My throttle was responding, I was afraid of further damage, its possible but I don't think my fj was in limp mode. I am going to start by replacing the slave cylinder, then axles and bearings. I will post my progress. Thanks for your input everyone.

 

[Hampston4]

Got a chance to wrench on the fj today, I decided to start with the driver side axle and wheel bearing. This is what I found, this had to be part of the issue.

 

[Kaiju]

That bearing is gone. The ABS sensor for that wheel is probably damaged too.

 

[Hampston4]

Replace the driver side without issue, started to take out the sway bar link and it was very hard to get out. Is the sway bar bent? See photo.

 

[norm356]

Probably it is not bent, just at a weird angle because it is still attached to the other side which is a full droop.

 

[Hampston4]

Norm I think your right, I removed the sway bar from the vehicle and it does not look bent. Replacing the bushings and links and then going to focus on the clutch. I did drive the fj for about 10 minutes after the wheel bearing and axle change, Christmas tree is gone and the issue described in this thread did not reappear. Thanks for everyone's help on this one.