Karsten the EUCWolfI swear, the Toyota engineers that built this van put some kind of curse on it. Every time I start to track down a problem, the problem disappears.
At this point, my best guess is that its having heat-induced resistance along the starter-solenoid wire, which Toyota engineers decided should be a little tiny 18ga wire running all the way from the ignition switch, across the motor through the hottest part of the engine hump then down to the starter solenoid.
These vans are known for collecting heat in the engine hump and it only seems to have trouble starting when it is hot outside *and* the van is hot from driving.
It doesn't help that my battery is utter garbage and a new battery would cost almost as much as the charger for my unicycle.
I bought this van to drive a few times a month when I needed to haul serious cargo or clients' dogs, not to be a daily driver.