Automobile question.

11-13-11 | Me

[Kevin in California]

Since FR has alot of smart and knowledgable people, I thought I pose this question in hopes of getting a few answers.

I have a 1996 Chevy S10 4X4 (automatic tran) with the Vortec 4.3L engine.

Yesterday I went away on an all day trip that's 1.5hrs each way and the only thing I noticed a couple while cruising the highway was it felt like the truck jerked a couple times but I wasn't really sure. Well, I got home last night, parked my truck, and went inside for the night. Well, woke up this morning to go grab a cup of coffee and the truck wouldn't start. It would crank no problem but wouldn't turn over and start. Keep in mind the battery is new and I have 3/4 tank of gas. Well, I tried starting it over the course of the next 2-3 hrs and still, wouln't start. Well, just went outside to try again and it started. WTH??? There's no "check engiine" light on and all the gauges are normal as they were last night. Now, my question.

If I take it into a shop tomorrow to put it on a puter, will they be able to tell me if there's a problem or maybe something like a switch, relay, etc. going out and need of replacement?

I hate to take it on a long trip then have this no starting problem again.

Thanks all!

[labette]

Haven’t read all the replies . .

If you told me to fix this, the first thing I would suspect is an intermittent open circuit in the fuel pump. {bad fuel pump}. Turn the key to “on”. If there is no audible sound for a couple seconds from the tank, this is one of the symptoms. The problem will typically show up first when warm. Eventually it will quit completely. The original, or even a good replacement pump might only last 80,000 miles. Learn how the system works, diagnose second, then confirm your diagnosis. Now it’s time to buy parts. (Or better yet, take it to someone that knows what they are doing)

Four types of internet how-to advice you should never depend on:
1-Legal
2-Financial
3-Medical
4-Engineering/mechanical

[SVTCobra03]

“Trade it in on a Ford F250.”

Make that a 2012 Ford F150 Raptor.

[RobertClark]

Cranking and not firing pretty much narrows it down to two things: No fuel or no spark. A fuel pump not pumping and then later working without a hitch makes a lot of sense. The fuel pump is easy to troubleshoot - I wont get into the backyard mechanic methods in order to prevent being flamed later in the thread.

No spark could be a few different items: coil, cam / crank position sensor, bad ground. This should be fairly easy to track down as well. Any experienced mechanic will be able to tell you the predominant problems that perist with your chevy. If it were a Ford, I could tell you in a second - I only look at Chevy’s as I pass them on the trails.

[RobertClark]

I forgot to mention: if all else fails - get a new flux capacitor. Those babies are temperamental.

[Son House]

(Without reading every response) first have you changed air filter lately? Fuel injection can get testy without good air flow.

[tomkat]

Fuel filter.

[kara37]

Nope, squirrels just make a very small bump. I know that because I am the official squirrel killer. If there is a squirrel within 1 miles of me, it will run out in the road at the exact time my vehicle passes.

In all seriousness though, I was a service adviser for over 10 years at a dealership. I have sold hundreds, if not thousands of starters over that time. The symptoms he described is not a starter problem.
It could be so many things, that's why I haven't offered my opinion.
However, if the truck has been maintained (cap, rotor, wires, plugs, filters, ect), it's probably a fuel issue. However, I have seen bad coils give those same symptoms too.

[OrioleFan]

Years ago I was took my F-150 to Valvoline for an oil change. They put a new air filter (one of theirs) on it. The following week I was driving to Pittsburgh and back. On the way back the engine started cutting out on me. I would stop and shut the engine off. Then it would start and run for a few more miles and start cutting out. On inspection I found the bulbous end of the filter had separated from the rest of the filter and had fallen into the air intake. When I shut the engine off, it would open back up. After running for a few more miles, it closed off the intake again. I had gravity working for me and air flow working against me. I worked my way to a off ramp and got a replacement filter. Turns out Valvoline had a lot of problemd with the air filters. Looks like this:

[shove_it]

That’l work. This man needs a reliable truck with more power, buy a Ford.

[Chode]

are they the original plug wires???

[RckyRaCoCo]

Just finished working on 2 vehicles myself, my van had a blown intake manifold gasket(thanks GM, POS, cheap-azz, plastic shite...), Dexcool ate it for lunch.

Before that fix was done my other car started stalling at idle. I did a thorough cleaning of the throttle body, with special attention to the idle air control valve(which was cleaned and pintle reset to proper height). Put in a can of Seafoam to clean the injectors, etc....no more stalling(fingers crossed).

Neither of those fixes pertain to your problem though....(well, can't hurt to clean the throttle body)

You live in No. Cal or So Cal.? Heard you guys had some rain the last couple of days(in So. Cal.) The(rare)moisture can lead to fuel/spark issues. Best to start with the easiest stuff(cheap fix)before replacing expensive sensors, fuel pumps and the like.

The cheap stuff is checking bat. terminals & ground connections(and other electrical connections)for loose and/or corrosion/crud(contact made worse by moisture). Cap/rotor/plugs/wires for the same. Then there's vacuum lines that can crack, etc.(known to cause many issues).

Just a few things to start out with first before chasing the problem by replacing part($$$) after part($$$)...

[When do we get liberated?]

OK, did it fire at all in the AM when it didn’t start. e, did it cough, sputter, cough or just whizzz as the starter spun away to no effect?

If it coughed and sputtered, it means you had some spark and some compression and some fuel there at the same time.

If it just cranked and didnt spark then it was missing fuel or spark or compression.

Since youe compression is mechanical and worked later in the day we can remove that as a variable. Thus you were at that point missing fuel or spark. If it did not fire at all you can count on it being spark. Crappy fuel distribution will still sputter and try to start. Crappy spark will spin a starter all day.

And anyone who thinks they can correctly diagnose exactly which part is broke over the internet is crazy or lucky.

[Paladin2]

Likely suspects.

[Irenic]

felt like the truck jerked a couple times
************************************
This past summer kiddo’s 98 Chevy Silverado did a jerk thing and then wouldn’t start. It ended up being the distributor.

[Raven6]

On Board, Diagnostics, known by the letters OBD2 have been in use on all vehicles since 1996 or earlier. Just because you do not have a check engine light indicating an issue, doesn't mean that there is nothing stored in the computer. If you can get it to an auto parts store, many of them will check, for free the fault codes using a hand held code reader. That will at least give you a start on trying to figure out what the problem is without having to pay a diagnotic fee at a repair shop.

It could be anything from water in your fuel to a faulty chankshaft position sensor, to an ignition coil problem - or many things in between or a combination of more than one...

I would go that route first. You may be surprised and find that it is a simple fix that you can perform yourself, saving you a lot of money.

[PUGACHEV]

The truth is that it could be so many different things that you need to scan for trouble codes. Otherwise, you'll just start throwing parts at it, and how much you spend before solving the problem is only a matter of luck. All cars manufactured since 1996 have an OBDII port under the dashboard beneath the steering wheel. Some auto parts places, like Advance Auto will lend you a scan tool. A scan will identify failed sensors, like the crankshaft position sensor, or the camshaft sensor. If is the fuel pump or the filter, you'll probably see a code for low fuel pressure. If it's water in the gas you'll see a code P0300 for Random Misfire, which could be many other things as well, like a partially blocked fuel filer, a weak fuel pump, a cracked distributor cap, or bad wires. At which point you may have to start trowing pats at it after all.

[Bluebeard16]

Could be something simple like a plugged fuel filter. I believe those are on the top of the engine so you wouldn’t necessarily have to drop the tank. I’d check that before I drop the tank.

[Hootowl99]

Bingo with the fuel sender problem... Could easily be out of gas and cheap to check by pouring a gallon of gas in the tank and seeing if the engine fires up.

Happened to me once when the fuel sender busted on my old 1988 Grand Wagoneer. I should have been suspicious about that 3/8 tank indicated on the gauge lasting so long. I came across an old Ford 4wd pickup stalled at the top of pass on a trail in Colorado once. It was broken down. Another guy and I poked and checked a number of things when I noticed while under the truck that it had dual tanks and some loose wires. The fuel gauge showed fuel in both tanks but I had the driver switch tanks and the truck fired right up. He was just on an empty tank.

If it does turn out to be the fuel pump and it's located in the tank as others indicated, it's not too difficult to drop a tank if it's empty. However, if the tank is full then that's a heck of a lot of weight and you need a floor jack to support it. Shoot PB Blaster on the bolts and hopefully let it set awhile before unbolting the restraints and things will go a lot easier.

[HANG THE EXPENSE]

Crankshaft posit.sensor is my bet.

[Lazlo in PA]

Happened to me once when the fuel sender busted on my old 1988 Grand Wagoneer.

LOL. There is a maroon one sitting in my driveway as I write this. It hasn't told me the correct fuel reading in a year. A couple of my collector cars are the same way. I'm just too lazy to drop the tanks to fix them. I just make sure I fill up whenever I go for any distance.