Starter issue

[flandersander]

So, my truck quit turning over. So I pulled the starter, and tried to hotstart it. I hooked the black wire up to the post that goes into the starter, and the power up to the little post. The starter gear would pop out, but would not spin. Should I get a new one (autowrecker) our get this one rebuilt?

 

[1997chevydriver]

You hooked it up wrong.

The big post is + battery so hook red cable to that. run a jumper from that to the little post then take your ground and touch the CASE of the starter!

 

[Goliath]

1997chevydriver is right on. I'm no expert but have been fighting intermittent starting prob for a while. Going to replace my ignition switch this weekend.

While you have starter off hook a meter up with one lead to the ignition wire/one to ground then have someone turn the key to start and see if 12v shows up when key is turned.

As far as your question about new or rebuilt starter, I'd get a new one from Napa or A zone with lifetime replacement.

 

[flandersander]

Well, the starter spun... Not what I was hoping for. So I'm hoping it's just the relay now. What else could it be? It doesn't work with the remote start either...

 

[SAATR]

Does the starter spin but not turn the motor when it's mounted in the vehicle? Does the solenoid engage but not spin the motor? Or, does it not do anything at all? Could just be a grounding issue (which would explain why it worked outside of the vehicle) or an intermittent connection issue (check the terminals on the solenoid). If you reinstall it on the vehicle and still have an issue, get a multimeter or test light and check for voltage on the main power lead (from the battery) and the ignition hot wire with somebody turning the key (the wire/wires on the small terminal). If you don't have to the ignition hot wire when the key is turned, it could be the starter relay, a wiring issue, or the ignition switch. Obviously if there's no voltage to the main power lead, you need to check connections to the battery. Try all of that, and if you have no luck, lemme know!

 

[kn1ght]

Sometimes as a starter is dying it will still spin, it just doesn't have the power to turn over an engine. Buy a new one, if it still won't turn over, just bring it back. That will narrow down a few issues right there. Test your battery's CCA also.

 

[flandersander]

Well, I put it back in, and it spun the motor over just fine. WTF! I'm not complaining, just sayin. Now, back to the problems I had before it wouldn't turn over...

It starts, and idles fine, but doesn't sound all that great. I don't have an experienced enough ear to tell what's up, but it sounds a bit "off". It revs up ok, but when it hits about 2500-3000, it hesitates, doesn't want to rev higher. Sometimes (not always) it spits fire back up the intake. I can see it below the metal flap in the throttle body (butterfly?).

It's a 1992 silverado k1500 350.

Mods (by previous owner)
-vortec heads
-chip (not sure what kind)
-some type of piggy back computer
-home made headers

Now what could it be?

It started when I tried to change the plugs. I got them all except #8, because the headers were in the way. Could it be that plug?

I don't think it is though, because it first started when I pulled out one plug (#1) to see what kind to get. It started backfiring out the exhaust, and hard. It doesn't do that anymore, it just fires out the intake as per above.

I'm really at a loss, because I didn't touch the timing, just changed the plugs (7) and all the wires.

Thanks for the help!

 

[kn1ght]

No, I doubt it's only that plug. Backfiring into your Tb is a sign of off timing. Did you accidentally advance or retard the timing while messing with plugs and wires? It would have to be a bit loose already. But, it's not unheard of.

 

[flandersander]

I guess it's possible. I dont recall it moving at all. I hope I dont need to mess with timing, because it has an rv cam I forgot to mention. The thing is, it sounds good at higher rpm. Past 3000, it sounds fine, it's just getting there that it spits at me.

Firing up the intake indicates advanced timing correct? Because the valves arent completly closed when it fires... Right? Or am I backwards?

 

[Goliath]

Check for voltage on the small terminal on the starter solenoid (with someone turning key to start). That was my problem but it started sometimes and sometimes wouldn't. When it would not start that was the problem - no voltage going down the purple wire/small terminal of the solenoid.

I changed all of my battery cables (and added some more grounds), didn't fix prob but i didn't really expect that to - just had some cruddy wires and needed cleaning up. Then I replaced my ignition switch, that was somewhat of a pain and cost me $150 and didn't fix either, I'm going to rationlize that away too and say that was good insurance.


Anyway, went to Oreilleys today and got a neutral safety switch for $40 and replaced that.

Wasn't too bad, hardest part was pulling apart the existing wiring harnesses. So far I have cranked it about ten times and it has worked every time. Not quite ready to claim victory but this is the best I've felt about this issue since it started happening.

So, I'm not suggesting any particular course of action for you but sharing what I have done and results.