My father in laws 1996 Chevy Silverado 350 will not start? He installed a new battery thinking that was it but no luck? Where should we look now?
96 Chevy won't fire
- Thread starter Camprunner
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Does it crank over?
Yes it will crank but just won't fire. It has about 60,000 miles and is well maintained.
Distributor possibly they crack with age and once some humidity gets inside they can have problems. Had a few Silverados in my life love the line. My previous was a '01 with 375k miles original transmission went out at 320k headgasket started leaking at 375k.
Good truck but the thing went thru distributors. Had to replace them on a yearly bases (not kidding)
Good truck but the thing went thru distributors. Had to replace them on a yearly bases (not kidding)
Literally a hundered things it could be. Could guess for three week straight on here. Need to go back to basics. Make sure its getting fuel, and spark.
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Is this a HEI distributor? I have many years fooling with those
Assuming the engine didn't make any noise when he stopped it ? And the fact those had no point distributor is likely not the issue . Get a spark plug out .does it fire? Yes? Then its likely the gas filter .carburetor or fuel pump could also do this .get a container and dismount the gas line at carburator . If gas ias flowing then pump and filter aren't blocked . Did you check air filter? You need air gas and fire to make an engine work .I don't like those engine but usually they re pretty simple .air gas and fire will make them work . Unless fire number one isn't firing!this could prevent engine from starting if I recall
Make sure ground isn't corroded at frame
IIRC 1996 is TBI ... In tank fuel pump, etc. Could be something as simple as collision (inertia) switch got bumped ...
Pickup coil or ignition control module would be my guess-ti-mation. AZ can test module if you take it out. Go to YouTube to see how to check the PU coil.
Ya...got spark? Fuel?
Check spark & fuel pressure, the timing, then earthing points.
Start diagnosing it. You need 4 basic things to make it start-fuel, spark, air and timing. Start with fuel; then spark, then air, and then timing. Find out what part of the equation is missing and you'll have your answer. Anything else is just a guess and you'll end up throwing parts at it.
Originally Posted By: BrocLuno
IIRC 1996 is TBI ... In tank fuel pump, etc. Could be something as simple as collision (inertia) switch got bumped ...
GM didn't use an inertia switch. That was only on Fords at that time.
IIRC 1996 is TBI ... In tank fuel pump, etc. Could be something as simple as collision (inertia) switch got bumped ...
GM didn't use an inertia switch. That was only on Fords at that time.
Originally Posted By: Pop_Rivit
Start diagnosing it. You need 4 basic things to make it start-fuel, spark, air and timing. Start with fuel; then spark, then air, and then timing. Find out what part of the equation is missing and you'll have your answer. Anything else is just a guess and you'll end up throwing parts at it.
What ever you do, don't throw parts at it. Keep it simple Diagnosis is basic.
Start diagnosing it. You need 4 basic things to make it start-fuel, spark, air and timing. Start with fuel; then spark, then air, and then timing. Find out what part of the equation is missing and you'll have your answer. Anything else is just a guess and you'll end up throwing parts at it.
What ever you do, don't throw parts at it. Keep it simple Diagnosis is basic.
Nobody has answered if it is an HEI? Reason I don't know is cause I don't have anything from GM that new ...
If HEI it could be one of two variants. Plain old HEI with vacuum advance and HEI that is ECU controlled. In either case, what usually happens is that the coil gets hot and the epoxy melts, the windings touch and bingo, there goes the module. Put in a new module and it will fire, just to take it out again next time it gets hot ...
I typically use 990 modules and Pro-Form coils. Yeah, they are Chinese, but they work well and most ignition parts are now Chinese - even GM labeled stuff.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Proform-66943C-High-Performance-GM-HEI-Ignition-Coil-/201644536814?hash=item2ef2f373ee:g:XkQAAOSwV0RXrbeq&vxp=mtr
So there are two ways to go. One is to buy two modules. Get some heat sink paste (not grease) and install one in the existing dizzy. Keep the other in the glove box. If the coil is prone to shorting, it'll pop that first module. Install #2 and drive home. Replace coil ASAP. Or, just do both up front
Also, you can replace the high resistance "button" under the coil with a low resistance one. Prolly won't bother your radio much, and it will keep the coil cooler. The factory button gets quite hot ...
Of course all this is after you made sure you have no spark. The way to test that is to jump 12v direct from the battery to the HEI power feed bypassing all the switching in the cars systems. If you have spark then, it is in the dash, a safety circuit, a blown fuse, somewhere else ...
And, whether we like it or not, the reason the Chevy dizzy is at the back is because of the cross-member and the oil pan/pump location. The dizzy could be anywhere. But the sump and oil pump can't be economically relocated ...
If HEI it could be one of two variants. Plain old HEI with vacuum advance and HEI that is ECU controlled. In either case, what usually happens is that the coil gets hot and the epoxy melts, the windings touch and bingo, there goes the module. Put in a new module and it will fire, just to take it out again next time it gets hot ...
I typically use 990 modules and Pro-Form coils. Yeah, they are Chinese, but they work well and most ignition parts are now Chinese - even GM labeled stuff.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Proform-66943C-High-Performance-GM-HEI-Ignition-Coil-/201644536814?hash=item2ef2f373ee:g:XkQAAOSwV0RXrbeq&vxp=mtr
So there are two ways to go. One is to buy two modules. Get some heat sink paste (not grease) and install one in the existing dizzy. Keep the other in the glove box. If the coil is prone to shorting, it'll pop that first module. Install #2 and drive home. Replace coil ASAP. Or, just do both up front
Also, you can replace the high resistance "button" under the coil with a low resistance one. Prolly won't bother your radio much, and it will keep the coil cooler. The factory button gets quite hot ...
Of course all this is after you made sure you have no spark. The way to test that is to jump 12v direct from the battery to the HEI power feed bypassing all the switching in the cars systems. If you have spark then, it is in the dash, a safety circuit, a blown fuse, somewhere else ...
And, whether we like it or not, the reason the Chevy dizzy is at the back is because of the cross-member and the oil pan/pump location. The dizzy could be anywhere. But the sump and oil pump can't be economically relocated ...
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HEI and vacuum advance were long gone by 1996.
This is looking like a crank-timed system with only a cam sensor in the distributor. The ignition module would be on a bracket with the coil. Unlike the 4+2 wire module used in the first post-HEI system (module inside a stamped metal distributor), these modules seem to be fairly reliable. First thing to do with that truck if there's no spark is crank for a while and see if any codes are set, such as the crank sensor. Also inspect the coil, cap, rotor and wires (especially the coil to distributor wire) for breakdown.
This is looking like a crank-timed system with only a cam sensor in the distributor. The ignition module would be on a bracket with the coil. Unlike the 4+2 wire module used in the first post-HEI system (module inside a stamped metal distributor), these modules seem to be fairly reliable. First thing to do with that truck if there's no spark is crank for a while and see if any codes are set, such as the crank sensor. Also inspect the coil, cap, rotor and wires (especially the coil to distributor wire) for breakdown.
One way to check to see if the PCM is getting a crank signal is to watch the 'Check Engine' light. It should be on with the Key on. If it turns off while cranking then its seeing engine rotation. But if the light stays lit then it is not.
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