No crank, no start

[Fight Milk]

I searched around before creating another thread, and found some similar issues, but none that were quite the same as mine.

1989 Suburban V2500, stock 350TBI and TH400.

I parked my Suburban, got in it, started it, and it ran for about a second before it died. Checked all the fuses, battery is still good, grounds look good, replaced the ignition control module and the ignition switch and most of the time when I turn the key to "on", I don't even get the buzzer or fuel pump to prime. Every once in a while, if it's been sitting for a week or so, it'll crank and fire and run fine, then it won't restart. It seems like an electrical issue to me because the buzzer usually won't work and the pump won't prime. I noticed a day or two before it died that while sitting in traffic the rpm would dip pretty low, but it didn't die.

Could it be a bad solenoid? Would that actually have caused it die initially?

 

[PrairieDrifter]

Sounds like a main power supply issue. Maybe even ignition switch issues.

 

[AKguy]

I had a similiar issue and found the battery feed entering the firewall side of the distribution/fuse block was loose. Looked fine until I grabbed it.

 

[Fight Milk]

Sounds like a main power supply issue. Maybe even ignition switch issues.

When I put the new ignition switch on, it looked like it was being engaged properly, but it hasn't solved the problem. I'll take another look this weekend.

 

[Fight Milk]

I had a similiar issue and found the battery feed entering the firewall side of the distribution/fuse block was loose. Looked fine until I grabbed it.

Thanks! I'll look into this, too

 

[Hugomartin]

Try ignition module under dizzy cap. Hard to get to it’s a workout

 

[Fight Milk]

Try ignition module under dizzy cap. Hard to get to it’s a workout

Yup, that was the first part I replaced. It started up immediately. I turned it off, went to restart it, and it nothing doing

 

[Ricko1966]

It's not a solenoid,it's not a module,it's not an ignition switch. It's a power issue,first thing I'd check is clean tight battery connections,then check for clean tight ground connections,frame,body and engine. Make sure the hot lead to the starter is clean and tight.

 

[Hugomartin]

It's not a solenoid,it's not a module,it's not an ignition switch. It's a power issue,first thing I'd check is clean tight battery connections,then check for clean tight ground connections,frame,body and engine. Make sure the hot lead to the starter is clean and tight.

Yes and make sure the bolt isn’t too deep for the battery or get washers so it’s good n tight without stripping the battery internals lol

 

[Bextreme04]

Don't just go randomly checking a bunch of stuff.

Go to the resource library on this forum and download the maintenance manual for your truck. I believe the troubleshooting steps are in a "drivability and emissions" manual for the newer TBI trucks. There is a troubleshooting flowchart for "crank, no start". Follow that procedure to actually find your issue in the least amount of time without just throwing parts at it.

 

[Fight Milk]

It's not a solenoid,it's not a module,it's not an ignition switch. It's a power issue,first thing I'd check is clean tight battery connections,then check for clean tight ground connections,frame,body and engine. Make sure the hot lead to the starter is clean and tight.

I know ground issues can be gremlins, so I'm going to look into this, too. It's just odd that the lights always work, regardless if the no crank, no start issue is occurring.

 

[Fight Milk]

Don't just go randomly checking a bunch of stuff.

Go to the resource library on this forum and download the maintenance manual for your truck. I believe the troubleshooting steps are in a "drivability and emissions" manual for the newer TBI trucks. There is a troubleshooting flowchart for "crank, no start". Follow that procedure to actually find your issue in the least amount of time without just throwing parts at it.

Thanks for guidance! This is the kind of thing I'm looking for. Although, when I search for anything under the Resources tab, I get no results, so I may not have full access yet.

 

[dboydb]

If the lights work when it won't crank and stay bright while trying to crank, I would look at the neutral safety switch.

 

[Ricko1966]

If the lights work when it won't crank and stay bright while trying to crank, I would look at the neutral safety switch.

Neutral safety switch won't cause it to die,it will create a no crank. He didn't throw the lights into the mix until post 11,which kinda sent me down the wrong path on post 8.

 

[Fight Milk]

Neutral safety switch won't cause it to die,it will create a no crank. He didn't throw the lights into the mix until post 11,which kinda sent me down the wrong path on post 8.

Apologies, I thought I included that in the original post. I put the old ignition switch back in last night to see if I had something adjusted or installed incorrectly, but no dice.

So the buzzer works when the key is in the ignition, the headlights/taillights work, the cigarette lighter works, but the windows and blower/AC won't work. There's no noise from the starter, no dash lights come on, and the fuel pump won't prime. I guess I should test the voltage at the starter solenoid next. I wonder if maybe the ECM could be kaput.

You must be registered for see images attach