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Comments
regarding the switch, you're luck you are changing the cheap switch in the column. You don't even want to know what that multifunction switch on the left costs! Would you believe $195 wholesale???!!!
And on a 2002 model, $265 wholesale!!! Needless to say, if anyone drives my Blazer and doesn't treat the switch with gentleness, I thwack them in the side of the head. :surprise:
Well,I had to change the multifunction switch over 2 years ago. Did'nt have any rear lamps. The 17 dollar switch I was reffering to was just the key switch.Come to find out the ignition switch directly under the key switch is 99.00.So I cleaned and tested the ignition switch and it is fine. I put the column back together and drove it for about an hour and everything seemed fine.I think I'll put license back on it and drive it again. My 99 cavalier is ok to drive but, it ain't no Jimmy! Thanks again for your help and concern. You are a good man. TTYL
Cavalier, Blazer. Cavalier, Blazer....
C'mon, that's not even close!
warren caine 97 blazer
the initial(cold engine)start up,you crank the engine and it does not even try to
fire. When you release the key,that couple of seconds that the engine is still turning from the attempt to start, it fires. After several attempts it will finally start
on just those seconds that you release the key. After it starts(and it takes a while)
everything is fine no dash lamps that should not be on or anything. Then you can turn it off and it starts like a new one all day.Unless it sets for a few hours4-8or so.
I don't want to buy a 99.00 switch and it not rectify the problem. It is a 1997 JIMMY
4.3HO with the OBDII injection.Plenty of fuel pressure and shows no trouble codes
with my scanner or the Chevy dealership where my friend works. It runs smooth and no other problems.Your info is correct. Can you think of anything else it could be? I'm grasping for straws here. Thanks so much.
Well, I went to the library and printed out the schematics of the truck. Everything under the hood was fine, like the fusible links. Then I probed the #4 fuse going to the dash idiot lights and only had 220mVDC. So I checked the ignition switch. Probed it and had +12VDC at the main red wire but still only 220mVDC with the key on. Then I used a jumper wire and wa-la. It worked. So I find an ignition switch harness at OReilly's for $90.00. The thing is you need a special E4 torx socket to get the igntion switch out. I drive all over town and finally find one for $6.00.
I have another online source I am checking into. The guy above was having a very similar issue to yours. Someone else posted that if the vehicle can be started, gently move the key back and forth a small amount, and see if the engine shuts off, particularly when moving toward the "start" position. I will post more when I get an answer from these other guys.
I checked my sources and they are saying most likely ignition switch. I hate pointing at something without more definitive "proof" but they also state that for whatever reason, '97 was a bad year for ignition switches in these beasties.
Wish I could offer more suggestions, but that is all I can come up with.
I need to peel back my carpet to check the wiring that runs directly under the drivers feet.I don't expect to find anything wrong but,since I bought the Jimmy it had a small trans leak. One trans line is clean and has fluid dripping off of it. I can't get my hand up there to tighten the line up,so I may have to lower the trans just enough to tighten the line.I live in West Virginia and noticed the leak a few years ago in Daytona Beach Fla. Of course it has gotten worse over time. It looks like I may be able to acess the line from the top. If not,no harm no foul anyway.Of course if I lower the tranny a bit,I'll need to keep a good eye on the 4x4 switch and vacumn lines.I can do that from up top too. Maybe with a mirror but I think it'll be ok.
I still think it's in the ignition switch but these are things that need looking into anyway. I've been driving it around some and boy, like I said a Cavalier ain't no Jimmy! LOL Thanks for the input. I may check voltage to the negative side of the coil when I crank it vs. when the key is on or running. Thanks friend for your input. I'll let everyone know what I find.(and then put an ignition switch in it) LOL
how's your family?
it needed a good cleaning under there anyway. Why did'nt I know that from being under the vehicle before? Again, does the word senile come in there somewhere?
LOL. I was able to remove the crossmember and push the tranny over a few inches
and tighten the line. when you take the x-member out, the transfer case rests on a
non removeable x-member giving you an extra 3-4 inches. So that helped too. I put everything back together and guess what? The engine threw a rod through the side of the block! Just kidding.LOL. It started up fine every time I tried. It started up this morning cold and I started it a few more times.I did however tape up a couple places where it looked like wires were rubbing on the column and a plastic shield.who knowes?Everything is good right now.(knock on wood).I'll continue to drive it as much as I can(no tags)and see what happens.That's where we are at right now.I'll keep you posted. Thanks again friend!
Glad you found/fixed it. Of course, Murphy's law says wait till it rains and you're in your Sunday go to meeting clothes!
Filter bouncing and vibrating wollowing out the plastic line and in turn causing it to suck air? Now also the rear metal line rubbing against the x-member of course another hole in metal line this time. I found the exact same vehicle at a local
salvage yard. The owner gave me the lines and I cut off what I needed with a tubing cutter and attached them with compression couplings. Now all is well.I don't know why it started the other day.At least I knocked on wood(my head).First place to look huh? I going to sell it. I'm looking at the new Ford F-150 Raptor. It is a mean ride. Check it out. :mad:
Raptor will also be available with 500 Horses! And of course he will get one.My
wife said NO! So I guess I'll get a little red car. LOL Who wears the britchess
in my house? You're a nice fellow.It's been nice talking to you, and I hope we
will stay in touch. I hav'nt seen anymore problems come up but mine. Talk to you
later friend.
would be very very hard to diagnose. Other people should take note of this in case it may happen to them. I would not have guessed that the antanea ground would have caused your problem. I would have suggested a break in the circut insturment panel. I would have been wrong. Thank you for sharing the info with us. I will surely remember what you found for further referance.
The lighting circuit does go to the radio to give the dimming effect for the indicators. It also goes to the lights in the instrument cluster, but the turn signal indicators do not dim. Just sort of thinking out loud here, but all these lights should not be going through the antenna lead.
Looking at a schematic on a 98 and later model. Shows a grounding junction with several black wires, one of which goes to the lighting circuit of the instrument cluster, and another that goes to the *stock* radio connector. This may be where you are losing your groud connection, and by connecting the ground through the antenna you are feeding back a ground through the radio lighting ground to the instrument panel. You might just look around the radio, and just to the left of the steering column (if I am remembering locations correctly) and see if you find a damaged junction/splice connector with black wires in it.
A man can go crazy trying to track down the ground loops in a modern day auto electrical system! Good Luck!
When you first start the car, the ABS light should come on and a "buzz" should be heard from the ABS pump during this time. It is a diagnostic that runs every time you start the car. Don't mess around, get this one checked out.
rear brakes need adjusting. After you tighten your rear shoes, your problem will go away. It's an awful feeling when the brake pedal pulsates and that awful noise you
are hearing. If you follow my instructions, I am sure your problem will go away.
Try it and let us know what happens.
Where I live a rebuilt altinator is $150 bucks.If it is the altinator, get a new one at the parts store. It costs a little bit more but you won't have to take it back 3 or 4 times like I did with rebuilds. It's the way these GM vehicles have been since the mid 90's. Good luck and let us know if that did'nt cure your problem
Apparently the old power window lift motor was worn so bad that and was placing a small but continuous 5 or 10 ma drain (ground) on the battery even when the motor was not being used and the ignition key was turned off. After I replaced the power windlow lift motor and when I reattached the Beltran 800 ma Battery Minder to the battery terminals, the green full charge light is immediately lit, meaning the battery is at full charge every time I drive the car and turn the ignition key off. I can now leave the Battery Minder disconected for any length of time and when I reconnect it just to see what state of charge the battery is in, the green full charge light lights immediately, meaning the battery is maintaining a full charge while not in use amd does not need the Battery Minder to bring it up to full charge.
That is my story, and it may be your problem, too. I have heard of some people pulling accesoory fuses until they find the accessory or accessories that may be causing the the battery drain. Before you start pulling fuses, get a $25 multimeter and see if there is a parasitic battery drain while the engine is not running.
Apparently the old power window lift motor was worn so bad that it was placing a small but continuous drain (ground) on the battery even when the engine was not running and the accessory position of the ignition switch was not on. After I replaced the power windlow lift motor, I can reattached the Beltran 800 ma Battery Minder to the battery terminals and the green full charge light is immediately lit. That means the battery remains at full charge indefinately every time I drive my 1991 S10 Blazer 4x4 and turn the ignition key off. I can now leave the Battery Minder disconected for any length of time. When I reconnect the Battery Minder just to see what state of charge the battery is in, the green full charge light lights immediately, meaning the battery is maintaining a full charge while not in use amd does not need the Battery Minder to bring it up to full charge.
That is my story, and it may be your problem, too. I have heard of some vehicle owners pulling accesoory fuses until they find the accessory or accessories that may be causing the the battery drain. Before you start pulling fuses, get a $25 multimeter and see if there is a excessive parasitic battery drain while the engine is not running.
Testing for a Parasitic Drain
This article is about a vehicle with dual batteries but it's all the same.
If the car has power until you try to start it, and then all power is gone, double check all your connections to the battery and engine. Here again, a volt meter is invaluable. It will tell you if the battery still has power, but is not getting it to the vehicle, ie bad connection.
Good luck!
find the diagrams.I wonder how you went through so many related parts and you never mentioned having a blown fuse.In the diagram you will find the routing of the
wiper related wiring. Sometimes the wiring will go through other unrelated parts
other than the one you have problems with. I suggest you get the diagram and start from the fuse panel.Sorry I can't pinpoint the exact problem but I hope you may
use something I may have said to help you fix your problem. Good luck!
Thanks! :confuse:
of mine either. There is a big black box under the hood on the right side.It is your
PCM (powertrain control module) or computer is what some call it. On the firewall
behind the engine there are three relays.All three of these are for the airconditioner
unit.The box on top of the left (drivers side) fender is the anti lock braking system.
There are three relays behind the glove box. One is the fuel pump relay, one is
for the headlamps for high and low beam and daytime running lamps. The other I
can't remember just now. When you open the drivers door, on the side of the dash
is where the fuse box is located. There are two relays in there also.So, no you are
not an idiot.
bad experiance very simular to yours. After checking and letting the parts store check it, it was bad. When it started going bad, it would lose power and I had to
pull off at several rest areas because the lamps were getting dim and the doors locked by themselves and a couple other wierd things happend also.I would sit in the rain and finally get someone to jump me.When it started the guage would go up to normal as it rapidly charged the battery. It happened a couple more times that night. Altinator was the first thing I thought of.As I said it checked bad. I bought a reman altinator saving a great deal of money. It was good until the trip home from the hospital,same thing. I will also mention our 99 grandprix gt did the same thing only we could'nt get the windows to work at all.We were stuck inside
and I had put a reman on it too.Put a new(not remanufactured) one on both vehicles
and that's been a few years back.My sons 99 camaro he put four remans on it before he finnaly listened and went to new. I don't know if you went for reman or new but,new ones go bad sometimes too. It shorted out the battery in my Jimmy also.Had to get a new one. Check or have your altinater checked first
All that being said, your "new" alternator may be having issues. Cruising on the road in daylight hours with the fan on low, you are not putting much stress on the alternator at all.
By the way, that gas gauge problem you are seeing is a software issue with '99-'02 GM trucks. Instead of buffering the gas slosh in the tank with a baffle, the designers used software to "average" the signal coming from the sending unit to the BCM. Problem is, some code junkie only conditioned the signal when the vehicle is in drive, not reverse, or park. Want to see something cool? If you back out and the gauge drops and turns on the "low fuel" lamp, put the vehicle in drive and get moving up to about 20mph or so. Shift the tranny into neutral and put on the brakes. The fuel gauge will swing back up to the true reading. Before you stop, shift back to drive. This kicks the software back into "averaging" mode and the gauge will behave normally.
You don't want to know how long it took me to figure out what was causing this!
Like clockwork after 30 minutes, the abs will kick in under light pressure and the abs light will come on and stay on. After turning off the car for while it turns off then will repeat.
Both the wheel hubs and sensors are new, the rear one is not but I cleaned them all just to double check. Did not see any issues with worn wires. The problem started months after I replaced the wheel hubs.
I have only had the blazer since the spring and would notice the pedal would chatter a little when backing down my drive way which is a slight incline. Thought it was due to rear wheel bearings which I have not attempted to replace yet.
Looking online found you can get the module rebuilt. Before I attempt to take this out was looking for other options.
the drum. not drag or hold back. Bleed the entire brake system starting with the
right rear (farest away) and work your way up to finish at left front. Try it then and see what you have. It should be ok. If not bleed the module. I do not know where you start there or the exact procedure. I may have it in some of my manuals but,
you probably have one or have access to one. I know when your rear shoes need
replaced or tightened That brake pedal and the noise the antilock module makes
sounds like the blazer's falling apart. It's funny to me when mine has done it over
the years.You don't need rear wheel bearings unless you see dark moist thick
oil caked on the inside of the rear wheels.When a bearing goes out the seals
warn you first.Just try the rear shoe adjusting and bleeding first and you will be
surprised. That antilock brake system GM came out with is a joke.Every GM
vehicle with that system should be recalled for a less complicated normal system.
Sorry I said it's funny to me but I know how you feel. Good luck pal.
Does it matter if I have disc brakes vs drum brakes? I hate the aluminum calipers, stripped the bleeder on the first set just putting them on.
Did your blazer do it after driving for almost the same amount of time?
Thanks for the tip on the rear wheel bearings, back end sounded a little loud to me. The seals are definitely not leaking. Guess I am paranoid after finding out the first cause of a loud ride was the u-joints.
the piston in the caliper goes further and further out with no slack between the piston and brake pad. I like aluminum calipers on motorcycles and ATV;s but on
a vehicle like ours,no way. I suggest you quickly crack the bleeders and close them
immediatly(to see if they are going to loosen or strip)Now comes the fun.Bleed the system from rear to front. Oh yea, if your calipers are corroded,the piston may stick
and the pads will chatter if they are just lying there unassisted and there goes your light and antilock noise.Check the calipers repair or replace as needed. Bleed the
heck out of your brakes starting at the farthest away working forward.Your last one
should be left(drivers side) front.I think you'll find this to work.If not,have your under
hood antilock module checked.It has a printed curcuit board that can easily be replaced too.I would leave that one to someone else after getting bleeding instructions first. Good luck.P.S.Wanna buy a used Jimmy? LOL.I feel you'll get
it this time around. Good luck pal.
I just popped the abs module out and unfortunately it is a Hayes 310 which according to a couple sites it cannot be rebuilt
It is a 1999 Chevy Blazer
Both Wheel hubs with sensors new, calipers, rotors, and pads all the way around, master cylinder. The abs modulator is a Hayes 310, cannot be refurbished, no idea if it is good or not. I believe the brakes are properly bled. I also checked the wheel sensor connections to see if loose or dirty. I was only able to test the resistance which was 1 ohm each. I know there is a 3rd sensor on the drivetrain but have no idea if it is good.
Before I drop $100 on an ABS Diagnostic tool, any other ideas?
If it's a RWAL system,the control unit(brain) is mounted at a different place but still easy to access. The wheel speed sensors and brake light switch sends info to thecontrol unit to monitor hydraulic line pressure to avoid wheel lockk up.It also constantly monitors the system to find faults in the system.When something goes wrong in the system, the"BRAKE" or :ANTILOCK" light will come on.A code will then be stored. The code reveals the problem.Now, getting the code of course requires a special scan tool. Some of the newer scanners will give abs trouble codes too If not you have to use one made for the abs system only. After getting the code(s) you'll have to use the tool to erase the code(s).That's the only way.Check all wireing connections,If you have different size tires and wheels other than factory,It WILL cause the Light to go on also.There can't be a 10 percent variance in
speed sensors and tire size.That can be recallibrated with a scan tool.I don't know what is making your light(s) come on and without a scan tool, you may never know
I was just shareing some info I knew about the system hoping it may help. Good luck sir,