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87 V20 350 TBI will not start

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Old March 11th, 2013, 9:41 PM
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Default 87 V20 350 TBI will not start

I now you guys have seen this a million times but I need help. I have replaced the fuel pump, filter, TPS, Coil, distributor, ignition module 4 times, starter, alternator, oil pressure sending unit, and the ECM in hopes of getting this thing running again.

The truck cranks over but will not start. The fuel pump relays are good the fuel pumps are getting power when the key is turnned on but the pumps are not powering up. Everything mentioned above has been replaced in the last week. I am about ready to ditch this TBI for an intake and carb set up.

I can drop the tanks and pull the fuel pumps out and hook them directly to the battery and they work fine. I am stumped as to what is causing this problem. I used to have to red dummy lights come on when the ignition was turned on but now I only have one come on. not sure if that means anything or not.

When I first started having problems a week ago i would replace one part at a time and the truck would run again for a day or so then shut down and not start again. Friday I was driving it home and the truck died and wouldnt start again. I let it sit for about an hour and i could hear the fuel pump come on so I started it and tried to limp it the rest of the way home. It died again shortly after and would not start again after that.

Sorry for the long post just want to give you guys as much info as I can. I am seriously thinking this is a bad ground or something. Nothing I do helps it at all. I have checked all fuses and relays and everything is good to go.

I also found this switch under the dash have two broken wires on it. I can't for the life of me figure out what it is for. Thanks for the help everyone I really appreciate it.

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Old March 16th, 2013, 4:50 AM
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Of everyone in here Noone can give me any ideas of where to start. Common guys I need help on this thing.

Can someone at least tell me if I change to a carb setup will my cam still work with an HEI distributor.
Old March 16th, 2013, 6:32 AM
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No codes? One thing you have not mentioned checking is the fuel injectors. Make sure they're operating with a noid light. If that is operating, make sure the injectors are actually spraying fuel into the TBI.
Old March 16th, 2013, 10:09 AM
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with what you are describing, I still couldn't rule out the fuel pump. verify pressure at the back of the tbi if possible, then check out down the throttle body while cranking and see if you see fuel gathering at all.

sorry man it takes awhile to get to threads sometimes. It strikes me odd that you've replaced various other parts related to ignition and it's come back to life.

are you sure it's getting spark? this may be a dumb question but you did change the rotor bug didn't you? it's the only thing coming to mind that would be a intermittent thing like that.
Old March 18th, 2013, 7:03 AM
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Yes the whole distributor was replaced. I went out yesterday and fired the truck up by priming it with fuel down the TBI. Now it leads me to believe the new fuel pump is bad now. So today when I get off work I will be pulling the tank in order to check the pump. Hopefully I will have it running today I miss my truck.
Old March 18th, 2013, 4:08 PM
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Still not sure what the switch is under the column is that has the broken wires but my truck is running again. Turns out it was the fuel pump. Brand new 3 weeks ago and is garbage today g figure. I would take it out and hot wire it to the battery and it would work but once back inside the tank No Joy. Oh well chalk one up to learning. Just a tip for everyone out there. If you have the same problem I do don't throw a bunch of money at the damn thing be precise and thorough in your trouble shooting and you will figure it out.

I just wrapped up almost 900 dollars worth of parts on this thing trying to figure this out. But in my situation I think is was a combination of 3 or 4 different things wreaking havoc on the entire system. Hope this helps someone in the future. Thanks for the tips guys.
Old March 19th, 2013, 3:37 PM
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Also I can't exactly make out what you've got pictured there. might be a switch for the no crank til you clutch safety or maybe cruise kill, hard to say those are just the options that pop to mind. I don't recall ever seeing the your trucks specs.

I got good at pulling the bed off my truck. I straddled a culvert and dented in the bottom of the tank and killed the fuel pump, took out the original fuel pump and got a replacement that didn't end up working longer than 3 days.

I did a similar thing when the ignition module went out, replacing everything but the module before I found it at fault. lol

Last edited by hicksvilleshick; March 19th, 2013 at 3:40 PM.
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