Hi all, first post here. Glad to be on board.

I'm looking at a '98 K3500 Crew DRW with a 454 and automatice tranny. Drove the truck Friday after talking to the owner on Thursday. He had told me that it was slow to start, as in turned over quite a few times but never failed to start. And it did that when I started it, turned over for probably 3-5 seconds before starting. Then when going down the road, it sort of cuts-out, especially when going up a rise, maybe starving for fuel.

I talked to the guy's son when I took it back and he said they pulled the fuel filter when he bought it and it was full of sludge, then had replaced it a few times since to cure these issues. Truck only had 95k miles on it.

My initial immediate thought was fuel pump, as I've seen the starting issues before. After some reading, it looks like it could be a pressure regulator as well.

I'm looking at cost to repair before I make an offer. Do ya'll have any ideas on the problem and repairs? I'd appreciate any thoughts as to the cause(s).

Thanks,

David Walker
Fort Payne, AL

 

my guess is: if the fuel filter was full of crap then the fuel lines and injectors are full of it too, so I would start with a complete fuel system treatment!!! IMO

 

^Do you work for jiffy lube?


Yes the lines and the injectors have s@@@ in them and it should be cleaned but the root problem should be fixed first or it will just happen again. What kind of trash is in the filters? If its rust or dirt check the tank\s. If its metal the pump is gone. If its water/alge try a few tanks from a different gas station. The fuel system treatments that they sell at the oil change shops is a waste of money what ever they "fix" will just come back if the root problem is not fixed.

 

I don't own the truck yet, but am considering buying it. I'm trying to estimate cost to repair this problem before I make an offer on it. Looks like a new tank can be had for about $150 shipped, new pump kit $250-$350, regulator around $60 or so. So if I did the work myself I'm looking at $600 to replace all of the above. Add a filter and incidentals and call it $650 on the outside.

That sound reasonable to ya'll? I'm thinking, since I'm already there, and it's a 13 year old truck, for the money, I'll go ahead and replace the tank. Drop the old, get the tag codes on the pump, then order and replace the whole package, and eliminate that issue all together hopefully.

David

 

Hey, dude im new to this. im try to find out how to play a post on here. I have a couple of questions for my 06 trial blazer. any help you can give me. thanks.

 

Hey, dude im new to this. im try to find out how to play a post on here. I have a couple of questions for my 06 trial blazer. any help you can give me. thanks

 

how much are you buying it for? Id say thats a crucial bit of info we'd need in order to advise you on this transaction.

 

I looked up comparative prices on the internet. I found the average price for a 98 k3500 was somewhere between 5-10K depending on condition and mileage. the average was about 100-120K miles. I used automedia's used car finder but ebay works fine too.

 

Leswho,

Feel free to send me a message with your questions.

Thank you

Elizabeth, Chevrolet Customer Service

 

The asking price is $6500. It's a Silverado, cloth, all power, auto tranny, dually, 4x4, 95k miles. Has good tires (60-75%), cab exterior is in decent shape, couple small dings, nothing major. Bed is a touch rough, scratched most not through the paint. Right rear fender bubble is cracked, but not through. Looks like it slid sideways and bumped a tree maybe.

It's got a slow start problem, then when cruising at, probably, 45-50 when you start up a hill or something it starts to miss likes it may not be getting fuel. Could be a bad plug, wire cap or button, but based on what the son told me about the fuel filter, I'm guessing pump or regulator. Otherwise it runs and shifts fine. All else seems to be on par.

Anyway, I'm thinking about offering around $5700 or so and see what happens. $6500 without the start/hesitation problem would be fair, but I have to be able to fix that issue.

David