I have a K1500 Suburban with a 5.7L engine that wont start. It has a battery that is less than six months old. The plugs and wires were changed in May. The starter was changed today, thinking it would fix the problem. Here is what is going on:

-I turn on the ignition, the engine turns over but does not start.
-I turn off the ignition, it diesels a little bit.
-I try again and the battery drains and the relay begins to click.

The battery drain is a big concern....I checked all grounds visually, I also checked all fuses and the spark plug wires as well to see if there was any bad insulation. If I were to get a code reader would that help pinpoint where the problem is? I dont currently have a meter but will find a way to get one. The strange part about the whole thing is that it worked last saturday but when we started on Monday, there was nothing. Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

Welcome to the forum.

Most auto part stores will check alternator and battery in the vehicle for free. Also will scan for DTCs. Is the check engine lite on?

Sounds like the battery is either not fully charged or is bad. I had a new battery go bad in a week.

 

Thank you very much for the advice. I will see if that is the problem.

 

I apologize in advance for any mistakes I may make as I am new to the whole forum concept. I have an issue that has perplexed me for three days now. Hopefully some of you Chevy Gods can aid me is resolving this issue. Below I have listed the specifications of the vehicle, then the issue, then what I have done to attempt to correct the issue with no avail.

1999 Chevrolet K1500 4X4 5.7 Vortec
270,000k miles
Engine rebuilt 70k ago
Trans Rebuilt 40K ago
Purchased used 1 month ago from original owner who provided above rebuilds via reputable shop with receipts

Vehicle ran flawlessly from time of rebuild to time of sale to myself. Vehicle began to hard start in the cold mornings only as autumn set in. During the warmer days, no issue. Vehicle would turn but not start. Aided start with starting fluid. After fluid successfully started vehicle, it started perfectly for the rest of the day without the need of fluid. This occurred for 3 days then took it to the shop. No check engine light, no error codes.

Shop diagnosed the diaphragm for the fuel pressure regulator malfunctioning/stuck open and low fuel pressure (50psi) at Schrader valve.

I replaced the entire spider injector module with the never conversion spider injector module and plenum gaskets.

Vehicle ran and started fine for 24 hours. While driving two days after spider replacement vehicle died. Towed to home. No fuel pressure. Replaced fuel pump. I have fuel pressure, good fuel pump relay, good fuses, good voltage at pump, compression, and spark. Vehicle will not start unless I squirt it with fluid. After starting it runs for 5 seconds and dies.

For good measure replaced Crankshaft Position Sensor. No avail.

In summary, 5.7 Vortec will not start. Fuel, air, compression, spark all there in specified quantities. New spider, new fuel pump, new Crank Shaft Position Sensor. Whats next?

 

I completed a full charge on the battery and was able to get more start attempts out of it.

I am going to buy a multimeter tomorrow and begin the process of elimination for the lack of spark.

Ignition Coil (anyone know the proper resistance reading?)
All associated relays
Bonding Wires
Ignition Module

My dad mentioned that he had some sort of device located within the distributor cap itself go bad on him one time, but he couldn't remember the name...anyone know what he's referring to?

Anything else I should check?

 

The check engine light is a tricky one to answer, I can't tell if it is on because the engine isn't started yet or not. I just can't remember what it did before the issue started. Besides, the Auto Parts place won't let me take the reader out of the parking lot, and I just don't have the budget right now to buy my own.

 

Ok, I got a multimeter and went through the entire ignition system and found that my Distributor was not sending the spark out to the cylinders. I replaced the rotor and cap and I have spark again. BUT...now it seems I have a slight timing issue, it runs rough and I have a code for a misfire on #1 Cylinder.