JennaBear
Sponsor
Drove it to the beach
What did you do to your truck today?
- Thread starter Zembonez
- Start date
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nubuilder
Why buy new when you can restore?
Oh geese, that must have been tough. It's a miracle you made it...not to mention how terrible blowing sand can be to paint!
JennaBear
Sponsor
The tough part is the 3 mile walk I do when I get there 
B
Bernie
Guest
Drove the truck about 320 miles today, round-trip from my house in Fredericksburg, VA to the Naval Postgraduate School in Shepherdstown, WV so I could visit with my wife. (She's a student there for 2 weeks every 3 months, working on her master's in Homeland Security)
Had a little problem on the way home though... I ran out of fuel about 30 miles from the house. With a 3/4 full rear tank.
There's been problems with the fuel gauge on this truck since I bought it. If I fill both tanks the gauge will pin itself about a 1/4 inch beyond the "F" mark, and it takes about 140 miles before it actually rests on full, so it's reading about a 1/4 tank fuller than it really is most of the time. By the time it drops to a half tank it sorta "adjusts" itself, and I've had it below 1/4 a few times with no problems. And, the gauge will also sometimes just drop straight to "E", usually when both tanks are topped full. I always figured this was simply because the floats were improperly adjusted, and when it was really full the floats went up too high and didn't make contact, resulting in a "E" reading. Not really a problem that needed immediate attention because I rely more on the trip odometer as to when to fill up. I know I can get 400 miles easy on two full tanks.
So, today I filled up before I left and didn't think anything of it when the gauge went full scale, then dropped to "E" a little while later. I knew I had more than enough fuel to get there and back, with plenty to spare. I was surprised though when I started it to begin the return trip, to see the gauge still on "E". I should have burned off more than enough fuel going up for the floats to drop down and the gauge to start reading again. But, again, I knew I had plenty of fuel so I didn't worry about it.
About 35 miles from home though, with the gauge still on "E", the truck started missing and then cut out completely. Luckily I was able to coast into a gas station and get it off the road, even though the station was closed. I knew, from the way it acted, that it was a fuel problem. I'd had a problem last winter with the driver module for the injector pump cutting out, and these were the same symptoms. At that point I figured it was that same problem, which was weird, because I'd replaced that module with a better one, mounted on a massive heat sink, which should have eliminated any possibility of failure.
Getting under the hood I was able to hear both pumps come on when the key was turned though, so that eliminated the pumps and the module. My next thought was that it was a clogged filter. I'd changed in last fall and the old one turned out to be the factory original (11 years old!) and black as tar, so I cracked open the purge valve to see if I had fuel with the pump on. When all I got was a little sputter of fuel and air I went ahead and pulled the filter to check it. Oopps! The damn filter bowl was almost dry, and the filter itself was nice and clean, with no obstructions. Obviously the lift pump was trying to pump from an empty tank... shit.
On these GMC's there's a computer controlled valve that feeds fuel from whichever tank is fuller, then switches to the other tank when the first drops a certain amount below the second. Because the gauge was reading "E" I figured the module wasn't switching over, and one tank was simply sucked dry. I crawled underneath with a tire club and banged on both tanks and, sure enough, the rear was sounding full and the front was mostly empty.
No matter what I did though, that gauge wouldn't come back up, so I tried cranking it a few times in the hopes there was enough left in the tank to get me a little further down the road. On the fifth try the gauge suddenly sprang up to just below 1/2 and then the truck started. Great! I'll just drive it down the road a bit and fill up at the next open station.
I made it a whole 1/2 mile before the gauge dropped to "E" again and the engine cut off. I was doing 55 at the time, downhill, so I just popped it into neutral and coasted while I tried to get it to restart. When it finally rolled to a stop on the shoulder I was, by some happy chance of fate or karma, directly across the highway from a 24hr truck stop with diesel. And, I even had a 5 gallon can in the truck. I figured all I had to do was get the can, walk across the road, fill it with diesel, put it in the front tank, get the truck started again and drive over to the station to fill up.
Except for the four lanes of heavy traffic I'd have to cross. At night. Lugging a 5 gallon can of diesel. With a fwonking huge and deep ditch between the two sides of the highway.
Okay, time for a backup plan... Siphon some diesel out of the almost full rear tank, into the can, then pour it into the front tank. No problem! I had the can, and I had a siphon hose in the truck. Correction... I did have a siphon hose in the truck... until I needed it in the garage last winter to siphon kerosene into my garage heater. It was still hanging up in the garage, where I'd hung it to dry after filling the heater in February. Fwonk me...
Okay, time for plan #3... What hose can I take off the truck and use to siphon, then put back on? None... It's a fwonking diesel, with hydroboost, so there's no fwonking vacuum lines I can scavange, the hose for the windshield washers is too short, and I can't find any other line or hose I can remove and use. Damnit!
Okay, on to plan #4... try and get the attention of someone in the truck stop and get them to bring me some diesel or a hose. You'd think that with all the lights and radios on my truck, and me wearing a fwonking safety vest that even has electroluminescent glow strips on it that getting the attention of someone 100 feet away would be simple. Yeah... right.
No response on the CB, no response to me standing next to the truck waving my arms with every fwonking light on the truck flashing, and the only guy I could reach on the ham radio was in a different fwonking state. Sigh... Oh, and no signal on my cell phone either, so I couldn't even call AAA... not that that would have helped, because while they will bring you fuel if you need it, the only fuel they'll bring is gasoline, not fwonking diesel.
Okay, time for plan #5... crank & pray.
Plan #5 actually fwonking worked! The gauge came up, the engine started and I wasted no time at all getting the truck off the shoulder (fwonk the 18 wheeler coming at me doing 65 - I had every light on the truck going and they could have seen me from the fwonking space shuttle, so he could just back it the fwonk down a bit and let me get over to the left lane and pull a U-turn through the "Authorized Vehicles Only" turn a 1/4 mile up the road, which he did and then I did)
15 minutes later, and $70 poorer, the front tank had 18 gallons added to it (19 gallon tank) and the rear had 5 gallons added (21 gallon tank) and the gauge was sitting pegged 1/4" past "F"... where it stayed for the rest of the drive home.
I don't know what it is about that section of road (state highway 17) that my GMC doesn't like, but this is the third time I've driven that section, and the first time I did it my brand new alternator died in almost the exact same spot, so that's two times out of three that I had truck problems there. Next time maybe I'll take a different route.
And first thing tomorrow I'm going to fix that damn gauge problem.
Had a little problem on the way home though... I ran out of fuel about 30 miles from the house. With a 3/4 full rear tank.
There's been problems with the fuel gauge on this truck since I bought it. If I fill both tanks the gauge will pin itself about a 1/4 inch beyond the "F" mark, and it takes about 140 miles before it actually rests on full, so it's reading about a 1/4 tank fuller than it really is most of the time. By the time it drops to a half tank it sorta "adjusts" itself, and I've had it below 1/4 a few times with no problems. And, the gauge will also sometimes just drop straight to "E", usually when both tanks are topped full. I always figured this was simply because the floats were improperly adjusted, and when it was really full the floats went up too high and didn't make contact, resulting in a "E" reading. Not really a problem that needed immediate attention because I rely more on the trip odometer as to when to fill up. I know I can get 400 miles easy on two full tanks.
So, today I filled up before I left and didn't think anything of it when the gauge went full scale, then dropped to "E" a little while later. I knew I had more than enough fuel to get there and back, with plenty to spare. I was surprised though when I started it to begin the return trip, to see the gauge still on "E". I should have burned off more than enough fuel going up for the floats to drop down and the gauge to start reading again. But, again, I knew I had plenty of fuel so I didn't worry about it.
About 35 miles from home though, with the gauge still on "E", the truck started missing and then cut out completely. Luckily I was able to coast into a gas station and get it off the road, even though the station was closed. I knew, from the way it acted, that it was a fuel problem. I'd had a problem last winter with the driver module for the injector pump cutting out, and these were the same symptoms. At that point I figured it was that same problem, which was weird, because I'd replaced that module with a better one, mounted on a massive heat sink, which should have eliminated any possibility of failure.
Getting under the hood I was able to hear both pumps come on when the key was turned though, so that eliminated the pumps and the module. My next thought was that it was a clogged filter. I'd changed in last fall and the old one turned out to be the factory original (11 years old!) and black as tar, so I cracked open the purge valve to see if I had fuel with the pump on. When all I got was a little sputter of fuel and air I went ahead and pulled the filter to check it. Oopps! The damn filter bowl was almost dry, and the filter itself was nice and clean, with no obstructions. Obviously the lift pump was trying to pump from an empty tank... shit.
On these GMC's there's a computer controlled valve that feeds fuel from whichever tank is fuller, then switches to the other tank when the first drops a certain amount below the second. Because the gauge was reading "E" I figured the module wasn't switching over, and one tank was simply sucked dry. I crawled underneath with a tire club and banged on both tanks and, sure enough, the rear was sounding full and the front was mostly empty.
No matter what I did though, that gauge wouldn't come back up, so I tried cranking it a few times in the hopes there was enough left in the tank to get me a little further down the road. On the fifth try the gauge suddenly sprang up to just below 1/2 and then the truck started. Great! I'll just drive it down the road a bit and fill up at the next open station.
I made it a whole 1/2 mile before the gauge dropped to "E" again and the engine cut off. I was doing 55 at the time, downhill, so I just popped it into neutral and coasted while I tried to get it to restart. When it finally rolled to a stop on the shoulder I was, by some happy chance of fate or karma, directly across the highway from a 24hr truck stop with diesel. And, I even had a 5 gallon can in the truck. I figured all I had to do was get the can, walk across the road, fill it with diesel, put it in the front tank, get the truck started again and drive over to the station to fill up.
Except for the four lanes of heavy traffic I'd have to cross. At night. Lugging a 5 gallon can of diesel. With a fwonking huge and deep ditch between the two sides of the highway.
Okay, time for a backup plan... Siphon some diesel out of the almost full rear tank, into the can, then pour it into the front tank. No problem! I had the can, and I had a siphon hose in the truck. Correction... I did have a siphon hose in the truck... until I needed it in the garage last winter to siphon kerosene into my garage heater. It was still hanging up in the garage, where I'd hung it to dry after filling the heater in February. Fwonk me...
Okay, time for plan #3... What hose can I take off the truck and use to siphon, then put back on? None... It's a fwonking diesel, with hydroboost, so there's no fwonking vacuum lines I can scavange, the hose for the windshield washers is too short, and I can't find any other line or hose I can remove and use. Damnit!
Okay, on to plan #4... try and get the attention of someone in the truck stop and get them to bring me some diesel or a hose. You'd think that with all the lights and radios on my truck, and me wearing a fwonking safety vest that even has electroluminescent glow strips on it that getting the attention of someone 100 feet away would be simple. Yeah... right.
No response on the CB, no response to me standing next to the truck waving my arms with every fwonking light on the truck flashing, and the only guy I could reach on the ham radio was in a different fwonking state. Sigh... Oh, and no signal on my cell phone either, so I couldn't even call AAA... not that that would have helped, because while they will bring you fuel if you need it, the only fuel they'll bring is gasoline, not fwonking diesel.
Okay, time for plan #5... crank & pray.
Plan #5 actually fwonking worked! The gauge came up, the engine started and I wasted no time at all getting the truck off the shoulder (fwonk the 18 wheeler coming at me doing 65 - I had every light on the truck going and they could have seen me from the fwonking space shuttle, so he could just back it the fwonk down a bit and let me get over to the left lane and pull a U-turn through the "Authorized Vehicles Only" turn a 1/4 mile up the road, which he did and then I did)
15 minutes later, and $70 poorer, the front tank had 18 gallons added to it (19 gallon tank) and the rear had 5 gallons added (21 gallon tank) and the gauge was sitting pegged 1/4" past "F"... where it stayed for the rest of the drive home.
I don't know what it is about that section of road (state highway 17) that my GMC doesn't like, but this is the third time I've driven that section, and the first time I did it my brand new alternator died in almost the exact same spot, so that's two times out of three that I had truck problems there. Next time maybe I'll take a different route.
And first thing tomorrow I'm going to fix that damn gauge problem.
agjake11
Oral the Coal
Drove it to autozone and HEB and replaced the fuse i blew for my power windows in my fuzeblock FZ-1 when i got there since it blew on the way
B
Bernie
Guest
Drove it to autozone and HEB and replaced the fuse i blew for my power windows in my fuzeblock FZ-1 when i got there since it blew on the way
You might want to check the window tracks for any obstruction or binding if it blows again.
agjake11
Oral the Coal
Drove it to autozone and HEB and replaced the fuse i blew for my power windows in my fuzeblock FZ-1 when i got there since it blew on the way
You might want to check the window tracks for any obstruction or binding if it blows again.
thanks man. my passenger on is binding actually. it got glue up at the top when i had the old tint stripped and i fixed it so the new stuff could be put on but now its stuck again. its partially the design of the tracks along with i added aftermarket power to the stock manual ones. its just too hot to open it up and fix it yet. though it did happen when rolling the driver side up which hasnt ever given me any problems
B
Bernie
Guest
Drove it to autozone and HEB and replaced the fuse i blew for my power windows in my fuzeblock FZ-1 when i got there since it blew on the way
You might want to check the window tracks for any obstruction or binding if it blows again.
thanks man. my passenger on is binding actually. it got glue up at the top when i had the old tint stripped and i fixed it so the new stuff could be put on but now its stuck again. its partially the design of the tracks along with i added aftermarket power to the stock manual ones. its just too hot to open it up and fix it yet. though it did happen when rolling the driver side up which hasnt ever given me any problems
Could be that the binding on the passenger side has been slowly weakening the fuse (partial melt) until it was ready to "go" with even a normal load on it. Or, since they're aftermarket power units added to manual windows, something in the harness could have worn through and touched ground.
How'd the fuse look? Was it completely cooked (black or otherwise "wiped out" or did it look like it just sorta melted a little bit? If it just sorta melted a tiny bit, it's probably the binding. If it blew "hard" it's a short somewhere.
CT99XJ
The Jeep guy.
bought custom built upper control arms with Rubicon Express superflex joints.
for 60 bucks.
for 60 bucks.
OldCracker29
I've been knocked down drug out and left for dead
I'm going to spend a bit of time behind the wheel of it today.
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