is this normal?

[Pyromidion]

so I posted like 6-7 weeks ago about a clunking sound in the back of my truck, and you all suggested the u-joints...turns out it was the rear differential. anyway, it got really clunky to the point where i didnt want to drive it anymore, so i started biking and taking public transit. This was 4 weeks ago. The truck has been sitting on my curb for this time waiting to be fixed.

The whole thing was really shaky and spewing some smelly (but not black...) exhaust. I concluded that the shakiness was from a low idle, and gave it a lil gas, but after i released the gas, it stalled out. The check engine light is on the whole time. I let it run for like a minute or two.

Basically, is this normal to happen to a car that has been sitting for a month? It has had no history of a bad engine, and its just been sitting there...does it just need to be "warmed up" moreso than normal?

if anybody needs to know, its a 1991 suburban v1500 V8 5.7L engine 4x4

-John

 

[Pacfanweb]

Let a car that old sit for awhile and anything is liable to happen next time you run it.

I wouldn't say what happened is "normal", but I can't say it surprises me, either.

So what happened...did you just shut it off and come post here, or did you let it warm up and it started running okay?

 

[Wolfie]

Almost sounds like there may have been some moisture in the cap and rotor that would cause it to missfire. Wich would cause the shaking, and also the stalling at idle. I had a car do this once and I had taken the cap off and there was moisture in the cap. I dried it off and it was good as new. I would find out what the Check Engine Light is and go from there. If it had something to do with a missfire, I would start looking at the cap to see if moisture had gotten into the cap somehow. Double check to make sure that all the wires are connected, and not fryed since animals love chewing on wires. If everything there seems to be ok, take the air cleaner off and check to make sure that there wasn't a mouse nest in the intake. Animals love making nests in the air cleaners of cars/trucks.

Good luck and it would be interesting to find out what caused it.

 

[Pyromidion]

Though I am no master at vehicles I will have a look for missing wires and check the filters. I'm convinced that the shaking is from the really low idle (dont have a tach, so i can't tell really) because it goes away when i push the gas a little bit. Only problem is if i let off the gas, or push too hard, it chokes out and stalls. (this is day three, and each day I go out and run it for a minute or two, same problems)

-John

EDIT:

so I found nothing in the air filter that would be a problem. I then went to the cap. I knew there would be trouble so i numbered each plug coming from it. unfortunately in my struggles they wiped off (only used a chalk pencil thingy). Its now worse than it was before (so i believe i put them on wrong). oops Does anyone have a diagram as to the proper order of those things?

 

[Wolfie]

1-8-4-3-6-5-7-2 and if you dont know what cyl is what it goes like this 1,3,5,&7 are on the right side of the eng when facing the rear of vehicle & 2,4,6,&8 are on the left and if you need to know which prong on dist cap to start on you get #1 cyl @ top dead ctr and then remove dist cap and which ever prong the rotor button is on is the starting point and then go clockwise in order. If you don't know what TDC is, it is Top Dead Center. Crank over the engine by hand (I would disconect the batt first) using a wrench. On the top of the crank pully (big one out front) there should be some marks. If you lined up the marks to the 0 mark. That should be top dead center for cylinder #1. btw, do NOT touch the nut on the distributor that locks it down on the motor. Going Clockwise, and following the firing order, make sure that they are in order. You should almost be able to remove the cap with all the wires on the cap. There should just be two screw looking things on each side of the cap. Push down and turn one quarter turn to the left or right and the cap should come off.

Hope this helps.

 

[Lithium381]

Well, we tried drying out the cap/rotor and replaced the sparkplug wires, but we're still back at square one.....

 

[Pyromidion]

I got the cap plugs back on, so its at least firing in the right order, but we're back where we started.

A friend of mine suggested that we check out the diagnostic code from the engine. I'm told that the 12 is a "hello" code, and after three of those it would get to the error. It kept saying "hello" until i shut it off. The fact that it knows theres a problem, but is unwilling to tell me is another thing that baffles me.
-John