Question for you motor heads..
 

I have a 1997 chevy 1500 ext cab p/u. Everytime it rains my truck spits and sputters. Well this morning with the 6+" of rain we had here, I hit a purty good sized puddle and my truck is almost wanting to die. I have to keep feathering the throttle to get the truck to go. I tried to "floor-it" and it doesnt respond. *** is the problem ? Thank god i was 1/4 mile from work. Also when I stop and put it in park, it idles fine for a few seconds, then cuts off....

jordan change the dist cap and the rotor when they get wet they crack i worked for gm for 15 years before i got in the fire service and saw that often

you might change your plugs and wires while you are at it if its been 35000-45000 miles since you did it last

Exactly what I thought. While you're in there go ahead and do your plugs and wires. If your plug wires are old, the soft rubber caps that cover the plugs and the dist. cap will crack as well. This can cause you to have loss of fire or arcing especially in high humidity situations.

Bingo!

price ?? anyone know of a price this would cost me... is it hard to do ? Do i need any special tools ? Im a DIY kinda guy, just need to be steered in the right direction...

jordan check this out my 11 year old son said riding in a chevy that runs bad still better then owning a ford

amen callmaker... i'd rather push a chevy than sit in a ford !!

Not hard, really and you will only need basic tools. Call Oreilly's or Auto Zone and they will be able to give you an exact price.

I had the same problem before, it was the distributor and rotor. Changed them and had no problem after that.


Warren

jordan what ever you do do not cross them wires when you chang that cap or them plugs change the plugs one at a time so you don`t cross the wires and when you change the cap mark the wires so you put them in the same place on the new cap

You can also look at or buy the repair manuals they sell in Autozone or Oreilly that tell you step buy step how to repair anything on your truck...

hell jordan drive that thing to jennings and i will change it for you

it wont make it there johnny... that thing barely made it into the parking lot and it supposed to be raining all day.... damn the luck !!!

well if thats the case i say change the cap and rotor fist the rest can wait i bet you a wood duck hunt its the cap and rotor

Callmaker I was going to bet him a fishing trip that it was the distrib cap & rotor, but I've seen pictures of his fishing trips!:shaking:

well lets hope he hunts better then he can fish.

ya'll are sad lol

c'mon man.... jesus !!! i've had a few good trips... im no "W"

If you were w i would have told you to change the oil dip stick and brake pads to make it run right

http://www.saltycajun.com/forum/show...ghlight=jordan <<<<< GOOD TRIP ???

Good thing we like ya, If we didn't it would be hell!

Well you want to take the bet or not

lol.... i hear ya.. thanks ya'll for the help. When i get a brake, i'll go out and let the truck run for a while.

your probably right call maker... i've already invited u to hunt with me... all on me... just drive to deridder and i'll have u a limit and i'll even let you take my ducks home as a gift.. ??

Hey jordan if you still have proplems after you change the cap and rotor call me you have the number but that should do it for you

Jordan. I gots you a new boat. You don''t have to worry about any water getting on the spark plugs.

do i have to get the whole distributor ? like the shaft all the way up to where the rotor is at ? Im new to this type of electrical crap...

roll out.... i need trim tabs tho !!

Jordan just the cap and rotor not the dist its self should not be more the lets say 60.00 are less get a good cap and rotor also look under old cap for a crack or moisture

so just the cap and the rotor ... ok got it and new plugs and wires?? so $100+/- ??

ugh, this freakin sucks

Jordon try the cap and rotor then get the plugs and wires later so you don`t spend a lot at one time the cap and rotor will fix it then do the plugs and wires

i got $$$... not much, but enough... my truck makes my money for me... it gets me back and forth from work... 41 miles a day...

I hear ya just know how hard it is to come by now days

Drive into a garage or shop, pop the hood and turn out the lights.
If the wires are bad, or you don't have a spark plug boot on good, you will see some arcing. That is where the problem is.
If not, the wires are prolly in good shape. You will need to get a new cap and rotor.
I would check it out before buying something you don't need.

but it prolly wont make it home.

I think we all agree........cap on the rotor is probably the problem.

Suggestion.....before pulling wires on the distributor cap.....get some masking tape and lable each wire. Then draw a picture showing where each wire connects. Take a few pictues also.

Also.........go look at the distributor before you do anything. Look to see if the cap is on straight or could be loose. It could be a quick fix????

I have not had to replace a distributor cap in a long long time. How do you get the cap off.......is it a "push down and turn 90 deg." type connection.

Jordan.........Has this problem just started? You said it happens when it rains.

Have you driven through some mud holes? It could be that you have mud/ dirt around your spark plugs and that could be shorting out some of your spark plugs.

Just a thought.......

************************************************** *************

When having this problem..........an old "quick fix". Spray the inside of the distributor with WD-40......this should get you going again....to get home.

Do you know what the "WD" stands for in the WD-40 product? This product was developed for the miltary........they wanted a product that would lubricate and displace water. Thus the "Water Displacement"

Now more trivia.......what is the "40" mean? Does anyone know????

It was the 40th time they tried to get the formula right

There's 40 flavors! Wait nevermind, that's Baskin Robins lol

lmao... i just got back from lunch break... truck runs like a dream not... i dont know *** the problem is... will do some troubleshooting when i get home...

did you change the cap and rotor yet

no... havent touched it..

get ready for the sticker shock. I dont remember what was so expensive but i think it was the plugwires ran @$80. Spent around $200 on same problem last year. Cap and Rotor should get it going...SK

Man you already told us the problem!Its a Chevy!:D

Ur dodge or ford prolly has half the miles my chevy has on it. They wouldn't dream going as far.

well what did you find jordan

Take it to the dealer and replace truck with 2009 model

I would still look to solve the problem
 

Probably dist cap I would still fix the problem before the truck leaves you on the road during the next storm. Fixing the truck now is cheaper than having to be towed during the next rain storm.

As far as Ford goes I put 350,000 on my 1999 F150, 2003 put 257,000, and my newest one a 2007 I got 83,000. Funny, the Fords I owned never left me on the side of the road either, didn't need to change alternators, and my interior didn't fall apart in 3 years or less like Chevy.

Went to a techinical institute to learn how to work on trucks and specialized in domestic trucks due to demand. Was a Ford truck mechanic from 1992-1998 and also fixed chevys for the place I worked for.
60% of the mechanics that complain about Ford had no formal technical training. Those guys that end up at the chevy dealer cutting the check engine light wire due to they cannot find the problem. Seen a mechanic do it on a new truck at a chevy dealer. Easy fix if he would have had the proper training.


By the way love the drum brakes on the 2009 Chevy trucks. Cost cutting measure.