1997 Chevrolet C1500 - Page 8 - Answered Questions & Fixed issues

check your distributor cap and if u have spark

The blower motor needs to be replaced. Also if it only blows on high the blower motor resister block may need to be replaced as well.

Well, you didn't say whether the truck will keep running or not after you start it with the plop of gas into the throttle body (a very dangerous proposition), so maybe this is a dumb question, but are you sure the new fuel pump is plugged in? Turn the key "on" but not all the way to "start." Do you hear a soft whine from just aft of the driver's door? If not, the fuel pump is not running. REpair shops and individuals sometimes forget to plug the fuel pump wire harness back into the vehicle after the replacement. If it is plugged in, check the fuse. Very often when the fuel pump fails in a Chevy truck, the last thing it does as it gives up the ghost is it blows the 20A fuse in the fuse panel inside the cabin by the driver's door. However, if the truck keeps running after you bribe it, and I mean until YOU turn it off, then the fuel pump IS running, but is not self-priming.
This is a problem you sometimes get with cheap (made in China) aftermarket pumps.
I buy NOTHING for any vehicle that says "Made in China." I'm funny about quality like that.

Do you have the correct lip seal installation tool? If not, it won't matter what direction you put them back in; they'll fail very prematurely. This tool is not cheap, but neither is a burned-up new transmission.
Go to transpartsonline.com and look at the 4L60E diagram.

Bad news, my friend. The transmission is toast. I have fixed MANY of these, and what has happened is that the sun gear reaction shell has cracked around the input gear collar. This will not be fixed by putting any additive in, or resetting the computer. This is a VERY common 4L60E failure, and you have, I am guessing, about 120,00-150,000 miles on this vehicle. This is when they die; earlier if used extensively for towing.
When you get this fixed, tell the builder you want the Beast sun shell and Alto Red Eagle (specify Alto Red Eagle; they're the best) 3-4 clutch power pack with Kolene full thickness steels, and Alto Red Eagle reverse/low clutch frictions and Kolene steels, as a MINIMUM over a stock rebuild. Tell him you want a new reverse drum and a Kevlar or Carbon Fiber power band, as well as Sonnax "Super Hold" 1-2 and 3-4 servos. Add a 15,000lb capacity auxilliary fluid cooler in addition to the one built into your radiator.
Then your transmission will be bulletproof, and you will think you have added 100 horsepower.
But this one is guaranteed dead.

starter selenoid. you can replace the selenoid on the starter. it is what conects the power to the starter motor. when the selenoid gets wore out it takes a couple clicks to get good contact.

Most of the vortecs that i have worked on have hydraulic roller lifters, but i cant say for certain that your engine does, however i am sure that it has hydraulic lifters and they can be checked by trying to push them down in the center where the pushrods contact, if they compress easily the lifter is bad, If they are roller lifters, check for any wear on the roller and how well they turn, it is ok to have some side to side movement on the pin but any up/down movement on the roller is bad. If the are non-roller lifters check for wear, if the lifter looks "dished" or "concaved" rather than having flat surface replace the lifter.

Most likely the timing has jumped,or the cam sensor is bad.

Vacuum leak or bad IAC or Map sensor.

pull the fuse for t.sig if the light go's out put fuse back
and locate T sig harness at base of collum and use
a test light to check for power coming out of the
switch with everything off there should be no pwr.
you will have 1 wire with a constant 12v for the
emegency flasher if you have pwr out in any others
the switch is bad. also pull the horn fuse to avoid
any false reads. hope this helps good luck

heater core plugged up? Get engine up to normal temp, put your hand on both heater hoses at firewall, if one is hot and one is not its the heater core. If both are hot the blend door under the dash is not changing to hot

First did you clear all the fault codes after your repairs? The reason I ask is po131 is bank one oxygen sensor, po174 is engine lean from faulty oxygen sensor, and po171 is engine lean condition, possibly from vacuum leak (intake manifold gasket?), pcv valve,etc. To check for vacuum leak at intake, start engine and gently spray starting fluid around intake gasket. If rpm raise slightly while doing this then there is a vacuum leak(stay away from air filter intake and housing though), and the gasket will need to be replaced again.

These trucks are critical on fuel pressure. Spray some brake cleaner to see if it starts. If it does then the fuel pump is weak and needs to be replaced.
These trucks do not use a timing light. It takes a scanner to cam sync them to the correct timing. If it was off you would of set a code for it and it would of ran like it had a mis. You may have an ignition module issue that is causing all of this but without diagnostic equipment its all a guess.

it is under the dash on the upper part of the brake pedal, unplug the wire connector and the swich pops off

most likely on the firewall comes out of fuel pump relay harness only has power while running or for two seconds when ign key is first turned on

no, the 97 uses a 4L60E which is controlled differently through the computer. Also, many of the electrical connectors will be different.

You will have to drop the tank to replace it. Sometimes its easier to remove the bed, especially if the tank has fuel in it.

remove glove box, look on top of heater box in recessed portion. You will see a muti-wire plug facing up. This is the blower resistor. Check for burnt connections by removing plug (common problem). Blower high speed relay located above blower motor (also behind glove box). Check for burnt connections. Repair harness available through G.M. dealer.

check the basics timing, air, and, fuel . these trucks are prone to intake gasket problems buy a can of 2+2 carb spray and spray around the intake area notice if the idle rises if so vacuum leak repair and re check next fuel pressure is a common cause check fuel filter and the pressure let me know how it goes thanks

Hello there:
If you look at your owners manual it will tell you that it is recommended that you only use the 89 or greater octane fuel and any thing below this can damage the engine i have the same truck and i have dome a lot of testing with the different fuels and they are right if i spend the extra 5 or 6 cents to get the good fuel i get better fuel mileage along with following the a regular tuneup intervals and also keeping the tires properly inflated helps out a lot ok So try these easy steps and you will find out that you will start getting better mileage