2005 Tahoe

[woodsie]

Within the last 6 months I have had periodic starting problem. Just randomly have to keep turning the key till it starts. New battery, tested starter (good). When dead, lights come on but engine is totally quiet almost like battery is disconnected. Normally takes 25-30 times and then it starts. WTF?

 

[MassHoe04]

Very good chance you have a bad ground connection.
Inspect, clean and tighten all grounds.

Also inspect the battery cables and battery clamp connections. I had a combination of corrosion inside a battery cable, and bad connection at the battery clamp cause intermittent no-crank/no-start issues on my 05 Jeep. New battery cables set and scrubbing the ground contact and terminals on the starter did the trick on that one.

Someone once told me: "When it comes to electrical stuff... If you don't have good grounds, you have nothing!" I believe that to be true.

 

[rockola1971]

Yup first thing I would look at is grounds and while Im under the truck smack the starter with a hammer and see if it all of sudden starts once you crank it. Then that would lead me to believe that the starter is bad.

Either way plan on the next decent week of weather you should get under and clean, tighten, replace as needed the ground connections since its likely never been done since the factory put it all together. The big ones are firewall to engine block (a flat braided wire), Ground point on drivers side chassis under the drivers door just forward to where the firewall starts and then wherever your battery negative wire connects. (it varies by year and trim package).

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Performing the above recommendation are your first steps in troubleshooting. If none of those recommendations resolve your issue, then there is another (surely more) possibility.

Your ignition switch is failing in the start position. I had this situation on my 97 Yukon (RIP), and it was intermittent for a number of months, until it would not start the truck at all.

 

[OR VietVet]

Basics first. Check age of battery, connections of cables at battery for tightness and corrosion, check down cables for corrosion swelling under the insulation, check connections at starter, check grounds and IMO, it does sound like possibly an ignition switch, like @Joseph Garcia said. I am actually gonna replace one of those today on my girl's 2002 TrailBlazer because they are a known weak point.

 

[woodsie]

Thanks for response. Tell I'm getting old? Worked on cars all my life and it never occurred to me the grounds. Lol

Next problem. System blows a/c the warm sometime. I recalibrated like a guy showed me but no change. Time to change out dash unit?

 

[OR VietVet]

Lots of threads here about blend door actuator problems. Do a search, cook up a gallon or two of popcorn and read.