Starting Problem - losing my mind!!

[PatyOFurniture]

Hey all, great forum you have here. I've got a 99 tahoe with a weird problem.

turn the key truck turns over 2 or 3 times then stops turning over and i lose lights in my dash then it turns over 2 or 3 more times then stops turning over and i lose dash lights, this happens a couple more times and the truck MAY finally start or it wont start at all.

What happened originally was the truck wouldnt turn over, so i got underneath and tapped the starter with a hammer and had a friend turn the truck over. what resulted was a big arc of sparks and the truck started. When i cleaned off the starter i saw a warning label not to hit it with a hammer

I then replaced the starter and the starter relay and had to put a new circle connector on the small wire that goes to the solenoid.

it all worked great for 2 months until now.

Sounds like a connection problem right?

I tried to go yank out my starter and get it tested but now the smaller wire that bolts to the solenoid is stripped!

 

[SunlitComet]

If you lose your lighting and other functions suddenly when you cranking please clean off your battery terminals with a brush cleaning tool and reseat them first. I have seen this happens before. For the starter can you just cut the wire and crimp on a new terminal?

 

[PatyOFurniture]

yeah i could just crimp on a new one but the connection was clean and tight, and on there enough that you need a wrench to at least spin it.

battery terminals are clean too but i'll go take a wire brush to them.

it probably is the solenoid god dammit. But for it to go bad after 2 months??

---------- Post added at 12:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:21 PM ----------

just wire brushed the hell out of the terminals with a battery terminal brush.. plugged it all back together and same problem occured..

 

[SunlitComet]

I personally never seen a solenoid cause a bigger completes power outage unless some thing was loose or dirty with the battery connections or in the case of specifically instrument panel indicators the ignition switch was malfunctioning. Would you like a wiring diagram for your starting system to help?

 

[PatyOFurniture]

sure!
maybe it is the ignition switch?
thanks for the help!

 

[SunlitComet]

I should be clearer when I have start a car, hear and there as soon as the crank started the entire vehicle blacks out. That was the battery issue I mentioned. If is is just some parts then yeah I would look at the switch.

Readable below? If not will redo it.

 

[96ProCompTahoe]

when it starts does the truck run normal? normal voltage on the guage? have you had the charging system checked?

 

[PatyOFurniture]

ahh as a matter of fact its running kind of ******.
under quarter throttle through the first 3 gears its running unusually rough.
it seems to clear out around half throttle.
I just replaced the fuel filter, and i've owned the truck for about a year, but i havent done a complete tune up on it so thats what my hunch was.

voltage gauge seemed to measure normally when it was running.

I gave up on it and dropped it off at a mechanic.. should hear back tomorrow what they think it is, but their initial thought was the ignition switch as the truck turns over 2 or 3 times and stops and i lose dash lights then turns over 2 or 3 times and stops and i lose dash lights again.

it wouldnt start earlier today, but managed to get it fired up this afternoon and took it straight to the shop.

 

[992dr]

Sounds like your ignition/passlock system.
Does the security lite flash when you turn the key to the on position?

Read this. This was all the sh*t I went through with my ignition and the lovely passlock system. I believe the parts and part #s are also in that thread.

http://www.gmfullsize.com/forum/showthread.php?t=199600

 

[SunlitComet]

or some wierd battery chemistry taking place