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eluwak's avatar
eluwak
Explorer
Jun 26, 2016

Made it to Myrtle Beach, barely...

Well, we planned a nice relaxing vacation at Myrtle Beach this year. Figured it would take us two easy days to drive the ~500 miles with DW and three kids in tow. Before the first night was over we had blown 4 TT tires, and discovered how useless roadside assist was for us twice. But, we made it to Pirateland finally.

The reason for this post is that I'm not sure if poor Bessie is gonna make it back without some surgery. The first day she quit on us a few times, both hitched and not. Yesterday it was pretty consistent that every 30-60 minutes she threw in the towel.

Her symptoms are that I'll be driving along for a bit, and then I'll start to lose power. Hitting the accelerator causes stumbling, and shifting the neutral will cause her to stumble and die. Sometimes once I have her in neutral I can start her back up again without having to pull over. Other times we need to sit for a spell.

It's been pretty warm, my coolant hasn't gone over the 210 F mark, but this has happened around the 155 F mark too. My tank was cleaned out a couple months ago, and it's happened on several tank fulls of gas now. I thought we heard a loud pop come from under her once, but we could have kicked something too.

Not sure if there's an obvious solution to this or not? Does anyone know any good shops in the area in case we need one?

We've already gone through half our fun budget on tires :( I'm worried that it's going to be one of those problems that places just keep chucking parts at until it goes away.

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  • BenK's avatar
    BenK
    Explorer
    Jun 26, 2016
    Tire class, "ST", are mostly rated for a max speed of 65MPH and should
    be kept at max sidewall listed PSI at all times. DO NOT remove air if
    it has gone higher during the trip...all tires are designed for that
    increase

    I do not recommend ST class tires on anything used out on the freeway,
    but going two classes higher to 'LT' class requires possible changing
    the wheels to handle the higher PSI's. But they should last longer and
    IMHO, safer than ST class

    Agree, most likely the Sub's fuel pump going. How often has the fuel
    filter been changed? That is the main culprit in killing this era fuel
    pump.

    In a pinch after the fuel pump stops...is to wack the bottom of the fuel
    tank while someone is cranking the engine. It 'might' start and DO NOT
    turn off the engine...this is generally a one time thing...

    The fuel pump in inside the tank and the tank has to be dropped to change
    it. Done that twice and no fun...third time had it towed to the mechanic.
    Get bad gas every once in a while and is typically out in the boonies and
    know the sound of the fuel pump going...makes more noise and a
    different noise...learn how a good pump sounds like after or if that
    is the problem

    I do change the fuel filter often, about every 1,000 gallons fuel, and
    carry extra filter & flare nut wrenches in my Sub's toolbox
  • eluwak's avatar
    eluwak
    Explorer
    Jun 26, 2016
    SoCalDesertRider wrote:
    Maybe the trailer is overloaded, or the tires were old and rotted, or cheap Chinese junk? Or maybe you ran over alot of debris in the road? That's alot of tires to blow out in one short trip...

    On the engine issue, could be a myriad of things.

    On the spark side of things, could be an intermittently bad HEI coil or module on the distributor. Also the coil wire (high voltage side) could be corroded or a bad connection.

    On the gas side of things, could be a plugged fuel filter, or a bad sensor in the emmissions system, possibly causing the engine management or injection system to shut down.

    If you don't have an OBDII compatible code reader, go to the local auto parts store, buy one and hook it up to the diagnostic port that is usually under the dash and tell us what codes it reads. That will help get things pointed in the right direction at least.


    Yeah we figure the tires were dry rotted on the inside. The spare was inside the front compartment. They were 3.5 years old.

    In the last 2 years we've put new plugs, wires, fuel filters, tank cleaning, intake manifold gaskets, and water pump (all I can think of right now). The fuel pump is not original, but I don't know how old it is. I'll look into the ODB2 port scanner.

    I'll try to respond to others shortly. Heading to the pool for a bit.
  • Farmerjon's avatar
    Farmerjon
    Explorer
    Jun 26, 2016
    SoCalDesertRider wrote:
    Maybe the trailer is overloaded, or the tires were old and rotted, or cheap Chinese junk? Or maybe you ran over alot of debris in the road? That's alot of tires to blow out in one short trip...

    On the engine issue, could be a myriad of things.

    On the spark side of things, could be an intermittently bad HEI coil or module on the distributor. Also the coil wire (high voltage side) could be corroded or a bad connection.

    On the gas side of things, could be a plugged fuel filter, or a bad sensor in the emmissions system, possibly causing the engine management or injection system to shut down.

    If you don't have an OBDII compatible code reader, go to the local auto parts store, buy one and hook it up to the diagnostic port that is usually under the dash and tell us what codes it reads. That will help get things pointed in the right direction at least.


    X2
    having a new vehicle would be nice but for the same amount of money as a couple of payments and a down payment you can do a lot of repairs. But throwing parts at it without a good diagnosis is like throwing darts at a weather board, you might hit on the right answer but probably not.
  • dodge_guy's avatar
    dodge_guy
    Explorer II
    Jun 26, 2016
    Can't comment on the trailer. My only question is how old were the tires?

    On the Burb, it sounds like you've got a fuel pump failing! On GM's a common fuel pump fail symptom is no power, lack of power, no acceleration and stumbling when you give it gas. It will feel as though you are running out of gas!

    How many miles on the Burb, and have you ever replaced the fuel pump, or for that matter the fuel filter!!! (Has it ever been replaced?)
  • Terryallan's avatar
    Terryallan
    Explorer II
    Jun 26, 2016
    At this point. You really only have 2 options. 1. Take it to the closest Chevrolet store, and have them fix it, or 2. Take it to the closest Auto store of your choice, and trade it. I just did option 2. In most cases. Once they start acting up. They will continue to do so. Dollar you to death, and soon you will have a new TV price in an old TV.
  • DownTheAvenue's avatar
    DownTheAvenue
    Explorer
    Jun 26, 2016
    I bet is is the electric pump in the tank!

    Hop you get the problem sorted out and can enjoy the rest of your trip. Good luck!
  • SoCalDesertRid1's avatar
    SoCalDesertRid1
    Explorer II
    Jun 26, 2016
    Maybe the trailer is overloaded, or the tires were old and rotted, or cheap Chinese junk? Or maybe you ran over alot of debris in the road? That's alot of tires to blow out in one short trip...

    On the engine issue, could be a myriad of things.

    On the spark side of things, could be an intermittently bad HEI coil or module on the distributor. Also the coil wire (high voltage side) could be corroded or a bad connection.

    On the gas side of things, could be a plugged fuel filter, or a bad sensor in the emmissions system, possibly causing the engine management or injection system to shut down.

    If you don't have an OBDII compatible code reader, go to the local auto parts store, buy one and hook it up to the diagnostic port that is usually under the dash and tell us what codes it reads. That will help get things pointed in the right direction at least.

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