Hit pothole and truck stopped running.

[Bank_of_Dad]

I am camping in Moab. I have a 2013 Suburban. I was on an isolated paved mountain road, going slow and hit a pothole. The stability light and the abs light came on, the truck shuddered, and then it died and wouldn't restart. The motor cranked but won't start. OnStar eventually got us a tow in to town. People told us about a fuel shutoff switch or an inertia switch. Or just unplug the battery.

Do Chevy Suburbans have this switch?

Any guesses what could have happened?

The very full up campground thinks we're leaving. Friday.

Thanks

[Bank_of_Dad]

The service guy said no inertia switch in GM or Suburban

[tatest]

Don't know about GM, but every Ford and Honda I've had since they started putting fuel pumps back at the tank to push into up fuel injection pump has had an intertial switch to cut that pump in a collision. Owners manual told where to find the switch, how to reset it. We do read those manuals, don't we?

[Bank_of_Dad]

Yup the sensor was fried and the EBCM was fried. They made sure the brakes were ok. They got the part in and I have the truck back. Nice dealership and covered under warranty.

[Old-Biscuit]

mabynack wrote:
I did an Internet search and according to one site, there is no fuel shutoff on the Suburban. There is a relay located under the hood that controls the fuel pump. Sometimes it gets loose or wears out. You can test it by putting your finger on the relay and have someone turn the ignition on. You should feel the relay click. It could be a loose connection on the fuel pump or engine control module (ECM) or the pothole might have been enough to break a solder joint in the ECM. If you're near an auto parts store, they can put a diagnostic machine on it and tell you if the problem is an ignition issue or a fuel pressure issue.

OP posted yesterday afternoon that dealer found issues and it is being repaired under warranty.

[mkirsch]

Bank of Dad wrote:
So, a relay was burned out and a few computers that talk to the fuel pump were fried. They don't know if the incident caused the computers to fail or they were bad anyway. They are assuming the incident caused it and covering it with the warranty.

I think that Suburbans have a history of fuel pump problems. At least mine have. But truck is two yrs old and only 11,000 miles.

Hope it fixes the problem. They are trying to overnight the parts.

Good news. Darn straight they better cover it with warranty. There's no reason for what you did causing that amount of damage. It has to be defective parts on the truck.

[dwayneb236]

rjstractor wrote:
Nearly all vehicles have a fuel cutoff to reduce fire risk in a collision. The reset location should be in your owner's manual. However, I'd be surprised that a jolt just from a pothole or bump in the road would trip it. From what I've seen, typically to trip the fuel shutoff it takes a significant collision, hard enough to cause body damage. At any rate, it would be the first thing to check.

Had a Ford Ranger once and it did indeed shut off the fuel when I hit a pot hole. Did not know anything about it.
Called for a tow. Once the wrecker driver got me home he told me I should check the fuel shut off. Something he could have told me before the tow....But not as much money in that I guess. Had roadside service so not that big of a deal to me.

[mabynack]

I did an Internet search and according to one site, there is no fuel shutoff on the Suburban. There is a relay located under the hood that controls the fuel pump. Sometimes it gets loose or wears out. You can test it by putting your finger on the relay and have someone turn the ignition on. You should feel the relay click. It could be a loose connection on the fuel pump or engine control module (ECM) or the pothole might have been enough to break a solder joint in the ECM. If you're near an auto parts store, they can put a diagnostic machine on it and tell you if the problem is an ignition issue or a fuel pressure issue.

[Grit_dog]

It happens. Weird issue with my wife's 07Ram a few years ago. Wife called said truck won't start like batteries are dead.
After work tried to start it. Acted almost dead at the starter but wasn't dragging the lights down when cranking. Threw jumper cables on it. Tried starting almost immediately and it fired up like batteries had a full charge. (they did)
Shut off, re started probably 10x in a row, never had the issue again.
Was an electrical glitch that I haven't seen before.

[PUCampin]

Usually modern car electronics are reliable but it does occasionally happen. I had a 6 month old Subaru Impreza turn itself off while I was doing 65 down a highway. After getting it towed to the dealer, diagnosis was dead ecm. Dealer said they had never seen a dead one before, lucky me. Hope you get back on the road soon!

[Fordlover]

Bank of Dad wrote:
So, a relay was burned out and a few computers that talk to the fuel pump were fried. They don't know if the incident caused the computers to fail or they were bad anyway. They are assuming the incident caused it and covering it with the warranty.

I think that Suburbans have a history of fuel pump problems. At least mine have. But truck is two yrs old and only 11,000 miles.

Hope it fixes the problem. They are trying to overnight the parts.

problems at such low age and miles can be very frustrating, hope this is an isolated event for you and they get you on your way quickly.

[RedRocket204]

Wow, hope it gets fixed for you. Moab is such a special place, hope you got to enjoy it before the truck problems. Was out there in the spring and really would have liked to gone back this fall but no such luck.

Can't wait to go back!

[Bank_of_Dad]

So, a relay was burned out and a few computers that talk to the fuel pump were fried. They don't know if the incident caused the computers to fail or they were bad anyway. They are assuming the incident caused it and covering it with the warranty.

I think that Suburbans have a history of fuel pump problems. At least mine have. But truck is two yrs old and only 11,000 miles.

Hope it fixes the problem. They are trying to overnight the parts.

[Bank_of_Dad]

Yes. I am letting the dealer fix it. Hoping it's today. At least a DX today if not a fix.

[noteven]

If the ol' Dodge had this feature it would quit about 257 times between here and town 🙂 🙂