[MD4x4 Fireman]

I am building an '87 GMC and every time i get one thing done so i can get it inspected 1 more breaks. this thing is "nickel and diming" me every time i go out in the garage. some times it gets me:grrrrrr:. anyone else built an old truck and had this problem?

 

[Cableguy]

What is wrong with that poor girl? You need to talk to it like a fine plant :rofl:
No I've had plenty of Chev P/U's, never had that happen....

 

[MD4x4 Fireman]

i was putting in a new gas tank and a metal fuel line broke. i replaced my front brakes and went to bleed them and lines blew out. my Y-pipe and nuts that hold it to the manifold are so rusted it aint even funny

 

[oldgreen]

Even though your truck may be nickel and diming you at least you are not paying a note on a $30,000+ Silverado. I would also say your insurance and property taxes are a lot lower also. Just hang in there and your truck will pay you back. In the end you will still be able to haul and ride just as well as those with newer trucks.
The basic stuff like the frame,engine and trans will last for decades. If you have not done so already, put a complete, new distributor in your truck becase it will fail and leave on the side of the road (the wires to the pick-up coil break). I have a 78 Scottsdale that was bought by my father new and I still drive it everyday. Origianal engine, trans, rearend and front /rear suspension. Better than your favorite pair of blue jeans. My gas tank rusted out last year so I feel your pain.

John

 

[MD4x4 Fireman]

Ok now i am down to a few things like body work. But I have 1 HUGE problem, my fuel gauge reads FULL all the time when I turn on the key. HELPP!!!!! Why would it do this and how can I fix it? I dont remember if it worked before I replaced the tanks or not. I cant get her inspected til I fix this.

 

[John W]

Check the ground wire to the fuel tank.

 

[oldgreen]

fuel gauge

Definitely check your ground wire and fuel tank electrical connector very closely. After pulling the tank you may not have gotten good connections when hooking it back up. Check the fuse as well. You can test the circuit without pulling the tank whick will tell you if the gauge is actually working otherwise you may end up pulling the tank to check the float/sending unit which is actually a variable resistor( rheostat).

 

[MD4x4 Fireman]

Definitely check your ground wire and fuel tank electrical connector very closely. After pulling the tank you may not have gotten good connections when hooking it back up. Check the fuse as well. You can test the circuit without pulling the tank whick will tell you if the gauge is actually working otherwise you may end up pulling the tank to check the float/sending unit which is actually a variable resistor( rheostat).

I checked the fuse and its good. The guage stays at full. Explain a little more about the other things because i am a rookie with working on vehicles.

 

[MD4x4 Fireman]

how do i check whether its grounding out before the guage?

 

[84fiero123]

There should be a couple of wires coming off the fuel gauge sending unit. One will be grounded out at the frame rail near the tank. You may not have realized that it was there when removing the tank and broke it.

Or it just rotted off the frame.

If this is the case simply put a solder less connector on it and scrape or sand the frame rail where you are going to put the grounding screw.
Self tapping screws are great here if you have a screw gun.

And by the way, I completely agree with the above statement that you are better off with putting a few parts in than paying payments.

 

[MD4x4 Fireman]

There should be a couple of wires coming off the fuel gauge sending unit. One will be grounded out at the frame rail near the tank. You may not have realized that it was there when removing the tank and broke it.

Or it just rotted off the frame.

If this is the case simply put a solder less connector on it and scrape or sand the frame rail where you are going to put the grounding screw.
Self tapping screws are great here if you have a screw gun.

And by the way, I completely agree with the above statement that you are better off with putting a few parts in than paying payments.

i will look into that tomorrow

 

[MD4x4 Fireman]

ok i looked at the ground that comes off the sending unit near the plug for the harness and it was good on both. could it be from the fuel system being dry for a while?

 

[Holy Smoke]

Did you get the sending problem fixed yet? Is there elec. coming to the sending unit. Send me a pm if you want. Your truck may be to new for me but I can try.

 

[MD4x4 Fireman]

Did you get the sending problem fixed yet? Is there elec. coming to the sending unit. Send me a pm if you want. Your truck may be to new for me but I can try.

I have not got it fixed yet. I havent had time to go do more looking/working on it

 

[cokerjr13]

I am building an '87 GMC and every time i get one thing done so i can get it inspected 1 more breaks. this thing is "nickel and diming" me every time i go out in the garage. some times it gets me:grrrrrr:. anyone else built an old truck and had this problem?

I have an 86 gmc and i have the same problem i have replaced everything from the steering to the bumper and i still find problems. like shorts and wires burnign for some reason.

 

[cokerjr13]

has anyone done this?

I have an 86 gmc and i have the same problem i have replaced everything from the steering to the bumper and i still find problems. like shorts and wires burnign for some reason.

 

[MD4x4 Fireman]

ell hre is the latest. I got it on the road and ran into a BIG problem, i got the vent tube on 1 tank leaking and the filler neck on both leaks. the tank with the cracked vent tube wont fill up with gas from a pump, WHY? I am gonna post more questions about this problem in the fuel section.

 

[lance]

I dont Know

I have a 1987 gmc sierra classic the first year it was fuel injected i have problems 1. every time i start it it sits in idle then starts to di then to normal it will do this a couple of times then finally die.

2. i have one of those switches on the bottom of the dash for theft well i dont know wich way is non - theft , and theft , .

 

[423towman]

ignition problem

i have a 1987 gmc sierra 5.7 it started to run bad I went to change the plug wires and found rust under the plug wire at the coil terminal on the distributor then I noticed if I remove the wire from the terminal and let the spark jump from the wire to the terminal it starts to run fine again any advise on why it would do this

 

[Scott1987GMC]

I have a 1987 GMC Sierra 1500 Classic. I believe it has a 305 small block in it. Hand-me-down from my Paw Paw. I want to put a 454 in it. I am not a mechanic by any means. From what I’ve read up on, the 305 has a 2 bolt main and the 454 has a 4 bolt main. My questions are what is the difference between 2 & 4? Is it possible to do the swap? Would I need a new transmission to handle more torque?