Chevy crank but no start. Advice?

My dad's Chevrolet 1997 gladiator conversion van cranks but doesn't start. It has the 5.7 engine with about 160,000 miles.

Here's what we have tried;
We pulled a spark plug and cranked the engine and we had spark, does that mean the cranks sensor is good?
Turned the key to on position and fuel pump clicked and whistled, I take its still good along with the relay.
Tested battery and voltage is good.
Security light is off so no problem there.

We are running out of things to check and was wondering if you guys ran in to this problem before.

Well, after cranking the engine for a good ten seconds it started and runs good. I have no idea what just happened.

Weak fuel pump, clogged filter, faulty check valve, or pressure regulator ? Check the pressure.

fuel pump is probably dying... those were the exact symptoms my brother's 97 Chevy truck had right before the pump gave up completely- thankfully in my mom's driveway.

my other brother's '01 Chevy truck with the 5.3 doesn't hold pressure when you shut it off- it's a bad check valve in the fuel pump... it's like $300 for a new fuel pump for it because they make you swap out the whole damn module, so he's just driving it as it is until it actually doesn't start. you just gotta crank it for about 10 seconds before it starts, but once it starts it runs great. been that way for about 3 years now.

Ok, thanks I'll let my dad know about the weak fuel pump.

Might start with the fuel filter on the frame just forward of the tank. My 91 plugged it up so badly that when I disconnected the engine side it didn't even drip gas, but when I cracked the inlet side I got a cartoon like 360 degree full pressure spray. Pretty cheap and easy place to start.

same symptoms i had in 1997 with a 15k mile truck under warranty. was intermittent, dealer fixed.

will it help it start if you turn the key on …listen to the fuel pump for those 10sec, then continue the start sequence ?

that's how my Suby liked to be started …especially when it was hot ...

novaderrik wrote: my other brother's '01 Chevy truck with the 5.3 doesn't hold pressure when you shut it off- it's a bad check valve in the fuel pump... it's like $300 for a new fuel pump for it because they make you swap out the whole damn module, so he's just driving it as it is until it actually doesn't start. you just gotta crank it for about 10 seconds before it starts, but once it starts it runs great. been that way for about 3 years now.

I fixed a similar problem in an s10 I had by using a check valve and compression fittings from McMaster. Cost less that $30 to fix, much cheaper than replacing the fuel pump assembly.

One way to check for that is to cycle the key from off to run (leave here until fuel pump shuts off) then back to off 3-4 times before actually cranking. If that solves the no start, then there is a good chance the fuel system is bleeding down.

jstand wrote:

novaderrik wrote: my other brother's '01 Chevy truck with the 5.3 doesn't hold pressure when you shut it off- it's a bad check valve in the fuel pump... it's like $300 for a new fuel pump for it because they make you swap out the whole damn module, so he's just driving it as it is until it actually doesn't start. you just gotta crank it for about 10 seconds before it starts, but once it starts it runs great. been that way for about 3 years now.

I fixed a similar problem in an s10 I had by using a check valve and compression fittings from McMaster. Cost less that $30 to fix, much cheaper than replacing the fuel pump assembly. One way to check for that is to cycle the key from off to run (leave here until fuel pump shuts off) then back to off 3-4 times before actually cranking. If that solves the no start, then there is a good chance the fuel system is bleeding down.

we looked at doing that, but his wife wasn't too keen on cutting the fuel lines. my idea was for Wix to put a check valve in their fuel filters and advertise them as being for "high mileage vehicles that start hard" or whatever and charge a few more dollars for them... they'd make a killing at the expense of the fuel pump manufacturers... but i never got a response from the email i sent to them..