The last couple times I've driven the truck it doesn't start on the first try. Turn the key and it just cranks and cranks. Turn key off and try again and it fires right up. Does this sound like a sticking fuel shutoff solenoid and is this common for a 255K mile truck?

I have a new one I'll put in this weekend. Just seems odd it would work every other time. Would the cooler weather contribute to this (50's at night), and/or WMO in the fuel?

 

When it won't start, leave the key on and check for voltage at the solenoid. Could be a flaky ignition switch.

 

Or a bad connection/loose wire at the solenoid.

 

Your problem sounds suspiciously like the very intermittent problem that the wife's truck has had ever since we have owned it.

I will "FIX" something and "think" I have cured it, only to have it do it again the next time the temperatures are cold enough.

When it pulls this crank and no start stunt, a quick breath of ether will always get it to fire on the first revolution, leading me to suspect that the vibration of the engine is enough to "fix" whatever is wrong.

Without the ether, it will crank until doomsday and not fire.


Of course, after one of these episodes, it will work perfectly for weeks, until the next cold day.


Funny thing is, after all night outside in the cold, it will fire easily; then later, after sitting all day at work, it will pull this no start trick, only we never know just when it will do it.



I have for some time suspected that the fuel solenoid is possibly sticking.

 

Next time it happens, I'll check the voltage at the solenoid. I already suspected a loose connection and took the connector off, squeezed it with some needle nose pliers and put it back on and it still happened the next day, so I don't think that's the problem.

Because of reading so many posts here about problems with them, I order one from the VW site where they're about $15, so I'll probably change it out this weekend, anyway, if the voltage isn't an issue. Is there a relay in the circuit somewhere?

 

Someone may correct me, but my 91 had a solenoid problem, and we thought we found it. It was a bad connection at the KSB. Somehow this was shorting out the shutoff solenoid, for random starts and stop while driving. I disconnected the KSB for a week to test and it started no problem, changed the connection, no problem.

 

No relay involved, the power comes straight off the ignition switch.

 

What's the routing for the shutdown solenoid wire? I had the problem occur today and I checked it with a test light. No voltage at the solenoid. I had power at the KSB. Pulled the solenoid wire and checked it again and it had voltage. Hooked it back up and she started.

I guess I have a bad (intermittent) connection somewhere.

 

In one of my attempts to cure our problem, I traced the solenoid wire back in that harness of wires to a point just over the lift-pump.

What I found was a factory splice that was very corroded.

I cleaned this mess up, replacing the solenoid wire with a bigger/better one from that point back to the solenoid.

My efforts weren't wasted, but it didn't fix the problem.

Seeing as how wiggling the wire gives you fire, your problem just may be that splice.

 

I second Bearkiller on that splice in the blue wire. Also, replace that crappy factory spade terminal with a ring terminal.

 

After reviewing the wiring diagrams I found the the shutdown solenoid and KSB wires were reversed. Hopefully, everything is good now.

 

Yes replace the spades with ring terminals, both of them on the soleniod. I jsut had one of mine fall off and the truck just turned off on the PA turnpike near Downington.

 

On a lot of the Non-IC engines, the KSB is simply connected to the terminal on the solenoid, as in either wire has the same power and reversing them will make no difference; am I right about this ??


If I remember correctly what I was told when I was asking the question, on Non-IC engines, the KSB gets power all the time the key is ON, same as the solenoid, right ??


The inter-cooled engines are just the opposite, right ??

This can be confusing.

Thanks.

 

The KSB and shutdown solenoid are on different wires. The shutdown solenoid gets connected to a 14ga dark blue wire that is always hot when the ignition is on. The KSB is connected to an 18ga dark blue/white wire that is connected somewhere else, but as I understand it, doesn't get power when the KSB is activate, hence the no start when cold. I'm not sure where that wire goes, but it must be to something with a temperature sensor.

Non-I/C and I/C trucks are different.

 

Intercooled trucks use the shutoff solenoid as a junction block, the KSB switch gets its feed from there. Non-intercooled trucks feed the KSB through a wire from the brain box.