JHalcyonM

1989 3.0 V6 SR5. Guys i bought it from installed an aftermarket ignition box and MSD Blaster 2. Id like to go back to stock but for right now its having problems starting. Sometimes it starts right up. Sometimes i turn the key and all i hear is the fuel pump whizzing. Sometimes i turn the key and the it cranks but never starts. Sometimes i hold the key down for about 5 seconds and nothing but the fuel pump goes off and then all of the sudden it cranks. I don't think it has to do with heat because it can be out in the sun for a while after a long haul and crank right up. It may be a bad ground, a bad ignition box, a bad coil, or bad ignitor. I have tested the output volts on the box and its right around 10V to the ignition coil. And the battery is new and is fine.

(According to the back of the ignition box in the front this is how it is suppose to be wired)
red wire: ignition key
black wire: negative on ignition coil
white wire: positive on ignition coil
green wire: distributor

Thats what the back of the box says and all of that wiring is correct (i think) the green wire however connects to a black and white wire from wiring that goes to the factory ignitor and the red wire connects to a black and red wire.

(It ran fine for a month or two and then it just started doing this. May be a bad ground honestly)

Janos01

Might be your ignition coil, cold start injector or starter having issues.

JHalcyonM

So i got it running as it randomly starts up real quick sometimes and this time i touched nothing i just kept turning off and on and its crank like a 12 times in a row. I decided to see if it was the bad ground on my ignitor so i pushed the ground a little bit with a screw driver and tried to start it back up and it cranked but no start so i think i found the problem.

JHalcyonM

Okay so i took the ignitor off the body and cleaned up the ground a lot. Its been a few days and i haven't had a problem where is cranks but wont start... So anytime its turned over it has started which is good. But now its back to the other problem which seems to be separate. I turn the key and nothing but the whine of the fuel pump. So yesterday i spend the entire good half of he day changing my starter. (After i got the alternator and battery tested and was told it was my starter) so i changed the starter and it cranks right up. NOW.... Earlier today after a 45 min drive to town it wont turn over. I just hear the fuel pump whine. Thats it.... FOR SOME ODD REASON it SOMETIMES will crank right up if someone hooks leads up to it from their truck. IDL why but it sometimes works. Like 99% of the time. And its not like i let it sit and the battery charge... I just instantly turn the key ten seconds after putting on the leads and it cranks... So tonight i check the fuses again and the one on the far left which i think is the main fuse or something is black but its not ruptured or anything. Suppose to be like that? Other than that earlier it wouldnt turn over and i pulled my relays and waved them in the air like i just did not care to cool them off cuz they were hot as a MFer and put them back in and it cranked right up. Now im stuck at an uncles and i did the same thing and it wont turn over. Imma bit confursed.

AKHeathen

it sounds like it could be the starter relay if it's a manual, or the neutral safety switch if auto. if that fuse is am1, i would replace it. it could be the source of poor connection. spray with wd-40 and finesse it out. they often come out in 100 peices when they have been in there a while. if you go back to stock on the ignition, don't use that blaster2.

JHalcyonM

Thanks man. Greatly appreciated. IDK what "am1" means... Please clarify. Also I assume this is normal but when i turn the key in the ON position it buzzes for about ten seconds I'm pretty sure this is all old yotas but the manual says something about a "warning buzz". Also when someone opens the door and closes it on the passenger side i hear two clicks near the dash and the tach jumps up to about thee thousand but the engine doesn't rev. This is all making me question my purchase.

AKHeathen

on top of the fuse cover it should have am1 and am2 right next to each-other.... i agree that the warning buzzer is extra annoying, but it's normal. the door thing is not normal, though, lol.... i would replace that fuse and check the grounds, especially the one right next to the battery and then the one right behind the front engine lift hook. it's possible that bad grounds are preventing the relays and such from actuating when the starter robs, or tries to rob the load.