1994 G20 cranks but no start

[Admiral Jay]

Hey everybody.

I have a '94 G20 Sportvan. 4.3L V6. I was driving down the road the other day, and I hadn't made it more than 4 blocks from my house when it died. I am pretty sure it was being starved for fuel because of the way it acted when it died (you know, the jerky movement at first, then the sputtering). Then it would just crank and not turn over.

Back at my place, I replaced the fuel filter, I disconnected the fuel lines from the throttle body injector and turned the key to on and fuel came out of both lines pretty forcefully, so I know that the fuel pump is good and there are no obstructions in the fuel lines. I reconnected the fuel lines, and started to crank the engine. While cranking it, I looked into the TBI to see what the injectors were doing. Both injectors were operating as I imagine they should be (spraying fuel into the engine in little spurts).

That is all I have done. And as of this point, I don't know where to go from here. Any help or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

[MagicRat]

Did you test for spark?

If no spark, take a look at the ignition module, Its a small plastic-covered electrical device inside the distributor just under the rotor,

Replacements cost about $30 to 60 depending on quality. You need to apply the white insulator grease according to instructions supplied.

[Admiral Jay]

Hey there Magic.

Thanks for the tip. I replaced the ICM. Unfortunately, no joy on getting it back up and running. However, when I looked at the distributor rotor and the inside of the cap, it looked pretty gnarly.

What do you think? Could it be one of those, or is there another problem going on with this beast?

[Ironic]

Had similar problem with mine (89 Chevy 350) in that it "seemed" like it was starved for fuel. Pulled the PCV valve and all I could smell was gas, replaced the fuel pressure regulator, took out spark plugs, disconnected B+ on distributor, cranked engine, replaced plugs (they was soaked with gas), reconnected B+ on distributor then started it right up. Engine was saturated with fuel so it crop dusted a little while- but runs fine now. Just pull the PCV valve and smell for gas- when fuel regulators go- the fuel is sucked into the vacuum lines.
Good Luck