Battery or ignition switch?

mountie1982 · 10-14-2005, 05:43 AM

My 1997 blazer 2 door 4.3l 4x4 battery was toast. I put in a new one adn now i am having trouble. (sorry forgot the brand of battery and its 3am i will let you know later) I not sure if its famous ignition switch or its the new battery. When i get in the truck i notice that there is no power due to the fact that the int. light isnt on. I turn the key on it clicks the dash light flash then nothing. I cant turn the key back to off position to get it out. If i go under the hood and wiggle the positive cable on the battery the power comes back. The cable it tight and shows no sign of damage. I then go back to starting it and some times it goes other times i have to go back to the battery and wiggle it some more. Its starting to piss me off real bad. I also had the engine stall backing up my driveway. There was no steering lock but i did roll back down the driveway. All power was gone but it came back with a wiggle of the + cable. I had the lights go out and the radio cut out when i turned the heat on while driving tonight on my way home. The voltmeter is around the 14 mark i belive. What do you think battery or ignition switch?

Thanks

rlith · 10-14-2005, 06:50 AM

You've answered your own problem

The fact that you have to wiggle your cable to make it come on and start means a bad connection between the cable and the battery. It may not seem like your cable is damaged or you think it's tight but the cable isn't getting enough surface agains the battery to maintain a good flow of electricity... If you feel that the bolt is tight on the battery, try throwing a washer behind it to give yo ua little more thickness. (The reason I suggest this is the screw on the post may be stopping before the flush fit)...

mountie1982 · 10-14-2005, 07:26 AM

Yea I guess I did. Thanks I will try the washer on it. Hopefully thats what it is.

Thanks

mike2004tct · 10-14-2005, 07:51 AM

After just replacing the ignition switch for the second time on my '97, I'll agree it's the battery.
Without power to the switch, the key can't be removed from the switch, which could mean the switch is bad. But, the interior lights aren't wired into the switch, so somewhere from your battery to everthing else, you have a bad connection. Having traced the wiring on mine, there's also a junction box on the left fender (Driver side) that has battery power going to it.

blazee · 10-14-2005, 08:54 AM

Yeah, I would try a washer. I've heard that the factory studs are a little too long for some aftermarket batteries. After the stud bottoms out, the post isn't tight enough to get a good connection. While you've got it apart, make sure that you clean the contact areas well.

BlazerLT · 10-15-2005, 01:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mountie1982

Yea I guess I did. Thanks I will try the washer on it. Hopefully thats what it is.

Thanks

But also keep the ignition switch in the bottom of your mind. You are in the hell year for ignition switch problems.

mountie1982 · 10-15-2005, 05:26 AM

I put the washer between the cable and battery. So far so good it starts every time now. No loss of power when turning on heat and the pre sets on the deck stay programed. Thank god it was that easy. The last few months have been hell with it. I have had to replace engine, sensors, battery, breaks and some goof slammed into the back of it while i was driving down the road. It finally gets fixed on Tuesday! Well anyways thanks once agian for all your help.

rlith · 10-15-2005, 08:42 AM

No prob, glad it worked out for you

blazee · 10-15-2005, 08:46 AM

I'm glad to hear that you're going again.

Good call rlith.

rlith · 10-15-2005, 08:54 AM

Yeah, I had the same thing happen to my positive cable... Drove me nuts...

After 3 days of wiggling the cable I threw a washer in and haven't worried about it since...

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