01' blazer trouble starting

I recently purchased a 2001 2wd Blazer a month ago with 21k miles. Over the last month I have had it in the shop twice for troubles starting. It seems to have trouble about once every week, usually on a cold night. The car has power but doesn't seem to turn over. I have tried to jump it but it doesn't help. The first time it went in the shop I was told it was the cold crank so the battery was replaced but the problem has pursisted. The strange thing is that it has happend only at night (and can never get it to start no matter what I do), But when I try it the next morning it seems to start right up. The mechanics seem to be stumped and have told me that there is nothing that they can do since they can not get the problem to replicate. Has anyone else experience problems like this or know what may be causing this? Also, does anyone know any legal action I can take if this problem can not be fixed, such as getting my money back under a lemon law? I have owned the car less than a month and it has spent atleast 2 weeks in the shop so far. Please Help.

just as an update. The blazer was purchased in New Hampshire if that makes a difference in the lemon law. I was given a warranty but it was for a month which will be over soon. But within the first week it went into the shop for this problem so it should still be considered a lemon under this warranty even if it expires since the problem started before the warranty was up as far as I see it.

well, nice to know i'm not the only one, but sorry to hear it at the same time.

i bought my 01 blazer in aug. 02, and the first time this happened to me was in late dec. i took it in and they said it was a bad battery. a week later, it happened again. a jump start worked that time, so i wrote it off. about a month later, it happened again, i took it in and they said it was a corroded cable, that was DEFINITELY it, it was probably the problem the first time and everything's fine. happened again several weeks later, and that's when i learned the problem went away in the morning. up to that point, every time it had happened, i had been somewhere that i had to deal with it immediately. this time it happened in the parking lot at a hotel i was staying, called AAA in the morning, and by the time the tow truck got there, it started. frustrated, i just called the dealer and yelled at them this time. then it happened again in the parking lot at work. again i left it overnight and it started in the morning. i took it in and they just threw up their hands. that was in may. it didn't happen again until last week. just when i thought it had gone away. i'm taking it in tomorrow, and if they can't tell me whats wrong with it, i'm planning to get rid of it. they keep telling me the same thing you said, tho: can't replicate it, can't fix it. two of the six times its happened to me now, i was 80 miles from home. i can't be able to not trust it like that.

i can tell you that i doubt cold has anything to do with it. i live in florida, and tho many of the times its happened to me have been in jan-march, its never been very cold. and a couple of times, it was downright hot. i have noticed two things, tho.

1) it only seems to happen after sitting off for several hours. never happened when i was running errands, for instance, and turning on and off in a few minutes. each time, it had been off for at least 4 hours. interestingly, tho, its never done it when i was at home.

2) each time it has happened has been late afternoon to early evening. all six times, i think the earliest its ever happened was about 6 p.m. and the latest was the most recent, about 11:30 p.m.

this was my first shot at seeing if anyone else has had the problem, and i'm going to keep looking. i was hoping to find a potential solution to take to the dealer in the morning.

good luck

as far as the lemon law, i think that only applies to new cars, at least in florida. not sure.

another thing, tho: if it only has 21K on it, you have plenty of factory warranty left. mine has expired, but not before they were well aware of this problem.

I understand your frustration...but understand a technicians side of the story for a minute...
Intermittants are one of the most difficult problems to diagnos and fix...understand that to properly repair a vehicle, you must be able to duplicate the complaint (the old adage applies here..if it ain't broke, you can't fix it)
The most important things you can do are...
1. give a complete description of what happens when the vehicle acts up......ie: spins and won't start,won't spin over, does it hot/cold/am/pm,after driving 2 miles,etc...
2. Give them some time to attempt to duplicate the problem..if it happens first thing in the morning, don't drive it in there at noon and wait on it or expect it back a 5 the same day...
3. If the problems happens once in a blue moon for you, don't you think the tech may have the same experiance?

Now, with that said, lets move on...
when your problem occurs, is it a "engine spins over but will not start" or is it a "I turn the key and the starter won't engage" problem?

There are some issues with ignition switches on those vehicles causing no start and no spin over conditions.

oh, don't misunderstand, my frustration is with the car and the problem. i can relate to the ain't-broke-can't-fix thing. the dealer has been very nice, and i believe they're doing all they can, but as i illustrated, this happens extremely randomly, with no warning, no where near the dealer at a time that the dealer isn't open anyway. by the time they are, the problem is gone, with no indication when it might return again. to replicate the problem this past instance, it would've had to have sat at the dealer for six months.

the problem is that it doesn't turn over at all. all the accessories come on, all the dash lights come on, they go out when you turn the key, only thing that doesn't happen is a crank. no matter how many times you try, nothing. come back 8 hours later, its as if there was never a problem.

i found another thread in which two people with a 96 blazer had a similar, but not precisely the same, problem and the fix was replacing an ignition wiring harness that had become corroded. i'm taking that e-mail to the dealer today. and i'll mention the ignition switch possibility, too. unfortunately, despite growing up with my dad and uncles doing nothing but working on cars, i picked up very little of that knowledge, so sometimes i don't explain such things too well.

I would definately recommend replacing the ignition switch...it seems to have fixed many of the same complaints you have, on cars I have not been able to duplicate the complaint...(sorry about the poor sentance structure)

Some insight here. I have seen my share of related problems due to fuel pressure as well. Intermittents are the most difficult to locate, and can be the most frustrating for the customer. Patience is the word here. I guarantee it will also affect the price of the repair as well. If you treat the servicing facility well, they will work with you on the price of the repair. Diagnostic time can also work against you. If the time spent is on the locating of the problem, it will be a lot less than if it is spent arguing with the customer. As a shop owner, if the customer was willing to give the time to find the problem, I frequently GAVE away much of the time I spent locating the problem, adding to the friendly exchange. Ray

well, i went in today, armed with this info. in addition to the service rep, one of the techs was in the office as i was checking in. as i was going over the problem, he started asking me about other things that i never conceived as being related. Do the guages sometimes just dart back and forth for no reason? Do idiot lights occasionally go on and off for no reason? Does the transmission sometimes surge? all these things had happened at one point or another, and as i was picking my jaw up off the floor, he said "its the ignition switch."

they replaced for free, as factory warranty was in effect when i first brought it in for this problem almost a year ago. time will tell if this actually fixes the problem, and i haven't eliminated possibility of getting out of it, but this was the first time i took it in that i thought that MAYBE it was really fixed.

favorite part of the exchange was when i asked the svc manager if, when we took the switch out, would we be able to say, "That was it." the look on his face was priceless. no, was the answer.

although the corroded wires still makes a lot of sense to me. but as i said before, i know nothing.

appreciate all the insight you guys provided here, and hope you get your problem fixed, blazer01

Well it has once again broken down and would not start. I appreciate all the help that people have given regarding this matter. On Monday night the Blazer would not start and I tried it all through the night and into the morning with no luck. then a flatbed truck came and took it to the shop and once at the shop it started right up. I don't know if it being on an incline helped push gas around helping it to start but the vehicle now runs according to the shop. They say they have no idea what the problem is or where to begin. I wonder if maybe it is a fuel Pump.

When my father spoke with the manager about possibly returning the vehicle after owning the blazer for 1 month (3 weeks of which it has been in the shop) they told me they would be will to take it in on trade for average trade in value (3000 less than what I paid). so obviously this car is costing me over 1500 a week to drive in their eyes.

Please keep the suggestions coming with both technical and legal advice.
Thanks

My brother had a similar problem on his 2001, but it happened within the first few hours of owning the vehicle. He had under 100km's on the odometer after driving it off the lot. Parked it in the driveway, and would not start later that night. Started the next morning fine, then would not start again. Dealer diagnosed a wire harness that was being chaffed by the radiator and causing wires to ground out intermittently. The harness was repaired and re-routed and been fine since.

Well I got my blazer back almost 2 weeks ago after having the fuel pump replaced this time. it seems to be running ok, and knock on wood it hasn't broken down yet. But I have noticed that I don't seem to be getting the correct gas mileage. I do almost all highway driving ( commuting to boston everyday) 60 miles eachway. I have a 2 wheel drive 2 door which from what I read should get between 16-17 city and 22-24 highway. and I seem to be getting close to 16.5 highway according to these last two tanks of gas. Any advice.

well, its me again. i can officially say the ignition switch was not the problem. at least, not the whole problem. it happened again last night as i was going to leave work at 2 a.m. i am disinclined to take it back in to let them have another crack at it. very frustrating.

My Blazer didn't start in cold temps. I've had it to my mechanic several times and he can't find the problem. He has tried many different things (replacing sensors....etc.) But still can't get it to start (in cold weather)...It acts like its not getting any fuel...it does crank...and crank but ......we also thought it may have been the fuel pump.... Now, Funny Thing I Just Figured Out A Way To Get mine Started YESTERDAY. It Starts When I Just Barely Turn The Ignition Switch on. (Not Turning It All The Way) It Starts In The "running" position. THIS SEEMS TO WORK .......get me thru this cold weather......i know this is not the answer you're looking for.......but...............good luck

I Also Have A 2001 Blazer With The Same Problems As You Have Described. I Have 52,000 Miles On Mine And It Just Started 2 Weeks Ago. I Have Run Into Similar Problems With Other Cars The Germilns To Those Where Neutral Safety Switches, Ignition Switches, Poor Connections On Starter Solenoids (not The Batter Cable But The Power Wire To Engage The Solenoid), And Fuseable Links. But So Far I Haven't Found The Culprit Either On My Vehicle And It Also Has Been To The Dealer. Also My Problems Have Occured In The Early Mornings And Late Evenings Could Moisture Be A Problem In A Sensor Some Where That Is The ? I Have.

Truely Aggitate
Devil2b

I am not a mechanic but the problem you have sounds very familiar to what happened to me. It was usually early in the morning and late in the evening. And sometimes after long drives. The mechanic finally replaced the fuel pump and since then things have been fine. might want to have them look into that.

I am not a mechanic but the problem you have sounds very familiar to what happened to me. It was usually early in the morning and late in the evening. And sometimes after long drives. The mechanic finally replaced the fuel pump and since then things have been fine. might want to have them look into that.

Well if the fuel pump was bad or going bad that still wouldn't explain why the starter has no electrical power going to it when you want to start it. It would just turn over and over until you ran out of juice or toasted your poor little starter.