Hey everyone, I don't know if this may be an electrical issue or not but I'm going to see if anyone may have any input on this...

I was driving last night then all the sudden, the car did not want to gas up, my power steering went out, the brakes could not be pressed onto and the car just sounded dead. It did this 3 times last night. It started right back up though if you waited a few minutes. It did this when I slowed down twice and when I picked up speed up. The third time it did this I slowed down pulling into my driveway and it took longer than usual to start again.

I don't know if this may be an issue with the battery, alternator, or that it just may need gas. I'm going to feel like an idiot if it needs gas. The battery voltage was fine when we read this morning. We haven't tried to drive it anymore since last night.

Let me know what you think.

 

Your engine is stalling out, with it not running you dont have power steering or power brakes.

if it was the battery or alternator it wouldnt start back up. It would just be dead. My thought is ignition coil, or control module. Run the vehicle and see if the coil gets really hot, it shouldnt get too hot. Also with the early 4.3 "vortec" the fuel system is of question. Have a fuel pressure and leakdown test done.

 

Does it run rough on restart? When the EGR valve sticks open it will die at idle, and is also very difficult to start when hot. Also you will get a check engine light. If this is your issue its a simple fix to replace it.

 

When EGR valves on that era Vortec V6 fail it's usually because a chunk of carbon gets stuck in the pintle and holds it open causing a vacuum leak. I had that same exact problem on my '93 Sonoma truck. The cheap and easy solution is to remove the EGR and clean any carbon out of the valve. Also clean the EGR passage in the manifold and then install a screened EGR gasket when the valve is reinstalled.

My guess is not EGR, though. I would say do a fuel pressure and leakdown test. Also check the coil with a multimeter and take the ignition control module to an auto parts store for testing. If both of those pass then check the pickup coil on the distributor shaft. That can go bad and cause problems with dying and starting.