Alright thanks. Were you eventually able to start your parents car...would it eventually fire? Mine has never failed to start... typically around 5 degrees it will take about 3-5 times to fire, and sub zero temps 8+ but it has always eventually started.

EDIT: I just filled up the tank yesterday..should i wait until it's lower in fuel to increase the cleaner to fuel ratio or just dump 2 or 3 bottles in the full tank?

 

We drained the battery trying to get it to fire. It would start instantly on starter fluid, but then die. 20 minutes with the light under the hood and the charger on the battery and it started right up.

I would wait until you can dump in 5 or so gallons of fuel with it to mix it appropriately, especially with a concentrated dose.

 

You mean it's more important to have fuel go down after the chevron to mix it up than the ratio of fuel to chevron? Just making sure i understand

Should I try starter fluid as a test in the meantime? You spray that right into the tb correct?

 

You could try starter fluid, just spray it into the throttle body, then reattach the intake duct (or disconnect the MAF sensor). If you try to start it with the MAF sensor connected, but air not being pulled through it, it will die.

And yes, drive it around a bit to lower the level in the tank. Dump two 20gallon treatment bottles in and then fill it up. This will mix it up appropriately.

 

Alright, i'll try the starter fluid this week and later in the week when my tank is around half i'll add the cleaner. Thanks!

 

UPdate: I had a zero morning this morning, 3" of snow overnight...finally a cold day where the truck wouldn't fire up. I sprayed liberally the throttle blades of the tb with starter fluid and attempted to start the truck with the throttle part open... fired up right away!

So this confirms i'm not getting fuel to the combustion chambers correct?(since it's 60psi at the rail).

Anything other than injectors that could be 'sticking' or otherwise misbehaving in cold weather for starting? The 'spider'?

I've got my fuel injector cleaner(2 bottles) and will put them in later today when i'm closer to empty and fill up. Ih ope it's just sticking injectors and this fixes it but is there anything else that could be now that we know starter fluid works?

 

So how much of the cleaner/tank would you expect might need to go through the system to clean this up assuming it will work? It's now -3 deg out and it only takes a few hours for the truck to cool down enough where i need the starter fluid to get it going again....which means i'm going to be using it everyday when i leave work I've driven to about 3/4 tank after putting in the 2 bottles of cleaner.

 

It may take two tanks like that. Then again, it may just not work period resulting in the only foreseeable solution being to replace the spider. That is of course if the injectors are the true problem.

 

Would a scanner that monitors injector duty cycle help determine if they're not flowing properly? The problem of course is i need either the block heater or starting fluid to get the engine to fire...which would be when it could be scanned. I'm pricing out the MFI spider now, just to know what to expect.

I dont' mind plugging in at night to get an easy start in the mornings...but this starter fluid after work thing will get old soon

 

I hate recommending things as drastic as replacing the spider without running through the testing. The bad part is, without taking the truck out of commission for good while, it is very difficult to test my theory.

I was able to get the spider from my local dealer for just under $300 out the door (IIRC). If you have an AC Delco retailer close, it keeps the dealers more honest. I have listed the part number somewhere around here.