I have a 98 4x4 4.3l automatic LS, I let it set for 4 days and when I tried to start it it cranked but wouldn't run. I didn't run the starter constantly but I did try it until the battery got low. Charged the battery, got it tested, cleaned the cablles and terminals, andreinstaled it and got no cranking at all. In about 10 minutes the voltmeter showed 10 volts. I checked the fuses with a meter and they are good. Could my starter be the culprit? The truck has 158000 mi on it and I've only had it for a couple of months but so far it has been good running and until today never failed to start almost instantly. HELP!

 

Had a simular problem with mine, the leads on the starter were loose/dirty. Make sure the connections on the starter are good and snug. You will have to go threw the front passenger wheel well to get at it.

 

That sounds like fun. Thanks I'll give it a shot. Anyone else?

 

was there rain or heavy snow around this time? wondering about moisture and dist cap.

 

Yes it was very humid and damp. Everything on the dash is slightly nuts too. I can here relays buzzing and the needles are acting strange. They jump and swing to positions that are not normal.

 

Bad ground???

 

Bad ground? possible. I took the batt in for load test and recharge the cable ends looked bad so I scraped them but my main dislike for the side post is that cleaning the post is nearly impossible without a special tool.
I've been outside freezing my *** off and the only thing that made any difference at all was rocking the screws in the cables back an forth then tightening them down again that made the gauges go back to normal and the wierd buzzing from under the dash stop. All of the displays and warning lamps came back too. When I turned the key to start it just went dead again and only the continued fussing with the cables restored it. I woud also note that the battery is back down to 10-11 volts and will need to be recharged again.

 

If moving around the connections at the starter helped, then it is clear that you have a corrosion problem on one or more of the terminals. I would disconnect all of the terminals and give them a thorough cleaning.

 

Recharged and replaced the cables, everything is back to normal. I've never seen that much wierd crap go on with nothing but bad cables before. There wasn't a lot of visible corrosion but the cable ends were sealed after a fashion. insde the plastic covering was nearly dissolved. the failure was probably just co-incidental to the discharge.