help me get my stupid burb started, part 2..

[jumbo]

89 gmc suburban, 350tbi, 08 silverado dash, dakota digital gauges, bagged and bodied w/new custom 2x4 box tubing frame, steering column from 92 silverado.

it ran a month and a half ago, just long enough to drive it from the backyard to the front of the house and back again, my buddy tried it 3 days later, it wouldn't start and hasn't since then. We've replaced the coil and bypassed the oil pressure sending unit (to see if it would catch). Getting erratic spark, erratic fuel (sometimes it trickles, sometimes it pours), fuel filter is new, got gas in the tank (that's how it ran last time, lol). He's burned up 2 starters. What could it possibly be? I just want this dad gum thing to run, it was at a shop 14 months and i finally picked it up because i was tired of waiting on the dude to finish it, i towed back a pile of parts that doesn't run. I'm about 3 millimeters from just dragging it into the backyard and setting fire to it. I really don't want to do that because i have $12,500 invested IN THIS ONE!! Someone please give me a miracle solution!! From what i hear, the plug on the steering column is jacked up, and there are wires behind the dash that spark when my buddy tries to test them, what's the solution? Do i take it to a mechanic and hope he can un-screw it? Do i do a motor swap (either to another tbi or carb)? Do i do a carb conversion? Do i scrap it? Someone please make this decision for me before i shoot the sub or myself and put at least one of us out of our misery

[onedayjake]

The first thing I would look at would be the distributor, take the cap off and see if it's rusty under there, like on the pick up. I've seen a bunch of problems with these. If it is rusty I would just by a new one, they are pretty cheap.

[justpball]

damn bro you have the worst luck with burbs...sorry...LOL
are you not with the burb? you keep saying your buddy has done this or that???

[justpball]

sounds like a bad ground, check those first!

[jumbo]

yeah, it's at my buddy's house because:

1. it does not have the windshield in it and i have no place to cover it at my house, at least at his house it's covered under a carport, and
2. i've spent so much money on this damn thing that STILL doesn't run, if my wife sees it before it's at least running, there's a good chance i'll get presented with divorce papers. Which may not be a bad thing at moment, lol.

If we get the house we want (my wife's uncles house on family land), i'll have a 40'x50' shop that will have PLENTY of room for the bus

But that's about a year away. Luckily my father in law has several carb'ed sbc's at his house, after a LOT of thinking and worrying, i think i'm just gonna snag an intake, distributor, and carb from his spare parts, get a fuel regulator, and carb the *****. For now, at least. The wiring harness is so fubar'ed that i'm either going to have to rip it all out and start over, (truck and engine harness), or leave it carbed for a while and get an all new tbi harness for it (if i decide to go back to tbi). but right now i just want it running. It's been over 3 years since i bought the yellow one, and i still don't get to drive it. I seriously thought about buying ANOTHER square body sub that was super clean and putting the bagged/bd frame under it. I'm 0 for 2 on shops (and subs) right now. If i can get this one running, i'll just drive it for a while instead of trying to do everything at once, that does not seem to be working, even while having (supposedly) reputable shops working on them

[dccarpenter]

Just wanted to pipe in that I feel your pain, I've been facing nothing but an onslaught of problems with my trucks and it's getting to the relationship problems stage with the gf over them. The constant borrowing of her car and cash and time outlays on the trucks is getting ridiculous to even me...

I had a Bronco two years ago that had the same starting problems..I'd keep replacing the battery cables, starter, batteries, relay, etc.. and it kept killing itself. Someone had messed with the wiring bad trying to put a security system in at some point and I could start it two or times but wait a few days or week and the next you time started it it would grenade something, fuses, starters, batteries, etc.. Ignition coil and distributor cap have been my no start cause on the past two trucks, '67 gmc and '84 chevy, and bad wiring to starter was the problem on the '75 Blazer.

Basically I only buy things that don't work recently..had a good 5 year run of buying junk $300 vehicles that ran despite my abusing them with no maintenance but that has come crashing to a halt. I've tried using reputable shops too..it never seemed to help, figuring out and understanding the problems myself seems to be the only thing that helps.

[motornut]

try listing what you have done
(my 87 tbi 4X4 sub had issues starting and i finally traced it to a nick(now hard baked wire inside it was green) in the fuel wire over the rear wheel well)