ok, i know its not thirdgen related, although its a chevy from the 80's.
my daily driver (89 Chevy S10 Blazer) it was runnin ok. i decided to give it a tune-up backed it into the garage. changed plugs wires cap rotor starter battery and oil change, now it wont start. just fires once then BAM blows fumes and smoke out of the throttle body. ive gone over the plug wires about 7 times now im getting so pissed at this thing funny how ive never had problems doing this stuff on thirdgens my whole life pretty much, but this 4.3 seems to not wanna get going again. oh and i also gapped all the plugs, .035 just like recommended.

 

May be 180 degrees off on the distributor.... Sure sounds like it.

 

definitely sounds like its ignition related

do check firing order and position yes

something isnt set right with it

 

yea i know. but i didnt move the distributor at all. i checked the firing order a million times everything seems like its good to go. now that it has a new starter it sounds like 1 cylinder is firing but it wont fire the rest. the dist. cap was loose before the tune up. do you think now that its tight it doesnt line up? i have a strong feeling thats the culprit. but i cant get a socket or a wrench in there to loosen the hold down bolt on the distributor...

 

you can use something called a crow foot wrench...it's the head of a wrench with say a 3/8" opening like it goes on a socket wrench...thats how i got that bolt out on mine. PITA but it worked...just use like a 6" extention and the socket wrench itself.

 

they also make a distributor wrench. they have it at auto zone for about $10. also make sure that the dist is tight. sometimes the clamp loosens and does stupid stuff to your timing. put a timing light on it and see where its at now.

 

Leave the ignition timing alone!!!!

If you didn't mess with it, it's right where it was before. It didn't just up and jump itself off into the ozone so bad the motor won't even run, with the bolt tight. Believe that. All you will accomplish by dinking with the "timing", is to create yourself YET ANOTHER mistake that you will ALSO have to go back and undo. DON'T TOUCH IT, no matter what peple tell you.

Next, check your work. Being as how this is probably a 6-cyl, I haven't the vaguest foggiest faintest hint of a whiff of a glimpse of a clue what the firing order would be or which terminal on the cap is #1 or which way the dist turns; but all of that isn't hard to find or figure out. Take off the cap, remove the #1 spark plug, bump the motor over until compression starts to come out that plug hole, turn the motor by hand until the timing marks align; whichever cap terminal the rotor points to, that's #. Have somebody spin the starter and watch which way it turns. Observe the firing order which should be printed on the intake manifold; put the plug wires on the cap in that direction and that order, keeping in mind that this is a GM vehicle so #1 is the front driver's side, 135 down that side; #2 is front pass side, 246 down that side.

It's just a car, not hard to figure out. Just don't go doing stupid unnecessary stuff that makes it hard on yourself, because your situation right now is definitely EASY, if you just think it through carefully and apply logic and leave any assumptions about "it must be right" behind. Start with a fresh mind and follow the instructions, it has NO CHOICE but to work right.

 

Check the Vacuum hose to the MAP sensor. The tube is plastic, becomes VERY BRITTLE and BREAKS. IF the MAP doesn't receive a vacuum signal as the engine cranks, the engine over-fuels and will not run or run very poorly.

Check that brittle plastic tube.

 

Isn't "size" great? That's what she tells me all the time, too.

Anyway:Sorry: that should say "that's #1".

 

well since he changed wires and then it was not running right it has to be firing order incorrect



did you open up anything or bump anything ?

check hoses yeah

anything is possible

any that are cracked or brittle or really soft crappy then change or repair them

and yeah if you know the distributor didnt rotate at all then dont move it


its going to be something minor

 

alright, i know the dist. didnt move, so im not going to @#$% with it. nothing i bumped into on the motor cracked or broke. so im basically down to the plugs, i gapped them but maybe the computer at my work is wrong, i HATE autozone, so its a 4.3L TBI 262ci (90* V6) basically its a Small Block 350 thats missing the two front cylinders. weird little motor. its even 4" bore.....

im so used to my iroc thats all.

 

No, it's not the plug gap; that can't cause your complaint.

It's the firing order.

That 6-cyl, I've actually seen one of, and know a little (VERY little) about. The dist turns clockwise viewed from above. Find #1 firing using compression as described, and put the #1 plug wire on the #1 terminal as you find it, and make sure you get the wires around the cap clockwise in the firing order. Should fire right up.

 

Your firing order is 1,6,5,4,3,2Notes Firing Order - 4.3L (262)
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If you will notice, the white dot on the distributor corresponds to cylinder #1