2004 burban, 5.3 Vortex stall issue

[Osiris]

I have a 2004 burban 5.3L 4x4 Z71. It will just cut off and I have to pull to the side of the road and restart it. It will restart in a few minutes and go for about 20 miles then cut off again. There is plenty of fuel in the tank. If it were the fuel pump, wouldn't it just quit and not work again? If it were the ignition, wouldn't it be out of timing and not correct itself? It did not throw a CEL the first time, but now it does. How do you pull the codes for the CEL? It just seems like a fuel starving issue. I will shoot some carb/FI cleaner in the intake plenum to test the ignition to make sure it fires then to rule out the electrical problem and narrow it down to fuel. Will let you know on that?

Does anyone know of a good chevy forum? I went to chevroletforum.com. any others or better ones?

Thanks for any pointers.

Osiris

[Yota4runner]

Run the codes and see what comes up, you will have to hook a OBDII scanner to it, the port is under the dash. It will give me a better idea of where to start looking.

[Erich_870]

Could anyone be playing a trick and put something like a golf ball in your tank? I've heard stories about putting something in a tank so it blocks it, then moves so you can start it up, until it blocks it again. Just a thought :tongueout:

Erich

[MTL_4runner]

You need to get that code pulled to know what is going on. Either get an OBD II code reader (avalilable at almost any auto parts store for about $100-200) or take it to an Autozone and have them read it for free. Once you have the code post back and we'll help you out.

[Texas Jim]

Do you have remote start? If so it could be one of the random codes for the key and switch that has to pair up every time it starts. How does it run? does the 5.3Lt have enough horses to haul a bourbon? and what do you get for MPG's ? Just curious... TJ

[4x4mike]

The chevy forums might be trying. Take your time with them. You could try gmfullsize.com and go to the maintenance section. Sometimes it takes a few days to get answers. It could be your fuel pump dying. I have heard of people carrying around a "thumper" to hit their gas tank with. It will kind of shock the fuel pump and make it work. People do this to get home or avoid pulling a tank. I don't have the OBDII but on mine I can check the codes with a paperclip in the ports and counting the SES light flashes. I forget which ones but they're probably different on yours. AZ can pull your codes.

[amgraham]

Advance can pull the codes too. I had an 89 Sub that when the fuel pump went I hit the tank with a big mallet to get it going again. Did that for about 2 weeks while I got my parts and stuff together (and burn some of that 40 gallons out of there). Yeah, you just need to narrow it down first to fuel, spark or whatever. Also, I guess you're just out of warranty too...

[DMG]

Get the codes. If it dies quickly and restarts easily it may be a cam or crank sensor.