I have a 97 GMC C1500 I am getting back on the road after 4+ years of stationary retirement. I put a new battery in it, and talked to the starter with a brass hammer. I can get it cranked and it will idle, but to turn the wheels, or put in gear, it die’s! What are my next moves??
Wow . . . 4 years? Take a good look at the tires, make certain that you’re riding on good rubber. I’d pull the wheels off and go over the brakes, at the very least I’d lubricate the moving (sliding) parts of the brakes, clean off the rust, spin everything by hand and listen, look, learn. The brake fluid might be changes also while you’re there. The exhaust should be inspected . . . sitting for 4 years might have caused a few leaks, don’t want to inhale the exhaust gases. Manual or automatic? I’d check the tranny fluid in the auto, gear oil level in the manual. I resurrected a '79 Dodge pickup slant-6 a few years ago . . had not run for about 2 years . . . I mostly made sure it was safe, then went over stuff as I went along. You’d be suprised how much better vehicles run if they are run often, it ran/drove like crap at first, now it runs great. Rocketman
Um…is the gas four years old? Has the fuel system been sitting unpurged all this time?
4-year-old gasoline is likely to be your first problem. I’d consider replacing the gas with some fresh stuff and try again.
O’kay, When I drain out the old gas, how do I purge the system?? And should I fork over 50$ for a gas line pressure guage?
I would start with just the new gas. Four years is a long time for gas, even one year can cause problems. Once you get the the old fuel out of there, it may not need anything more. If you drain the tank and refill (you don’t need it topped off, but a least enough to register on the fuel gauge. Then idling it for a while should purge the system.
Don’t be tempted to add fuel stabilizer now, as it will not do anything. It stops the fuel from aging, but it can’t turn back the clock.
It may not fix the idle only problem but you need to do it anyway and it may fix the problem.
As noted you are going to need some to do some other stuff. Oil coolant and brake fluid likely all need to be changed, I would also do transmission fluid.
I don’t see any need for a fuel pressure gauge.