ok so after a few river trips this summer my truck has started acting up, here are my problems;

sometimes when going to start my truck its just doesnt start, starter just cranks and cranks and cranks and she doesnt even try to turn over, happens randomly, and usually i can just wait and try it later and it starts just fine....


i noticed when going around 70 on the highway and making the truck downshift my lights flicker, pretty bad, and one time while passing someone my battery light flashed at me when i got up in the 4k rpm.... then later this trip while coming home the truck just shut off on me, going about 75 on the highway, no CEL has ever come up. no overheating, no smoke, waited about 15 and it started and i made it home???

my last problem is occasionaly when upon startup my abs light flashes at me and my shifter is locked in gear...

i really do take pretty good care of my truck and this is the first time ive had major problems, seems i get em all at once. any help is appreciated.

 

Take it over to Autozone and get your battery and alternator tested.

 

i read the threads hinting at the battery and alternator for the abs problem, do you think it could be the stem of all my problems or just the one? i will be taking it there tomorrow, but i have the battery out now, i want to test my ground wire, what points should i be testing it at? i have had the recalled cruise control switch swapped out by the dealership, but should i check it anyways, where is it??

 

im thinking i have a grounding problem any advice on where to start? im going to take it to auto zone and have the battery/alternator checked, i have an optima battery i bought in 07 so it should still be under their 3 year warranty if thats my problem....ugh

 

For the intermittant no start, pull the crank position sensor connector off and plug it up a few times to make sure it is making contact as well as inspect it for corrosion.
This fails, nothing works on the motor.

 

great thanks for the input i will check into that connector, going to start by trying to find where it is!!! hopefully internet works for that one!

 

gonna go to autozone tomorrow, didnt havce much time last week. will check out that connector after i get back, any other suggestions?

 

I had the same symtoms, and it turned out to be the fuel pump.

I would try to start my truck and it would turn the motor over but not catch, just cranking. I wait for 1 hour and it starts fine.

Not saying this is your problem, but it is something to check out next time it happpens. Listen for the fuel pump running when it will not start. I used a speed funnel put into the gas tank filler neck to amplify the sound so I would not miss the hum of the pump. The pump is inside the gas tank. Keep in mind that when you turn the key on, the pump will run only for a few seconds, so this is a two man test.

good luck

 

I had this same problem also, but for me it was the iac, the truck would crank forever, but if i left it alone for about 30minutes to an hour it would start fine. You also might have a wire problem on your starter. usually the main cause is the wire that has the red boot over it. it gets really corroded. When this happened on my truck it wouldnt start when it was raining. when my dad got underneath it you could actually see sparks from that really corroded wire. good luck

 

thanks the last two posters!

i went to autozone today to check my alternator and battery, they said both were good still dont know what could cause my abs light and shifter lock on startup, and the flickering lights and battery light on heavy loads

i will look at the starter wires and listen for the fuel pump within the next few days, as well as trying to find that crank position connector, though u are the second person to recomend the fuel pump. have to wait till i can get a buddy to assist me! i have replaced my fuel pump before but if i have to do it again ill go with a higher flow one just for kicks, since im working on a motor in my garage atm anyways. mine starting problem happens pretty often, did it two times today, the truck can be running, ill shut it off and go to start it and itll just crank and crank....doesnt let me get anywhere fast!

autotech, whats the iac? as its something i may look into if these dont pan out.

 

gonna use my thread as a notepad here sorry, doing some research found another thread guy having same problem already tried fuel pump. so far a collection of things for me to look into.

mega fuses
fuel tank trandsucer
crank position sensor
inspect wires to starter.

i am leaning away from the starter issues because the starter seems to be working fine, will still inspect wires but the starter is cranking.

 

You might want to go back and get your alt checked around that 4rpm rang sincemost time they wont go above 2 when checking. I also had issues with the alt when I got into the 4 ran the tester on it that we have at work everything was fine (never get into the 4 range though) a few weeks later my alt went.

 

thank you,
your right they only got it to about 2k and i told them the lights only dim and bbattery light only flashed under HEAVY load. i think im going to start with the simple fuse and sensor checks first as they seem fairly simple and inexpensive, pep boys charged me 15 bucks to check the charging system.........and i had to sit there for half an hour after when it wouldnt start in there parking lot!
is there a way to check it myself? i may just replace the fuel pump and alternator for the hell of it, i should i have a new engine soon, but i dont like my truck being busted, so a bigger fuel pump and higher output alternator may just go in for the hell of it, but id still like to solve the problem!

 

freshjive, a bit of a side track here, but were you the guy who had a fabtech kit on your truck, and then switched to the DBR long travel? if so, you kind of left us hanging there, buddy. how did it turn out? here's what I'm talking about:
https://www.f150online.com/forums/su...ng-travel.html