Help another girl out????

Hey there :)
I am new to the forum and it's great to see that we have a place to talk about all our problems we're having with our blazers! It is unreal at the info I have found online...people having problems with their blazers. I just bought mine used, I was really excited and seem to have problem after problem.


When I bought it, it ran horrible, idling up and down, stank like old rotten eggs, check engine light on, slow changing gears, no power...etc..etc. Well, I went to advance auto and bought a manual, spent the next 24 hrs. reading it and researching online. I now need to just take a suitcase to the parts house and move in. I'm there if I'm not under the hood.

I went to change the fuel regulator and seen that the part isn't what mine calls for, it's nice to know that Motor Mite is coming out with one. So, I went to salvage yard and got the whole CPI unit and replaced mine. Closed it all up and the thing wouldn't start, after about 45 min. boom, it started and RAN GREAT! Took it down the road and guess what.....ALL the problems were gone! all of em, no rotten eggs to smell, no engine light, tons of power, changed into gear smooth and right on time...engine purred with revved....didnt even shimmy.

Well, got home and the thing wouldn't even start again. After another long while, it started again, same thing. I don't get it, It won't start (most of the time) but when it does, ya couldn't want more.

I have since put new TPS (throttle), MAP (mass air), TEC (temp), spark plugs, wires, distrutor cap, and rotor. oh, I wore the starter out, trying to start it so many times, so I also replaced it. I may have put more on, all I can think of off top of my head. I did this in 4 days. I see bolts and rachet wrenches when I close my eyes.


PLEASE someone help me. I tried checking fuel pressure, advance says it was faulty gauge. I got a reading of 40, when turnin engine over.

IT boils down to this:


Engine will start when I leave it alone and let it rest. It will start ONLY ONCE, with huge puffs of white smoke, after the ONE cold start, that's IT, nothing more.

I also got an EGR from the salvage, I've read so much about everyone having to replace theirs. But, I haven't put it on yet, it may be bad, too. I did buy a gasket just in case. I am trying to NOT have to take upper plenum off again, however, I'm wondering if it may have air leak there.

question also: do ya put that gucky sticky stuff between lower and upper manifold or just the gasket?

any suggestions, I'm open :)

Thanks in advance

when you start it and get the huge puff of white smoke, what does the exhaust smell like? is it a real sweet smell? antifreeze usually produces white smoke, thats why im wondering.

as for the EGR, if the EGR sticks open ( which it usually what happens due to carbon deposits), you'll have rough idle, hard starting, but it will run. it'll also run fine at speed, just idle really bad.

check that fuel pressue again... connect a good gauge, turn the key on but dont try to start it, with in 2 seconds of turning key on, pressure should be 55-61 psi. with the pump running. once the pump stops, pressure should vary by a few pounds, and then hold steady.

thankfully my 95 S-10 with CPI has been very near trouble free. it has over 175,000 miles on it, and the only problems ive had have been, a crank sensor(3600 miles), air cond pressure switch(110,000 miles), and alternator (174,000 miles) and the anti-lock unit is shot.... which is about $500.

If the truck has been siiting for a while, hours, overnight, etc. does it always start up?

Once you do get it started, how long do you keep it running? Or does it stall?

Sometimes when the fuel pump gets hot it could cause some of these problems.

I put a fuel pump on it and guess what, it starts EVERYTIME now, IF it turns over. sometimes I get in there and it just sits there as if the battery isn't in there. So, I checked the wiring and I think I had 2 mixed up, so I changed that and it fixed the "just sitting there problem"....however, I took her for a drive and ran into other problems.

The check engine light came on and it stalls when I stop, it gets soooo close to dead when I slow down that the brakes won't work, I have to use brake and accelerator and throw into neutral. Transmission keeps changing gears, and it's running loud.


Please all advice welcome! :)

Thanks soooo much

Glad to hear that the fuel pump helped your starting problem:bigthumb:

Can you be a little more discriptive about your other problems, can you find out what codes are stored in the computer?

Hey there,

The thing is still doing the same thing as it was but i'm gonna try to be more descriptive.

The smoke is whitish. Smells like fuel pretty much.
It stalls when I slow down at stop signs, lights, etc. and the brakes go out. I think the brakes go out b/c it's almost dead at that point, not sure.
Then engine light is still on, what confuses me is it went off once I put the CPI unit in.

Starting problems: I put new starter in, and sometimes when I start to crank it, it won't even turn its exactly like there's no battery in it. but, then all of a sudden it will wake up and start, just like that!:confused:
I cleaned the connectors on the battery and had the battery tested.

I don't know what to do anymore. I just bought the blazer 3 wks ago and I've actually gotten to drive it two times :frown:

thanks for ya help

Did you ever think you should sell it back!!! Why don't you take it to the dealer and get it checked out. Afterall you already spent a ton of money on it, if you took it to the dealer it would be fixed all ready and I bet it wouldn't cost more that you already have spent on parts and time trying to fix it yourself!

Guessing costs more money than fixing it right!!!!!!!!!!

Sounds like a vacuum problem, perhaps. The power brakes operate off engine vacuum. The computer controls also use vacuum to control other variables like fuel mixture and gear shifting. If you can get it to idle at all, you might try lifting the hood and listening for an air sucking sound, or just look for a loose, disconnected, or cracked hose.
Good luck! Vacuum leaks get be a bee-atch!:bloated: