Author Topic: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10  (Read 30901 times)

Online bd

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #15 on: March 25, 2013, 09:52:42 PM »
OUCH!  This just keeps getting more interesting...

Cobbled wiring, mismatched wire size, and maybe a relay that is self-energizing(?).  Somewhere between the distributor and ignition switch, wires are melted/chafed together or otherwise connected that shouldn't be. 

When you inspected the wiring did you lay the entire length of loom and harness open and physically trace the 'red' ignition wire, inch-by-inch, all the way back through the bulkhead connector to the ignition switch, so that you visually inspected the entire run of wires?  If not, at this point you’ll need to do that.  This may seem a silly (obvious) comment, but you need to find out exactly how the distributor was wired to its power source at the time of engine replacement.  Download and use the 87 Wiring Diagrams (beginning about page 163) from our Technical Pages.  Earlier, you stated the 'white' wire is spliced to a 'red' wire.  Are any other wires spliced into that 'red' wire?

Some other things to look for while your tracing the harness...

Is there a 12-gauge pink wire in the engine compartment harness that was cut off and abandoned or connected into other wiring?  The '87 TBI harness used a dedicated 12-gauge pink wire to power the distributor directly from the ignition switch through the bulkhead connector.  The '87 TBI injector power feeds were 18-gauge red and white wires that spliced into an 18-gauge pink/black wire (along with five or so other pink/black wires) that received “fused ignition power” from the ignition switch.  Perhaps the ‘fused ignition circuit’ was used to power the distributor.
Rich
It's difficult to know just how much you don't know until you know it.
In other words... if people learn by making mistakes, by now I should know just about everything!!!
87 R10 Silverado Fleetside 355 MPFI 700R4 3.42 Locker (aka Rusty, aka Mater)

Offline JuneBug

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #16 on: March 25, 2013, 10:09:23 PM »
Ugh!!!  This truck!!! I love it but currently want to shoot it.  We did not pull at the wiring.  Is that your suggestion?  At this point I am not sure how they wired it when they put the new engine in. We followed the wires but loose track of some as the enter the dash area.  There is so much splicing that it would make you dizzy.  We have tried to fix what we new was wrong or remove wires that we know for certain were not needed. 

I don't think another wire was spliced into the red one but I will check tomorrow.  I was thinking of buying a new wiring harness until I saw the cost.  It isn't something that I can afford at the moment.  I'm gonna take the hood off the truck so that I can get a better view of the distributor.  and maybe I will have better answers to your questions.

BTW, I appreciate all your help so far.  You're AWESOME!!!

Online bd

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #17 on: March 25, 2013, 10:45:59 PM »
Take a deep breath!  You can resolve this problem if you remain patient, work systematically and don't shortcut.  In a nutshell, you will have to visually trace every inch of the "ignition" wiring, from the ignition switch, all the way to the distributor.  That means you will need to physically pull the harness out of the loom and look at it.  Somewhere in that length of run the wiring is compromised.  I'll try to answer any questions you have along the way.  Be prepared to string new wire, if necessary.  And, don't neglect the linked resources.  With any luck and careful observation, the problem will soon resolve.
Rich
It's difficult to know just how much you don't know until you know it.
In other words... if people learn by making mistakes, by now I should know just about everything!!!
87 R10 Silverado Fleetside 355 MPFI 700R4 3.42 Locker (aka Rusty, aka Mater)

Offline JuneBug

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #18 on: March 25, 2013, 11:11:35 PM »
I know I will eventually solve it but I am a instant gratification person. LOL.  I am learning to be patient.  When you speak of ignition switch are you refering to the one on top of the column or the one in the column.  I may be getting my parts mixed up.  I replace the one on top of the column.  It was hard to reach and I had to lower the column to get to it.  Everyone I have spoken to so far besides you have said that was the issue so I went with it and replaced it.  So not my issue!!

Online bd

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #19 on: March 25, 2013, 11:46:13 PM »
...When you speak of ignition switch are you refering to the one on top of the column or the one in the column.  I may be getting my parts mixed up.  I replace the one on top of the column.  It was hard to reach and I had to lower the column to get to it.  Everyone I have spoken to so far besides you have said that was the issue so I went with it and replaced it.  So not my issue!!

The "ignition switch" is the electrical component you replaced on top of the column.  The "lock cylinder" is the component in the column, just below the steering wheel on the right.  The lock cylinder is simply a key lock mechanism.  "Key switch" is a misnomer often used in substitution for lock cylinder.

It's awfully late for me to bring this up, but how did you adjust the ignition switch?
Rich
It's difficult to know just how much you don't know until you know it.
In other words... if people learn by making mistakes, by now I should know just about everything!!!
87 R10 Silverado Fleetside 355 MPFI 700R4 3.42 Locker (aka Rusty, aka Mater)

Offline JuneBug

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #20 on: March 30, 2013, 10:03:45 AM »
Sorry, haven't been able to look at the truck this week.  When I adjusted the switch the key was off and the acuator rod was hooked to the switch in the locked position. 

Another part of this that has me baffled is that their is a wire on the battery connector that heats up when the lights are turned on and only when they are on.  I tell you, the wiring in this truck is driving me crazy. 

Offline JuneBug

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #21 on: March 30, 2013, 12:59:37 PM »
Well I found a baby blue wire jumped in with the ignition. But didn't hook to anything else. Removed the wire and truck start and turns off now. Not sure what the baby blue wire was for. Everything seems to be working without it.

Online bd

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #22 on: March 30, 2013, 03:03:47 PM »
Well I found a baby blue wire jumped in with the ignition. But didn't hook to anything else. Removed the wire and truck start and turns off now. Not sure what the baby blue wire was for. Everything seems to be working without it.
...Another part of this that has me baffled is that their is a wire on the battery connector that heats up when the lights are turned on and only when they are on.  I tell you, the wiring in this truck is driving me crazy. 

A little more detail on both of these, please.

And, don't forget, the ignition feed wire to the distributor should be 12-gauge all the way through from the ignition switch.  Any smaller and the HEI will be undernourished.  Did you discover that 12-gauge pink I mentioned, lurking anywhere in the harness?
Rich
It's difficult to know just how much you don't know until you know it.
In other words... if people learn by making mistakes, by now I should know just about everything!!!
87 R10 Silverado Fleetside 355 MPFI 700R4 3.42 Locker (aka Rusty, aka Mater)

Offline JuneBug

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #23 on: March 30, 2013, 06:31:48 PM »
The white wire that comes out of the distributor connects to the large pink wire.  Then that wire goes all the way to the fuse box.  Boy was that a pain to follow. The red wire that comes out of the distributor is not connected to anything.

Now for the other issues - somebody used the baby blue wire as a jumper from the pink wire to an orange wire that stays hot at all times.  I think it was tied into the parking brake.  The parking brake light used to stay on all the time. Now it doesn't.  Not sure what the purpose of the jumper would be. 

I believe the issue with the cable on the battery is that the gauge is wrong.  I have attached a picture of the wire at the batter and where they connected it to a red wire.

Lastly, it may sound stupid but the last photo I posted...... what is it?

Online bd

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Re: Ignition Switch and Actuator Rod Question - 87 Chevy V10
« Reply #24 on: March 31, 2013, 02:40:46 AM »
The white wire that comes out of the distributor connects to the large pink wire.  Then that wire goes all the way to the fuse box.  Boy was that a pain to follow. The red wire that comes out of the distributor is not connected to anything.

Now for the other issues - somebody used the baby blue wire as a jumper from the pink wire to an orange wire that stays hot at all times.  I think it was tied into the parking brake.  The parking brake light used to stay on all the time. Now it doesn't.  Not sure what the purpose of the jumper would be. 

I believe the issue with the cable on the battery is that the gauge is wrong.  I have attached a picture of the wire at the batter and where they connected it to a red wire.

Lastly, it may sound stupid but the last photo I posted...... what is it?

Easy question, first.  The lower image is the intermittent (delay) wiper module.   :)

The 'large pink wire' is most likely the circuit used to power the original 87 HEI distributor.  This is good.  But the short section of undersized 'white wire' spliced to it should be replaced with an equivalent length of 12-gauge (preferably pink) wire.  The unused short red wire coming from the distributor can be removed, ignored, or used for a tach.

"Orange" is the traditional GM color for "fused battery power."  I suspect someone jumpered the orange and pink wires together because the 'orange' circuit lost power at some point.   Hacks!  This is a good example of why you always want to properly diagnose and repair a problem rather than just "make it work!"   ::)

"Red" is the traditional GM color for "unfused battery power" - in other words, a primary 12-volt feed.  But, in fact, the red 12-volt feeds are generally protected from the factory by fusible links, which are actually durable, slow-blow fuses.  Have you discovered where the 'blue' (red) wire connected to battery physically goes?  See if that wire connects to the firewall junction block or runs directly to the firewall bulkhead connector.  Does it run through a fuse link?  Try to determine if more than just the headlamps are powered through it, etc.  For the 'blue' wire to heat up, it's undersized for the current load, which can also be interpreted as overused (too many circuits attached to it).  So, before making changes, let's figure out what they did and what they were trying to accomplish.  We don't want to make matters worse.  Hot wiring is a very bad thing!
« Last Edit: March 31, 2013, 12:03:14 PM by bd »
Rich
It's difficult to know just how much you don't know until you know it.
In other words... if people learn by making mistakes, by now I should know just about everything!!!
87 R10 Silverado Fleetside 355 MPFI 700R4 3.42 Locker (aka Rusty, aka Mater)