Another Recall

Today I got a recall for my '03 Silverado, 4.3L V6 forignition distributor cap and rotor that may corrode. Anyone else get this?? When will it ever end!!

V.B.

Reply to
V.B.
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When you buy a Ford and have it burn up while parked in the garage attached to the house your sleeping in. Then you find out that this is common and that Ford knows about it BUT won't do anything.

Reply to
Steve W.

"V.B." wrote

What's the big deal! GM is going to pay for something that you probably would have had to pay for eventually anyway. The new trucks have very few recalls on them. Mostly minor stuff like tailgate cables...etc. There can't be that many full size trucks with the v-6 in them anyway.

Ian

Reply to
shiden_kai

Reply to
Robert Ball

It's really hard to see why anyone would use a distributer these days. Kind of like going back to mechenical fuel distributers for fuel injection.

Reply to
TaskMule

Seems like that 4.3L engine has been around for years. I have not looked in years but would not be surprised if they still use a distributor. Really, a distributor is not all that bad. The ignition and timing is still electronic.

Reply to
Rich256

"TaskMule" wrote

It all has to do with the mechanical design of the engine. Most GM engines originally used the distributor shaft to drive the oil pump of the engine. GM has used a few different ways to deal with this problem when doing away with the "distributor" (as we knew it). When the 3800 engine did away with the distributor, the engine was redesigned so that the oil pump was driven directly off the front of the crankshaft instead of being driven by the dist shaft. On the 60 degree v-6 engines, GM opted to simply lop off the top of the distributor. So what you have in those engines is the bottom half of the old distributor still there to drive the engine oil pump. On the 4.3 and older small block v-8 engines, they left the distributor in place and it basically became nothing more then a drive for the oil pump, a camshaft position sensor, and a place where the spark could be distributed via wires. (nothing more, that's actually quite a bit that it still does)

As new engine designs appear, the distributor is all but completely gone. If it hadn't been used in a dual purpose fashion (ie: drive the oil pump), it would have been gone quite a long time ago. I for one...don't miss them even a little bit.

Ian

Reply to
shiden_kai

Do you have the number (i.e. 05001 or something) or text of that recall?

I work with a fleet of Silverado 4.3?s and we?ve had CHRONIC problems with moisture and corrosion in the distributor caps. It?s not just

2003 model year; they?ve used this same lousy setup on the 4.3 1996-2005 (yes, it?s 2005 and you can still get a distributor). Which is really sad to say the least; 80-90% of the vehicle reliability problems we?re seeing are with that distributor.

If anyone knows of other recalls or service bulletins addressing this I?d be very grateful. So far we?ve been on our own (along with having to accept regular cap/rotor replacements as a part of owning these trucks).

Greg_in_WI

Reply to
Greg_in_WI

no, I don't have the recall number, I handed the letter in when I had the work done. It sounds like your problem and the recall is related.

V.B.

Reply to
V.B.

Here is the recall number:

Product Emission - Ignition Distributor System Corrosion-Inspect/Replace #05500 - (Apr 28, 2005)

05500 -- IGNITION DISTRIBUTOR SYSTEM CORROSION - INSPECT / REPLACE 2001-2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 2001-2003 GMC SIERRA

EQUIPPED WITH 4.3L V6 (RPO L35 - VIN W or RPO LU3 - VIN X) ENGINE

Condition General Motors has decided to conduct a Voluntary Emission Recall involving certain 2001-03 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra model vehicles, equipped with a 4.3L V6 (RPO L35 - VIN W or RPO LU3 - VIN X) engine. The ignition distributor cap and rotor in these vehicles may corrode and cause ignition system failure. This condition may result in rough engine idle, misfire, stalls, engine cranks but does not run and/or illumination of the Malfunction Indicator Lamp (MIL).

Correction Dealers are to inspect the distributor ignition ventilation holes and, if necessary, replace the distributor cap and rotor, remove the External Ignition Protection (EIP) vent screens and install a foam sleeve around the A/C accumulator line.

Ian

Reply to
shiden_kai

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