Hello kind peeps,
My H3 ran really well for the first three weeks. Life was good. I had my dream truck and was a happy guy. The family was comfortable in it and it was all I wanted for off road as well as a pleasure to drive, to and from work. This is where the story takes a turn and my life took some nasty changes. He and I went for lunch and upon returning, he received a call that he was to cancel my contract as the company had decided to go with a national service provider. This was my only source of income. I just spent all of my savings and was now out of work. Oh well, at least I had my H3 right?
I jumped in the Hummer and headed out for lunch last week. We had lunch and I climbed in to return home. Problem begins: As soon as I pulled to the stop sign in the parking lot to leave the luncheon, the truck began to drop off in idle and act very strange. Every time I stopped at a light the truck stumbled and acted as if it was going to stall. I got it home and stayed home for the rest of the day. After that day, sometimes when I would start the truck, it was idling strangely. Other times, it would run as smooth as silk. I used it very sparingly and just kind of hoped that it was maybe some bad fuel. I picked up some Techron fuel additive and hoped it would resolve my issue. It did not.
I had no other issues except for the occasional strange idle. He called the other night and asked me to come over to his place. I started the truck and it all began. The truck ran horribly. It was stumbling, missing and I thought I may not even make the five mile trip to his house. I did make it there but it seemed on 4 cylinders. He has a code scanner there so we plugged it in and got some codes indicating a misfire in the #1 cylinder. It smelled very rich and just wouldn't clean out at any RPM. I stayed for about an hour and decided to head home before dark. Oddly, the truck seemed to clear and run real well all the way back. No misfires or stumbling idle.
So I began reading the forums and trying to see what I may be up against to get my beloved H3 back to normal. From the cylinder head nightmare stories, to MAF cleaning to throttle body to bad plugs to bad coil/s to computer. Now, I am broke and jobless and have a truck that won't run so my stress level is reaching MAX. I went to the auto parts store on Saturday and got the MAF cleaner. I also got the throttle body cleaner. I did get quite a bit of crud from the TB but nothing compared to some pics I have seen in my research. I put it all back together and went for a 20 min drive. It ran great. Nice and smooth and normal. I went back out a few hours later, started it and realized, I gained nothing. It was struggling to go around the block. I came home, frustrated and parked it. I went out Sunday morning, started the truck and it was perfect again. I drove it for about a half hour with no stumbles whatsoever. Had I fixed it and it just needed time to sit? Did I not let the MAF dry completely and now, after sitting overnight she was all good again?
Well, NO...I went out a couple of hours later and the truck would barely run. It smelled horribly rich, stumbled and didn't want to run at all. The check engine light would flash, then come on and stay on. I checked the codes again and sure enough, misfire in #1 cylinder. What have I gotten myself into here? Why does it sometimes start and run perfectly then later the same day, not want to run at all? I have limited funds and no mechanics that I really trust to not try to get the remainder of change I have left in my pocket. I know that nobody can completely diagnose this from my description but I am looking for a starting point. I have to get this truck to run so I can work. I have a $16K truck in my driveway that looks great but I have lost all faith in.
I am hoping for any advice from you as to what you may think this could be. I need a place to start. I need help and I need it badly. Have any of you had this experience? If electrical, why would it occasionally run perfect and later the day, not want to run at all? I would so appreciate any ideas and advice you folks can share with me. I live in Central Florida, just North of Orlando. Should I just try to limp it to a buyer and sell it "as" is for a huge loss? I love my truck but I need transportation and I need it fast. My family depends on me for transportation and for me to earn a paycheck. I am sorry for rambling on for so long but I just am at the end of my rope. If you can advise me as to what you think, what you may do or have done, I would be very thankful. I am at the point of wishing my Durango was still in the driveway and my hard earned money was still just in savings. What a bittersweet month it has been. From incredible excitement about my new Hummer to not knowing how I will get to work to having spent the majority of my savings.
Thanks so much for reading this and for any ideas you may have as to what I can do and what may have happened to my truck while just sitting in the driveway. I have only gotten to enjoy 500 miles since I bought it and hope we can come up with a remedy so I can fix it, keep it and enjoy it for a long time to come.
My sincerest gratitude,
Dave
My H3 ran really well for the first three weeks. Life was good. I had my dream truck and was a happy guy. The family was comfortable in it and it was all I wanted for off road as well as a pleasure to drive, to and from work. This is where the story takes a turn and my life took some nasty changes. He and I went for lunch and upon returning, he received a call that he was to cancel my contract as the company had decided to go with a national service provider. This was my only source of income. I just spent all of my savings and was now out of work. Oh well, at least I had my H3 right?
I jumped in the Hummer and headed out for lunch last week. We had lunch and I climbed in to return home. Problem begins: As soon as I pulled to the stop sign in the parking lot to leave the luncheon, the truck began to drop off in idle and act very strange. Every time I stopped at a light the truck stumbled and acted as if it was going to stall. I got it home and stayed home for the rest of the day. After that day, sometimes when I would start the truck, it was idling strangely. Other times, it would run as smooth as silk. I used it very sparingly and just kind of hoped that it was maybe some bad fuel. I picked up some Techron fuel additive and hoped it would resolve my issue. It did not.
I had no other issues except for the occasional strange idle. He called the other night and asked me to come over to his place. I started the truck and it all began. The truck ran horribly. It was stumbling, missing and I thought I may not even make the five mile trip to his house. I did make it there but it seemed on 4 cylinders. He has a code scanner there so we plugged it in and got some codes indicating a misfire in the #1 cylinder. It smelled very rich and just wouldn't clean out at any RPM. I stayed for about an hour and decided to head home before dark. Oddly, the truck seemed to clear and run real well all the way back. No misfires or stumbling idle.
So I began reading the forums and trying to see what I may be up against to get my beloved H3 back to normal. From the cylinder head nightmare stories, to MAF cleaning to throttle body to bad plugs to bad coil/s to computer. Now, I am broke and jobless and have a truck that won't run so my stress level is reaching MAX. I went to the auto parts store on Saturday and got the MAF cleaner. I also got the throttle body cleaner. I did get quite a bit of crud from the TB but nothing compared to some pics I have seen in my research. I put it all back together and went for a 20 min drive. It ran great. Nice and smooth and normal. I went back out a few hours later, started it and realized, I gained nothing. It was struggling to go around the block. I came home, frustrated and parked it. I went out Sunday morning, started the truck and it was perfect again. I drove it for about a half hour with no stumbles whatsoever. Had I fixed it and it just needed time to sit? Did I not let the MAF dry completely and now, after sitting overnight she was all good again?
Well, NO...I went out a couple of hours later and the truck would barely run. It smelled horribly rich, stumbled and didn't want to run at all. The check engine light would flash, then come on and stay on. I checked the codes again and sure enough, misfire in #1 cylinder. What have I gotten myself into here? Why does it sometimes start and run perfectly then later the same day, not want to run at all? I have limited funds and no mechanics that I really trust to not try to get the remainder of change I have left in my pocket. I know that nobody can completely diagnose this from my description but I am looking for a starting point. I have to get this truck to run so I can work. I have a $16K truck in my driveway that looks great but I have lost all faith in.
I am hoping for any advice from you as to what you may think this could be. I need a place to start. I need help and I need it badly. Have any of you had this experience? If electrical, why would it occasionally run perfect and later the day, not want to run at all? I would so appreciate any ideas and advice you folks can share with me. I live in Central Florida, just North of Orlando. Should I just try to limp it to a buyer and sell it "as" is for a huge loss? I love my truck but I need transportation and I need it fast. My family depends on me for transportation and for me to earn a paycheck. I am sorry for rambling on for so long but I just am at the end of my rope. If you can advise me as to what you think, what you may do or have done, I would be very thankful. I am at the point of wishing my Durango was still in the driveway and my hard earned money was still just in savings. What a bittersweet month it has been. From incredible excitement about my new Hummer to not knowing how I will get to work to having spent the majority of my savings.
Thanks so much for reading this and for any ideas you may have as to what I can do and what may have happened to my truck while just sitting in the driveway. I have only gotten to enjoy 500 miles since I bought it and hope we can come up with a remedy so I can fix it, keep it and enjoy it for a long time to come.
My sincerest gratitude,
Dave
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