Pmd or key switch?

[Jim P]

This morning when I started my truck, it started for a few minutes and then quit. It immediately restarted and was fine to and from work. Tonight I used it to pull a car trailer about 20 miles and it quit running 5 or 6 times. Sometimes it would start right back up, but a few times I had to crank it a few seconds. One time, I was going down a hill and it quit at the top but the engine continued to turn over most of the way down the hill. Just about the time I got to the bottom it restarted on its own and ran great the rest of way home. While unhooking the trailer, it quit again but immediately restarted.

I know that these are classic pmd problems but when the engine is running, if I wiggle the ignition around a little, the truck tries to shut off. It never did quit completely doing this but it was definitely trying to. I am not sure if I was just turning the switch far enough to shut it down or if it is truely a problem in the ignition.

The last few days I have also been smelling something that smells like burning brake pads or burning clutch material. When I noticed the smell, I opened the hood and it seemed to be coming from under there but I could never figure out what it was. I had a piece of cardboard tied onto the grille to help it heat up on these cold mornings. After I removed the cardboard, I never noticed the smell again. My pmd is mounted on a cooler in front of the radiator but even when I was getting the smell, the pmd was cool to the touch. Tonight when it was stalling, the pmd was ice cold.

What do you guys think, pmd or ignition switch? If it is the ignition switch, how hard is it to change, is it at the bottom of column or up by the steering wheel?

[tom.mcinerney]

It wouldn't hurt to pull codes; if none, points to FSD. The cold FSD cooler could be result of loose driver transistor mtg nuts failing to conduct heat(and elect!). May want order new heat transfer pad.
If you've not yet replaced the ignition switch it has paid for itself; if you haven't installed lots relays, it's probably tired. Moreover, if it has poor connections it might drop voltage to FSD/fuel-solenoid, causing extra current and heat. You could spend a while checking for voltage drops....Good luck with it.

[turbovair]

My switch cost $180 at the dealer. My engine would die when the key was wiggled when the engine was running, and it was hit and miss with the instrument panel displays .On my 96, the switch is bolted up underneath the lock cylinder assy. The wiring harness runs down the bottom of the column and connects to the main harness right at the bottom.It took me about 2.5 hours to change.My switch was mounted with special hardware(looks like male torx, dont remember the size).I had to make a tool to extract those bolts by crushing down an old nut driver until it fit snuggly over the bolts. They werent too tight. Also, to save time, I cut the lower plastic housing carefully near the hole to get it over the lock cylinder and off the column.My stalling completely went away after replacing the switch assy.One night it stalled about 6 times on the way home.No problems for over a year now.

[Jim P]

Well I started my truck this morning and it quit 3 times in ten minutes, so I was afraid to drive it work. After work I started it and it quit within about 5 minutes. I put a test light on the top of the fuel sol. fuse and the truck did stumble one time but the test light never flickered or anything. So I don't think it is the ignition switch. If the switch was bad, I would think that the power to the fuel sol fuse would be interrupted when it quits or stumbles. I did pull this fuse while it was running and it quits instantly. I noticed that the fuse was corroded so I shined it up and put it back in. I then let it run a half hour and took it for a 10 minute ride. It has not stalled since.

I doubt if this is the end of it but I am going to drive it tomorrow and see what happens.

I priced a pmd at the dealer and they want $311.00. Where can I get a cheaper one? Even if the truck continues to run, I still want to get a spare.

[whatnot]

Did the test light go out if you turned the key off?

[Jim P]

Yes, the light goes off when I turned off the key.

[Jim P]

On friday my truck quit a few times while warming up at work but has not quit since.

Saturday I took the pmd off the cooler and popped the covers off the back and tightened up the screws under the covers but they were not very loose. I might have turned them 1/8 of a turn.


This morning I noticed my brakes acting funny and pulling to one side. When I got to work, smoke was pouring off the left front wheel. Caliper was stuck. Replaced it and now all is well. I finally found what was smelling like burning brake pads. It was burning brake pads.

I had a go around with Autozone. I told them that I needed the drivers side caliper but when I got home, I realized that they gave me the passengers side. I took it back and they said it was the correct one. How could it be the correct one, the bleeder screw would be pointing down. Kind of hard to get the air out that way. I finally just told them to give me the passengers side and it was actually the drivers side. Now I know why some people call them the Twilight Zone.