Just as the title says. I believe the starter is going out but would that cause it to die after I finally get it started?

 

no, done any maintenance lately? plugs air filter, cap rotor etc.

 

I changed the plugs about 2 months ago. It's been fine until tonight. It was hard to start, got it started but barely and the had to give it gas to keep it running. Got it home and shut it off. Wouldn't stay running without giving it gas.

 

Could be a IAC problem, it could be an extremely low battery problem. Start by checking the battery. I don't care if you have head lights and the radio works, you need to LOAD TEST the battery in order to see if the voltage drops below 10 volts at about a 200 amp draw.

 

How do I test the iac valve?

 

Check the battery first.

 

Now today it started fine and is running fine.

 

You scared it by talking to us! No, seriously, If battery voltage drops too low while cranking, most of the other systems won't work. Get the battery tested and go from there.

 

Had the battery tested and it is good.

 

You can take it out and clean it. Or replace it.

 

Now it wants to die at first start up. Then I try again and it is fine.

 

the starter will not shut off the motor. it does just the opposite. there's a few things you can check out like shorts in your wiring, bad / loose grounds, dirty throttle body or sensors, etc. i just wanted to give you a rundown on a few sensors that could cause this and tell you their symptoms. #1) crankshaft position sensor - notorious for stalling. symptoms: won't start sometimes, cranks up and runs good then stalls without warning. #2) camshaft position sensor / pick-up / relay. symptoms: no spark, long crank time, poor idle, rough running, hesitation, stalls when accelerating. #3) throttle position sensor ( TPS ) symptoms: misfire @ idle or highway speeds, poor idle, won't idle, starts & stalls. #4) manifold airflow pressure ( MAP ) sensor symptoms: rough idle, engine stalls under load, lack of acceleration power, black smoke, motor dies upon cranking. #5) VANE or mass airflow sensor ( MAF ) symptoms: hard to start, stalls after starting, hesitation under load, surging, rough idle, gas runs too rich or too lean. the throttle body after alot of miles can get gunk built up in them and on the edges of it's butterfly valve that can cause stalling also. almost forgot, #6) on rare occasions, the coolant temp. sensor ( called the MASTER sensor ) can cause cold cranking and stalling problems. it sends signals to your pcm computer about the temp of the motor during warm-up process. it ties in to the fuel / air mixture ratio's. all these sensors send signals to your computer. all it takes is a misreading due to a short, or a misfire, to cause the fuel / air mixture to stall the motor. the computer has a shutdown mode to protect the motor if it detects something wrong in a sensor. even your O2 sensors can cause your computer to shut off your motor. so , i hope this at least gives you some help with being able to scratch some items off your list. check your wiring harness behind your valve cover also. most shorts occur there and around your coil and distributor cap area ( cam position wiring connector ). try wiggling / pulling gently on all wiring harness connections and connectors. if your motor's idle changes at all, you got a short or loose connection somewhere. your IAC ( idle air control valve could be clogged / dirty or bad as well. i have a 97 GCL jeep 4.0L and mine is on my throttle body along with the throttle position sensor and the MAP sensor. it all comes apart pretty easy. mine takes a TORX # 15 type screwdriver ( star-shaped ) for the sensor screws. just type in on google what part you are going to work on or replace and you will find all kinds of helpful stuff if you don't have your manual repair guide / book. good luck and post back when it's fixed. it always helps somebody else to learn from someone elses nightmare.

 

Thanks for the tips. We keep you guys informed.

 

Going backward a little, just to add a little info. When testing a battery, you are looking for it to remain above 9.6 volts at half the rated CCA for 10 seconds..........That's what is printed on the front of my Snap-On AVR

 

I tested it with our Exide battery tester at work and it shows it's at more cranking amps then rated.