350 chevy help

[topher5150]

My friend, who has the mechanical ability of most women, has an 87 Chevy pickup with a 350 and EFI. He says it cranks but wont start. I told him try some starter fluid, he said it would start but died right away. He then told me that he had his wife hook up her car to jump it and when he had it hooked up it would run, but slowly die only running for less than a minute. Any help would be nice

 

[dnsherrill]

I have an '86, with a quadrajet...I had a similar problem awhile back..in my case it had sat for awhile and the gas almost completely gone, what was left was old...it has a mechanical fuel pump outside the tank...I put more fuel in and eventually she gotrunning

 

[topher5150]

I have an '86, with a quadrajet...I had a similar problem awhile back..in my case it had sat for awhile and the gas almost completely gone, what was left was old...it has a mechanical fuel pump outside the tank...I put more fuel in and eventually she gotrunning

He said that he was driving it a couple of days before and it ran fine. I wonder maybe he got something sucked up into the fuel filter

 

[dnsherrill]

or a faulty fuel pump?

 

[micahs97m8]

Are you saying it runs while hooked up to another car on jumper cables? If so, you have a bad alternator. It isn't charging the battery.

 

[topher5150]

Are you saying it runs while hooked up to another car on jumper cables? If so, you have a bad alternator. It isn't charging the battery.

Yes, but he said for only a moment than it dies.

I'm sorry if I am being vague but I'm trying to communicate something from a guy who has no knowledge of cars.

Thanks everyone for the help