gas pedal hard to push.

[K5er4Life]

thottle cables can be worn inside, causing them to be stiff to move when under load, but move easy when you have them unhooked. the pressure from the spring will pull the cable inside down into a groove its worn. it also could be the throttle shaft kinda doing the same thing. I'd get a new cable to start with.

DING DING DING, we have a winner. Its a bad cable, or cables. Mine did the exact same thing, I swore it was the tbi because the cables would move easily and freely when I undid them. I took my tbi off and had bushings put in the throttle shaft, didnt help at all. Finally I broke down and bought a throttle and tv cable, no more stiff pedal after that. Dont just replace the throttle cable becasue its mainly the tv cable that seems to cause this problem. If you unhook the tv cable sit and idle the truck (dont drive it as you can take care of your tranny pretty quickly with the tv cable disconnected) you will notice that the pedal feels considerably lighter. Replace the tv cable and/or the throttle cable if you can afford it and you will be alot happier. I have tended to notice that no matter what these trucks still have a realitively hard gas pedal even with new cables but it will still be a thousand times better that it was with the old cables. Also lube the new cables with a light cable lubricant before installation as you will wear out the new ones fairly quickly if you dont.

 

[Russell]

I converted my 77 to TBI. It had a nice light pedal before the swap but as soon as I put the TBI on, it got a super stiff pedal too. Unusual part about it is that I re-used the TV cable and throttle cable from the carb...

This TBI setup was hard to drive in my 89 too. I think it may be my actual throttle body...

 

[Mudstud]

I gotta bring this back from the depths.

I have a 76 K5. Recently swapped from carb to TBI. The peddle is hard to push before and after the swap. I replaced the throttle cable and no difference. IIRC, its only hard when in drive. In neutral its easy to push. Any thoughts? My kick down cable is disconnected because it limits throttle movement.

What is a TV cable; the kick down cable?

 

[Mastiff]

Funny, I was about to post a thread about this. I relate to the story about the engine seeming to have more power with the weaker throttle spring. I think I tend to lay off the throttle because it seems like a big deal to get on it. My Jeep is a pig, but the throttle is light and I just floor it all the time. I'd be really surprised if it was the cable. I have no tv cable.

I wonder if there is a difference in gas pedal on the TBI engines? Mine's swapped from a carb setup, and I think I even cut one of the return springs on the throttle body to lighten it up a bit, and it's still heavy.

 

[nbrown2500]

I had the same issue with my 90 k5 blazer. I thought is was the spacer the PO installed under the throttle body so I removed it and cleaned up the TBI. I also replaced the throttle cable with a pioneer one and a new TV cable from the chevy parts house. While still heaver then I'm used too it is 100% better than when I got it.

 

[Mudstud]

so what is a TV cable? I have the spacer too but I also modified the bracket the cable connects to behind the TB to raise it up to the same height as the linkage. this way it doesn't pull downward on the linkage.

 

[Mudstud]

Anybody else want to toss their 2 cents in?

 

[wheels87k5]

TV cable is used with the 700r4 transmission. It's not a kick down cable. It is set to a specific setting for the 700r4 to perform as it should. It works with pressure. I'm not that great at explaining it but Greg D, and others can give you better information.

http://www.tvmadeez.com/article/index.php

 

[Russell]

Try removing the throttle cable, rotating both ends 180 degrees and re-installing them so the cable pulls on the opposite side of the sheathing inside. The cable cuts a groove into it inside over time and that contributes to a stiff pedal. When I flipped it over on my aforementioned 77 then the pedal felt just like a carb.

 

[diesel4me]

My '77 GMC had a creaky stiff gas pedal,and I found out it was binding at the pivot on the firewall--the plastic thing with 3 bolts holding it to the firewall had "shrunk" and there was no lube on the gas pedal "shaft" ,so I unbolted it,and applied some grease to the two halves of the plastic housing around the pedal's shaft--I noticed an immediate improvement--I used to have to press pretty hard on the gas pedal,and it would "snap" free and you'd end up taking off half floored--made city driving in heavy traffic VERY aggravating!..