engine not starting. need help!

[89proline]

i have a 1998 johnson 200 v6 oceanrunner. it has started and run perfectly until last week. i hit a huge wave and the check engine light came on and the engine lost rpm. i would slow down and the check engine light would go off. but as i throttled up the engine would lose rpm. i shut the motor down and she would not start. i replaced the starter and the engine started but ran poorly for few seconds. i then took off all six carbs and cleaned them. i also relplaced the fuel filter which had tremendous amounts of red sludge in it. i also replaced the spark plugs and the ignition kill switch. after said and done engine fired right up and ran strong for few seconds. engine then began to spit and sputter like previously. all she does now is spin and spin wihout starting. what do i need to test next? if more information is needed i will post more. i need help before i pay a tech hundreds of dollars for something that may be simple and inexpensive.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

check compression, and spark on each cylinder, check kill lanyard. hitting a huge wave should not effect the motor, unless it became overwhelmed with water, or over revved. what is the whole story.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

Check all the fuel filters and the main strainer on the motor. Did you see water or alcohol and water mix in the carbs?

Check compression and spark on all cylinders.

Check engine alarm is a fuel restriction. Maybe a bunch of junk got stirred up by wave. Maybe you had a lot of alcohol and water mix in the tank, and you sucked it into the motor.

I would let the boat sit a bit and then siphon some fuel off the botom of the tank to check for water, junk or alcohol and water mix.

Are you running the OMS oil injection system? If so, the motor should be undamaged. if not, the motor may have run on alcohol, water and no oil.

 

[89proline]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

i was told that the waves i was hitting were shaking the tank back and forth and that stirred the sediment in the gas tank. when i took off the fuel filter from the engine compartment it was full of a reddish sidiment. when i took the bowls off the carbs there was a reddish oil mixed with the gas. i did a complete tear down of the carbs and replaced the filter. my motor does have a electronic oil injection. the motor did start a few times after the repairs but it would run for a few seconds. it was blowing alot of smoke from the prop and there was a greyish sludge coming from it, i was told that was unburned fuel coming from the cylinders. the motor would shut down after a few seconds of running. when i tried to restart it would just spin until the battery died. it only starts after letting it sit overnight but then the same problems continue with the shutting down after starting and spinning. i have great compression on all cylinders. i pull the plugs and they dont appear to be firing but if i hold then to a bolt on the motor i see spark. i work on engines and know that thats not suppose to happen but these motors are completely different from an automobile. i ordered a service manual last night. some tell me its electrical and others tell me it fuel related. should i put seafoam in the tank of should i drain it completely? should i check to see if its the shift interuppter swith? i was told that would shut down the spark to all cylindeers

 

[fast50]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

i would try hooking up a portable tank and then try to start it the redish fuel color is caused from ethanol

 

[bustermin]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

change aall the fuel filters and try a different tank. the fact that you have a signifigant amount of sediment in the filter suggests a fuel problem, if nothing else try putting fresh fuel in the spark plug holes and see what it does.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

I agree with using a portable tank. I think you are currently trying to burn water+alcohol. I would put a 50::1 gas oil mix in the portable tank, fill the injection resevoir and monitor the oil usage. Maybe the oil tank has some junk in it as well.

BTW - oil injection on that motor is mechanical.

 

[89proline]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

thanks guys. i will try the portable tank and see what happens. i will repost by the end of the week with the results. one more thing, what gas should i use? i have been getting gas from local store but if its ethanol thats killing my motor should i just get a higher octane or just buy fuel from the marina?

 

[fast50]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

fuel from the marina does not have ethanol and is about a dollar more in my area of florida

 

[Chris1956]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

As long as the gasoilne is water free, it does not matter if it has 10-15% alcohol.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

There is a good chance the screen or filter on the end of the pickup tube in the fuel tank may be plugged with debris from the bout with the big wave. You may also need to do another full carb cleaning to extract gunk that is still getting past the filters.

 

[89proline]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

ok guys. sorry for taking so long but i finally got to the bottom of the whole thing (and my wallet). the stator went out which was causing the electrical system to run off low voltage from the battery. i bought a stator and a new starter (since it was fried). once i put the new stator on the engine it started right up. the problem now is that the engine is idleing between 2600-2900 rpms.i have checked for vacuum leaks and found none. the fuel filter is gunked up again with ethanol (redish liquid). is that what is causing the engine to run at high rpm because of the oxygenated fuel? the boat did sit up for three months with the same gas. i am thinking of draining the fuel tank but thats 50 gallons of gas (you do the math). will sea foam or stabil be a better alternative to the draining of ther fuel. all help will be greatly appreciated as i am having to do the repairs myself. i cant afford 70.00 an hour labor that the guys at the boat center want. thanks guys.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: engine not starting. need help!

Suck out 12 gal of the fuel, from the bottom of the tank, into jerry cans. Pretend you are vacuuming a pool, and sweep side to side to get all the water and seperated alcohol. Now let the fuel you sucked out sit a bit and siphon the bottom gallon from each tank into a clear container. (Drink some jug wine if need be, to get a large clear container). You should be able to see the water and alcohol. if not a bit of 2 cycle oil will make it stand out, since oil and water don't mix.

Return the good stuff to the tank.

Now check the idle timing of your motor. The idle timing is responsible for the RPM at idle.