Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

[m48strat]

Help Please!!

I will try to make a long story short. Some friends of mine, a couple, purchsed a Capri ck lx new in 2000. It has a 5.0. Merc alpha drive. They only used the boat for two seasons. At the end of the last season the boat was winterized and wrapped in heat shrink. The boat has less than 30 hours on it, and has sat for at least two years. That winter the husband suffered a stroke and is now confined to a nursing home. The wife would like to sell the boat and asked me to take a look at it, since she knows I am a boater. I myself own a Mariah but know nothing about Bayliner. I went over and found the heat shrink had caved in and was filled with water. So I started the process of bailing out the water before it leaked into the **** pit, and cleaning the boat. after cleaning and waxing the boat I went to start it and that's when i ran into problems. I had to replace the battery. When I turned the key on, I got a high pitched alarm. Is there some kind of security system on this boat that i should know about? ( I don't have an owners manual) I was able to get the boat started, but I can't keep it running. The boat will not idle. As soon as pull the throttle back to the neutral position the boat stalls and the alarm goes off again. Also I'm not getting a tach reading. The engine will only run with the throttle pushed about a third forward. Since I'm not getting a tach reading I have no idea what RPM it takes to keep it running. What am I doing wrong? Any ideas?

Thanks for any help or info you can provide.

Mike

 

[redone4x4]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

My boat will act similar if the kill switch lanyard is not on all the way (mine has the older OMC 3-prong switch). It will briefly turn over, but no gauges work and it wont stay running. I found that out one day when the prong on the lanyard broke.

 

[m48strat]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

I checked that, the kill switch is in the run position. I also checked the fuel filter/water seperator, it looks brand new. Also sprayed carb cleaner in while the engine was running. It also looks brand new.

 

[redone4x4]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

the only other problem i had with mine was the points all the sudden went bad and the timing was off, it wouldnt stay running at all then. but, i dont think you have points on yours...

 

[gcboat]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

Bad gas plain and simple. Even though your separator looked new the fuel in it is probably garbage.
See if you can borrow one of those six gallon gas containers. Remove the hose from the pickup line that goes to the motor and stick it in the fesh gas. It may not run like a watch at first but at lease you will be getting rid of some of the junk that way. Also, a dose of Sea Foam added to the new fuel might help get rid of some of the built up crud. Definately won't hurt.
As far as the tach goes I'd just start looking around for loose or corroded wires.
Just spend your time on getting her running first.
P.S. Don't forget the muffs

 

[m48strat]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

Yes, from the responses I'm getting here, and from talking to other boaters, there is a consensus building that the problem is bad gas. Unfortunately I'm not really equipped to deal with draining the gas tank. The boat was put away with a full tank. I think at this point my best bet is to trailer the boat to my marina and have a mechanic go over it. I appreciate the replys and will let you know how things turn out. I will also post some pics at a later date. as a foot note, the season after the boat was put away, the husband bought another boat, a 20 foot Triton bass boat, with a 225 HP Merc outboard. This boat has also been sitting for a couple of seasons. It's a shame, both boats are like new, but obviously letting them sit for a couple of years may have caused some problems. Both boats are for sale and located in Wilmington, Delaware.

Again Thanks

Mike

 

[m48strat]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

I know it's been a while since I originally posted this thread, but yesterday the story was brought to a happy conclusion. It turns out that the problem was not bad gas, but a gummed up carburetor. The mechanic rebuilt the carb at a cost of about $350 dollars. The tach problem was the tach itself. A replacement tach was ordered from Bayliner at a cost of about $350 dollars. The boat would have been finished two weeks ago, but Bayliner sent the wrong tach and had to be reordered. the total bill for the repairs came to $734.58. I didn't keep track of the hours I put into the boat, and I did not charge the owner for my time, but all totaled getting the boat ready for sale cost her about $1200. Yesterday I took a potential buyer out for a sea trial. The boat started right up and ran great. for an hour we ran the up and down the Bohemia and Elk river, most of the time at WOT about 4200 to 4400 rpm and the boat ran great on a full tank of two year old gas. we only encountered one problem. the speedometer did not work, and we noticed water coming in on the starboard side. we looked behind the sideboard and saw two clear plastic hoses coming from the dashboard. I think the water and speedometer problems are related. I'm guessing that when the mechanic reinstalled the dash he may have forgotten to hook something back up. Any ideas here? In spite of the problem the guy decided to buy the boat for $8000. the last I saw of this sweet little Capri, was the tail lights of the trailer as she headed to her new home in Bowie Md. This was definitely a leaning experience for me. We've all heard the line, " a boat is a hole in the water that you pour money into", obviously a boat doesn't even have to be in the water to cost you money. Just letting a boat sit without use can be costly.

 

[redone4x4]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

good story. glad you got it worked out. The worst thing for it is to let it sit, thats for sure.

 

[NYBo]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

the speedometer did not work, and we noticed water coming in on the starboard side. we looked behind the sideboard and saw two clear plastic hoses coming from the dashboard. I think the water and speedometer problems are related. I'm guessing that when the mechanic reinstalled the dash he may have forgotten to hook something back up. Any ideas here?

You are guessing correctly. There should be a small diameter hose attached to the back of the speedometer. At the other end, it attaches either to a separate gizmo called a pitot or to the lower unit of the outdrive (depending on which outdrive the boat has).

 

[m48strat]

Re: Need help with 2000 Capri, starting issue

Actually,I traced the two clear plastic tubes coming from the dash, they run to starboard side of the boat , and dead end. They are not connected to anything, and i didn't see anything that they could connect to. The tubes are of a different diamater. Are these tubes supposed to be tied together some how?