About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

[ahhchoo]

mercury OD245401
I've done johnson/Evinrude VROs before but haven't done any with mercs and figured before I went to do it would look for any tips or if anyone knows any web page or thread about this that would help out.
Thanks

 

[achris]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Unless you have a very good reason, or the oil injection (not VRO) has failed, I would STRONGLY recommend you leave it alone.

The Merc oil injection system doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to the Johnson/Evinrude VRO system. The Merc system is very reliable and doesn't need to disconnected as a precautionary measure. If you are of an OMC background I fully understand your disdain of VRO, but the Merc system on your 200hp engine is good.

Chris......

 

[saumon]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

achris didn't tell you that the pre-1991 Merc Auto-blend system (before serial 0D000750) is as bad as J/E VRO but it's also true that the new oil injection system like yours (crankshaft driven oil pump) is very reliable.

achris: wow, how can you know he has a 200hp only from the serial number? Is it kind of sorcery or what? hahaha!

 

[j_martin]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

achris didn't tell you that the pre-1991 Merc Auto-blend system (before serial 0D000750) is as bad as J/E VRO but it's also true that the new oil injection system like yours (crankshaft driven oil pump) is very reliable.

achris: wow, how can you know he has a 200hp only from the serial number? Is it kind of sorcery or what? hahaha!

The sorcery is to enter the engine serial number into Mercury's parts system. It then tells you exactly what it is and puts up the right parts list.

Sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

hope it helps
John

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Well i'm just about done doing it anyway. I was just coming on to see if there is anything I should know before starting but I guess not. Thanks

 

[sschefer]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Did you get the block off kit and O ring? Pro Marine sells one that fits all the way down to the bushing in the bottom of #2 cylinder and keeps it from working loose. It also helps to fill the space that's left when you pull the gear out. #2 will get lazy on you if you don't put something in there.

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

On the johnsons I have always just left the pump there. I'll get the kit and finish up with that before I do anything else but am curious what is the difference of leaving the pump on and letting it ride on what is already there instead of putting something else there? Just so I know in the future, thanks this is the info I was looking for.

 

[achris]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

On the johnsons I have always just left the pump there. I'll get the kit and finish up with that before I do anything else but am curious what is the difference of leaving the pump on and letting it ride on what is already there instead of putting something else there? Just so I know in the future, thanks this is the info I was looking for.

So why didn't you ask that in the first post? Would have saved us a lot of typing.

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

I wasn't specifically looking for that info, I was looking for any info having to do with removing the system and he gave me good info that I was looking for. I don't see where the misunderstanding is.

 

[saumon]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

The sorcery is to enter the engine serial number into Mercury's parts system. It then tells you exactly what it is and puts up the right parts list.

Sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.

hope it helps
John

Mercurypartsexpress isn't available outside the US or you had to be a dealer...so it's not for me

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Well it is all done and very simple, still curious why you can't just leave the old pump on instead of putting in a plug. I found something else that was helpful and could be useful in the future.
http://bassinhound.net/boating/inject/index.html

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Hey guys, just wondering if anything I did could have caused me to lose spark on the port bank as I have no spark on those 3 cylinders. This is the first time I have run it since the fall so I don't know if I had spark right before I removed the oil system or if it was just a coincidence and something else just happen to go bad. The only wires I removed were the ones having to do with the oil alarm system on the port side of the engine and I don't see how that would tie in to the spark if it is disconnected. Let me know, thanks.

 

[sschefer]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Well it is all done and very simple, still curious why you can't just leave the old pump on instead of putting in a plug. I found something else that was helpful and could be useful in the future.
http://bassinhound.net/boating/inject/index.html

Leaving the old pump on without lubrication will burn up the pump and likely seize it. That would destroy the plastic/fiber crank gear and cause extensive damage.

 

[sschefer]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Hey guys, just wondering if anything I did could have caused me to lose spark on the port bank as I have no spark on those 3 cylinders. This is the first time I have run it since the fall so I don't know if I had spark right before I removed the oil system or if it was just a coincidence and something else just happen to go bad. The only wires I removed were the ones having to do with the oil alarm system on the port side of the engine and I don't see how that would tie in to the spark if it is disconnected. Let me know, thanks.

There are a couple of possibilities.

1. Do you have a rotational sensor next to the oil pump.
2. Do you have a rev limiter/advance module.
3. The alarm module is on the stbd side are you sure you mean port or do you have port and stbd dislexia like me.

Further help with trouble shooting will depend upon your answers. I don't want to lead you down the wrong path.

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Hey,
I have a rotational sensor next to the pump but that was removed.

The alarm module for me is on the port side, but to be sure it is the one where the wires from the rotational sensor and the engine oil tank were going to. Also it looks like the wire from the engine over heat alarm goes there, not the one for the gauge but the other one.

I do have a rev. limiter/ advance module (I actually thought this was the same thing as the alarm module). I'm not sure where it is but I know I have it as it would kick on when it wasn't supposed to last year. Could this be the small box on the top of the engine that looks just like the alarm module?

If it helps, I tried to switch the stator wires from one switch box to the other (as suggested by the cdi test book) to see if the bank that isn't firing would switch but the same bank was still not firing.
Thanks again

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Sorry about this, one of my spark testers wasn't working right. On the port bank I have spark on the middle cylinder (4) but not 2 and 6. Good voltage is going to the coils thought so maybe its just the coils, i'll try changing them out.

 

[j_martin]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Hey,
I have a rotational sensor next to the pump but that was removed.

The alarm module for me is on the port side, but to be sure it is the one where the wires from the rotational sensor and the engine oil tank were going to. Also it looks like the wire from the engine over heat alarm goes there, not the one for the gauge but the other one.

I do have a rev. limiter/ advance module (I actually thought this was the same thing as the alarm module). I'm not sure where it is but I know I have it as it would kick on when it wasn't supposed to last year. Could this be the small box on the top of the engine that looks just like the alarm module?

If it helps, I tried to switch the stator wires from one switch box to the other (as suggested by the cdi test book) to see if the bank that isn't firing would switch but the same bank was still not firing.
Thanks again

You can swap coils around to move the bug, also. That will determine if it's the coils or the switchbox.

The wire from the overheat doesn't go to the oil module, it goes to the alarm circuit. Either that, or the oil module grounds the alarm circuit to sound the alarm.

If you've removed the oil pump, you can just remove the oil alert module. Leave the wire from the overheat sensor on the terminal screw along with the wire going into the harness for the alarm.

hope it helps
John

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Found a switch box, swapped it out and the problem is gone. I guess last year when I thought my rev limit was going on when it shouldn't it might have been this switch box

 

[sschefer]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

Found a switch box, swapped it out and the problem is gone. I guess last year when I thought my rev limit was going on when it shouldn't it might have been this switch box

Another mystery solved! Nice job.

 

[ahhchoo]

Re: About to remove VRO, looking for any tips

: ) Thanks everyone for helping.