Hi all. Have a 2001 Merc 25HP 2 stroke long shaft, manual start motor for my RIB, external tank, stored last fall for winter. Tried starting for 1st time this year and the motor gave me troubles. Here are the symptoms:<br /><br />* Initially started with old plugs after priming/choking. It actually started 1st pull. As it normally does.<br />* After lessening choke, the engine stalled, but restarted briefly, then would stall again after 10 seconds or less.<br />* After 5-6 starts and stalls, engine would not re-fire at all. At that point my arm was tired and ready to fall off, so I pulled the plugs and tugged a few more times thinking it was flooded. Cleaned plugs, retried to no avail.<br /><br />Next day:<br />* I changed the plugs to new ones (not 100% on the proper gap, but will look at the owners manual later) Still no good.<br /><br />* I know it's bad, but i tried a tiny bit of ether (starting fluid) and that didn't work either.<br /><br />* I noticed the old fuel (in the 6 gallon container) is not quite right or clear as new (I remember using stabilizer, but that was Oct'04 and the quantity used escapes me now) Will be disposing the old fuel and utilizing new asap!<br /><br />Any advice as to what to try or do? Thanks Much.
<br /><br />You need fresh fuel mix. You probably have a gummed up carb, as EFH suggests, but lets do this systematically.<br /><br />There is a troubleshooting procedure for "Outboard wont start" in the Engine FAQs. Check it out and let us know what you find.<br /><br />Good luck.