Re: 140 i/o merc wont start. need to wintrerrize.. help!!!!!
Jeff -<br /><br />First, I don't think you've mentioned earmuffs and a garden hose, but you do say you haven't worked on the boat much. This is NOT causing your problem, but if you are working on a trailer, you do know that you have to provide cooling water to the sterndrive, or you'll fry the water pickup pump impeller when you get it started, right?<br /><br />Second, you need to buy a manual and read it this winter. I bought the Clymer manual for my 1974 Merc 140, and between that and a few forums on the Internet, I've learned a lot (and fixed a lot).<br /><br />In the short term, I agree that you need to determine if the problem is fuel or spark. I agree with checking the voltage at the coil positive post. I had a problem with that. My 140 has a resistance cable in the wiring harness, and that cable was deteriorated. When it got hot, the resistance would climb, the voltage would drop, and my Pertronix Ignitor electronic conversion would shut down. In your case, it is possible that the harness or some connections got corroded because of the moisture. A simple voltmeter test will tell you. Then check for spark from the coil to the distributor, and then from a plug boot--but get a manual or find instructions online on the right way to do this, and be careful. When you know you have spark, you can then check for fuel. Carefully look inside the carburetor to see if two small jets of gas are squirted in when the throttle is moved all the way forward. This requires removing the flame arrestor--if you don't know what you're doing, and aren't confident that you can do this safely, then hire a mechanic to work on the fuel system. I have a mechanically-oriented friend who was burned badly while working on his fuel system. Make a wrong move, and gas can kill you. Starting fluid, as mentioned above, can be helpful in diagnosing the problem, but you have to be really, really careful with it. I don't want to sound like the warning label police, but to mess with this stuff without at least a manual is not wise, in my opinion. Have you checked for water in the gas? Maybe you're just pulling water into the engine from contaminated gas in the tank. It's happened to thousands of other guys. Do your spark plugs look OK? It's possible your spark plug wires got wet and are shorting. You could try some spark plug wire dryer spray (read the directions on the spray can), or replace the wires. How did the rotor and the inside of the distributor cap look? If the cap's cracked, and things got wet, that could be a problem.<br /><br />Didn't your 140 come with a little book called the Pocket Service Guide, or something like that? Mine did. It has pages of troubleshooting tables.<br /><br />Finally, as mentioned above, you can winterize it without running it. If you do, absolutely pull each plug and squirt a little Marvel Mystery Oil into each cylinder, then put the plug back in. Turn it over once or twice. You won't have the engine fogged (which some guy's skip anyway), but the oil will help inside the cylinders. Then spray the block, manifold, riser, etc. with a good anticorrosion spray, trying to avoid the wires.<br /><br />Good luck on it, but be careful. Let us know what happens.<br /><br />Steve
I missed the title 