1987 200 xt

[LLaurence]

Had problems with idle speed. Had carbs cleaned and adjusted and now idles great and in neutral sounds great all the way to high speed but put it in gear and it bogs down and will only get to around 25mph. It has all new powerpacks, wiring harness, rectifier, it also after running for about 5 min. will suck the primer bulb closed and cause engine to shut off. I have replaced gas lines, bulb, and filter. When the bulb sucks shut I can shift to neutral and it will immediately inflate. Any ideas?

 

[Greg_E]

Re: 1987 200 xt

Possible fuel tank vent plugged or the fuel tank check valve not opening.

 

[LLaurence]

Re: 1987 200 xt

Possible fuel tank vent plugged or the fuel tank check valve not opening.

thanks Greg, where would the check valve be located at?

 

[Greg_E]

Re: 1987 200 xt

The check valve is usually located right at the tank where the fuel line connects. I'm assuming this tank is built into the boat. A portable tank would not use a check valve. On the outside it looks just like a barbed hose fitting, but inside is ball and seat that is held closed by spring tension. If the spring tension is too strong or the valve is sticking, the fuel pump will suck the fuel out of the primer bulb until it collapses and then the engine will stall. Probably not good for the fuel pump either.
You can try running from a spare external tank and see if it fixes your problem. If so you can replace the anti-siphon (check)valve with a barbed fitting or use a punch to drive the ball and spring out of the fitting until you get a new one.
All anti-siphon valves are not the same. I had one that had so much spring tension the pump couldn't open the valve. The ones I purchased from West Marine had very light pressure on the valve and they work well.
If you run it without the valve, you may find that the fuel in the line drains back into the tank if you shut down the engine for any length of time. There is a check ball in the primer bulb so try to keep the primer bulb with the arrow pointing up so the ball drops back onto the seat. I assume when the fuel lines were replaced the primer bulb was installed with the arrow pointing to the engine.

 

[LLaurence]

Re: 1987 200 xt

Thanks again Greg, I am heading down to my shop and see if I can figure anything out.