1991 Evinrude 40 with VRO - warning buzzer question

[Bannister 6905]

I have a 1991 Evinrude 40 with VRO.
Upon starting the motor for the first time, the warning buzzer began to beep - at about 1 sec intervals with frequency increasing as RPMs increase. The motor was lightly smoking during the brief time it was running. I found no leaks at the reservoir or at the fitting, and the hose was full of oil.
I immediately shut the motor down and check the reservoir - plenty of oil. I removed the oil line from the connector on the engine and reattached a clear vinyl tube and filled it with oil and restarted the motor. The alarm sounded again, but I could see that the pump was drawing oil into the pump, as the level dropped gradually. Again, the motor was smoking lightly during this time.
Any suggestions as to what I should do from this point? I am leaning toward removing the VRO and just running premix, but I know these systems are usually very reliable and are there for a good reason.
Any advice will be appreciated.

Thanks.

Bannister

 

[jakedaawg]

When the horn changes with rpm I usually find a bad horn buzzer, or a fault in the tan wire being shorted to.the gray wire either at the plug or in the harness.

 

[Bannister 6905]

Thanks for the tip - I'llcheck that out this afternoon and let you all know the outcome.

 

[Bannister 6905]

Well, I traced that tan wire and found it was shorting out against the block - relocated it, started the motor and no alarm!
Thanks for the tip!