I just saw another post on an overheating with a Evinrude, but I think mine is a little different.<br /><br />Went to the lake today with my 16' Skeeter, wife, and son. For the first time, I put them both in a tube behind the boat, and pulled them around the lake for a while. The boat took a very long time to get on plane, but I'm assuming this is because of the weight in the tube behind the boat. (Right?)<br /><br />After running for about an hour, I went to idle to pull them in, and a buzzer went off in my control box, which I'm assuming was a overheating buzzer. I looked back at my motor and noticed the water was coming out of the motor as it should, but it wasn't as strong as it normally is. <br /><br />Since I was running it hard, I let it set for a few minutes and started it back up. Buzzer was on for about 15 seconds following the start-up, but went off when I gave the motor some gas and got it going in some water. After about 15-20 minutes, the buzzer went off again, so I shut it down. Let it cool off, then started it back up, and brought it in at about 1/4 throttle with no problems at all.<br /><br />When I pulled the boat out, I noticed some "lakeweed" (like seaweed, but in a lake) about the hydorfoil, so I'm thinking I may have sucked something into the motor and gunked up the circulation. Also when I first put the boat in, it drifted into a shallow area near the ramp and grounded the fin while it was running, so some mud and sand could have gotten into it.<br /><br />Now to my questions....(sorry for the long story).<br /><br />1) I know I need to get a manual for this motor. Any recommendations on what is the best one to get? Is there a location on the internet where I can pay and download a manual? I have a 1988 Evinrude 48 SPL.<br /><br />2) How can I go about cleaning the water intake in the event something did get sucked up? Do you think running it hard with a tube behind it could have caused the impeller to start and fail, or since some water is still coming out, is a clog more likely?<br /><br />3) Is there anything I can do to get the boat on plane faster (besides buying a bigger motor or going on a diet)? The motor already has a Stingray Hydrofoil. The prop has a few small nicks, but I don't know if this causes a big drop in performance.<br /><br />4) The boat idles rough and smokes on start-up. Could my plugs be fouled? Is there a brand of plugs which is highly recommended for this motor? <br /><br />Thanks again for any and all help.
