Boat want start

Ok, so today we are expecting temps in the 70s so I decided I would pull the boat out and see if I could get it running. I turned the key and the radio and all the gauges came on but the engine would not even turn over when I turned the key. The last time I took it out last year I was also having problems. The boat would lag when I gased it and took a while to plain out. The prop was bent so I thought this was the problem but once I got the boat to the dock and turned the engine off it would not crank. I have a Sanger V-210 with the Mercruiser 350 Mag engine. If anyone has any ideas on what could be wrong and what I could do to try to fix it, it would be greatly appreciated.

Wire brush all your batt cables and ground contacts. Its common when the boat sits fora while for a little corrosion to get in there and not make a good contact.

Your lagging engine problem doesn't sound like the same issue. When was the last time you changed the fuel filter?

Your bent prop is a separate issue as well and would not cause your engine to run poorly.

Hows the dead man switch too?

and make sure its completely in neutral. Sounds lame but I have seen this too many times.

I paddled for 2hrs from the middle of the lake one time, because the boat wouldn't start- figured out when I got home it wasn't in neutral- I felt pretty dumb. It's a good story now.

Agree with all above, especially VLX.

Wiggle the throttle a little,I have a V-210, and the Morse throttle needs to be dead center neutral to start.

Ah yes, all those fancy lanyards and kill switches... I wouldn't know how to operate a boat with all that safety stuff!

Neutral safety is a good one too. A little handle jiggle should get it to crank if its just started acting up.

Todd, ouch!

Yeah I have made sure the throttle was in dead center neutral. I have had problems with this before. I even dried adjusting the cable on the V-drive to see if maybe that was what was wrong. The boat is an 2005 and I have never changed the fuel filter. Could this be the problem?

Have someone crank the boat while you wiggle the throttle cable at the trans. Find out which direction it needs to go and adjust.

edit: Fuel filter: has nothing to do with engine not cranking.



(Message edited by denverd1 on January 09, 2009)

Ok I will try that for sure. I just really dont want to have to pay a lot of money to put it in the shop.

If it doesn't turn over at all I would look at the starter or starter solenoid and battery battery. It might have enough power to run the gauges but not turn over the motor. Do you hear a clicking sound when you turn the key over? If you do it's the probably battery.

Did the boat overheat on the way back? maybe due to a bad impeller? if so you may have hydrolocked it. pull one of the sparkplugs and see if any water comes out.

(Message edited by martinique on January 09, 2009)

There is a clicking noise when I turn the key over but it doesn't turn over at all.

battery maybe just too dead, starter are my guesses

make sure your batt is 100%. CLean all contacts between battery and starter, clean ground contacts.

If you are sure you have a good battery then pull a plug and check for water...saw the same symptoms on another boat. The starter will make a clicking noise because it can't turn due to the water in the heads and built up pressure. when a boat engine overheats it creates a suction that will pull water through the exhaust and back into the heads.

AG, I'm thinking the hydrolock is a long shot. I don't understand how water gets past the valves, but I guess its not impossible.

Dead batts and corroded contacts are a dime a dozen.

Nacho...it happens all the time especially if it was running rough on the way back to the dock and then wouldn't restart the same day. Easy way to check, just pull any plug and look for water or rust on the plug if it has been sitting for a while. check the impeller, if even one vein is missing it will happen.

Take the battery out of your truck and hook it up to see if that turns it over. If you are hearing a clicking sound when you turn the key, but the engine won't turn it is totally an electrical problem. Most likely a battery that is almost dead.

If it did hydrolock and has been sitting for more then 2-3 days the water will make it's way past the cylinders and into the oil making the oil look like chocolate milk. Check your dip stick!

Ok after playing with the cabble on the transmission and the servo-motor knob of my perfect pass the boat cranked. I let it run for about 30 minutes and even reved it a couple of times and it ran perfectly fine. What exactlly does the servo-motor from the perfect pass do, and could this have been the culprit?

Sweet!

PP: doesn't the servo control the throttle? I think its your Neutral safety swith at the tranny. Adjust it so that its at full detent in neutral. I don't think PP is the culprit, but for PP I'm no help at all... good luck with it.

What do you mean by full detent in neutral?

100% neutral, where the boat starts.