My boat runs like crap now...

[capri_1850SS_lover]

Took my boat in last fall and got the ?deluxe? winterizing package and the boat hasn?t run the same ever since. With the deluxe package they also inspect and grease the gimbal bearings and u-joints. They called me and said there was corrosion consistent with a flooded engine compartment. I paid them $900+ to replace these corroded parts and then I stored the boat for the winter. This spring it wouldn?t stay running due to a broken terminal on the oil pressure switch which members on this forum helped me identify (Thank you again). Now it starts and runs great on the muffs, but in the water under load is a different story. At low forward speed (approximately idle or a little higher) there is a lot of vibration. Accelerating to mid speed there is some hesitation and then a surge. At WOT the RPMs max out at 6000+ sometimes instead of the normal 4500 to 5000 range. It also doesn?t have the hole shot for pulling skiers like it did last season. I?m hesitant to take it back to the mechanic since he refused to pay for the $32 part he broke (oil pressure switch) when he replaced the oil filter. Is it possible that the stern drive is not aligned or something like that? Any advice is appreciated.

 

[imported_TheMan]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

hesitation/surge might mean you need a carb rebuild..

i'd recommend getting an inductive tach to verify the RPM.. did the mechanic change props on you? might explain the hole shot and RPM differences, but 6000+ is way overboard for a standard IO engine.

 

[capri_1850SS_lover]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

Thanks for the response. Same prop as last season.

 

[Bondo]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

Ayuh,... I don't see a Tune Up,+ Oil Change,....
Muchless Fuel Filters mentioned in the Deluxe Winterization service,....

 

[capri_1850SS_lover]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

Just to clarify, here is what the deluxe winterizing included:
* Drain water & anti-freeze block
* Stabilize gas
* Fog engine
* Drain and change gear lube
* Filter and oil change
* Inspect and grease gimbal bearing
* Inspect and grease u-joints
* Disconnect battery

My point is that the boat was running perfectly before it was winterized. If the mechanic did not make any other mistakes (besides the broken terminal on the oil pressure switch), what could have happened over the winter that makes my boat run like I've described above? I'm not sure how to proceed with troubleshooting this. I have run plenty of fresh gas through so I'm pretty sure it isn't bad fuel.
There was an issue with there being too much oil (about 2" above the fill mark on the dipstick), but that was at the same time as the oil pressure switch terminal problem and has since been corrected. In that time when I was troubleshooting the oil pressure switch, I did start the engine many time and it would run for about 20 or 30 seconds. I didn't think that was a problem, but now I'm second guessing here. Would that contribute to my issues here?
Thanks for any help you can offer.

 

[CharlieB]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

Two inches overfilled is a LOT of oil, splash and blow-by could have saturated the spark arrester, causing the engine to runs bit rich on fuel, not to mention trying to burn any oil that made in into the intake.

Check the spark arrester, wash out with carb cleaner or light solvent, gasoline is to flammable to be safe to use.

I fog an engine so heavy that it is a great idea to change spark plugs every spring, as a heavy fog tends to oil fooul the plug, it MAY burn off, but it is sure to shorten spark plug life. A new set of NGK's are not very expensive and can make an impressive difference in WOT power.

I agree that 6K is way to much RPM, if WOT is really that high you must have a serious talk with a prop shop about getting the correct prop for your boat before you hurt that motor from excessive RPM. 5200 is plenty fast.

 

[Bondo]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

My point is that the boat was running perfectly before it was winterized.Just to clarify, here is what the deluxe winterizing included:
* Drain water & anti-freeze block
* Stabilize gas
* Fog engine
* Drain and change gear lube
* Filter and oil change
* Inspect and grease gimbal bearing
* Inspect and grease u-joints
* Disconnect battery

Ayuh,... That was Last YEAR,.... This is This Season....

You still haven't Tuned the motor,.. Nor changed the Fuel Filters....

The sparkplugs were Coated with Oil during the winterization....
God only knows what kinda Crap is living in the Fuel Filters...

Go to the Adults Only section,+ Read the Summerization thread...

Winterization is Not the only Maintanance needed for a Boat...

 

[smartwork]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

If your hole shot is junk and the prop is the same one that formerly gave you 4500 rpms and is now giving you 6000+ along with the assumption that your engine should be producing about the same power as it did before, it would conclude that the power is still there... just not being transferred properly to the prop (thereby killing your hole shot and resulting in your higher rpms). What I'm getting at is "could something be slipping between your motor and the prop"? Shafts/u-joints not tightened? Could be accounting for that vibration too. Slipping would cause the prop not to be hooking-up in the hole and would allow the engine to over-rev as well.

 

[QC]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

You have to verify the tach . . . Something is fishy here.

 

[cr2k]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

Not sure what "..shafts and u-joints not tightened" means?

If you are getting vibration and over revving I would suspect prop hub
(if older rubber hub version) or engine coupler.

Winterize is oil, grease, filters and drain block, manifold, etc.

Summerize is Tune-up, Plugs, points and carb adj or rebuild.

Did you (or have it) summerized?
Corroded points can cause most of the symptoms you listed except for over revving.

Personally I would not trust anyone who charged me $900 for a lube service.
Unless that included storage, wrapping etc.

What corroded parts did they replace? You are supposed to get the old parts.

 

[billbayliner]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

* Drain water & anti-freeze block
* Stabilize gas
* Fog engine
* Drain and change gear lube
* Filter and oil change
* Inspect and grease gimbal bearing
* Inspect and grease u-joints
* Disconnect battery

Not to sound negative but there is nothing "deluxe" in this description. This is a standard winterization (some will argue over using antifreeze).

My only concern in the quote above is "Inspect and grease gimbal bearing". Greasing is easy but to inspect the component the drive has to be removed. With this said, I would then state the so called "deluxe" package would include checking the engine for alignment seeing the drive is off.

Kind of reminds me of when I was a kid and we went to the Hamburg joint down the road and I always wanted the Hamburg Deluxe because it sounded better. Was only tomato and lettuce added to the burger and then I remove the tomato because I was not fond of them.

 

[capri_1850SS_lover]

Re: My boat runs like crap now...

Thanks for all the replies. I am going to order the service manual from iboats and then do the maintenance that has been suggested. I do realize that maintenance is an important part of boat ownership and am not trying to avoid it; I'm just frustrated about paying big $$$ and having the results I have. Will post back once I find the $$$ and time to work on it.