1987 Merc 115 ....

[tunatamer]

I have a 23' CC with a pair of Merc 115s on it. On the port side engine when I hit the key the engine just groans. The solenoid checked out so I assumed it was the starter and took it in to have it rewound. I reinstalled the starter and with new and fully charged batteries it still just groans when I turn the key.

Any ideas what I should check next?

Thanks in advance.

 

[AMD Rules]

Re: 1987 Merc 115 ....

Does the flywheel turn freely by hand?

 

[tunatamer]

Re: 1987 Merc 115 ....

Does the flywheel turn freely by hand?

It turns but I wouldn't call it "freely".

I can turn it OK though.

 

[AMD Rules]

Re: 1987 Merc 115 ....

Just trying to rule out power head issues. If you take the spark plugs out, the motor should rotate freely by hand. Be sure to de-activate the ignition for this.

Sounds obvious, but I'd start by looking at all the battery cable connections from the battery, to the solenoid, to the starter. Disconnect them, clean them, then re-install them. They've been known to cause grief to many people and get overlooked as possible causes.

I'm suspicious maybe your starter, or battery is toast. Given that you have two of each, it might be worth swapping batteries and/or starters for test purposes to find out where your faulty component is.

 

[tunatamer]

Re: 1987 Merc 115 ....

Both engines start from the same battery and the starboard side engine fires right up and runs smoothly. I had the starter rewound yesterday for $119.00 so I was thinking if it was not good they should have been able to determine that .... is that not true?

To me it could be a battery cable or connection. I'll try taking everything off and clean it while recharging the battery.

Thanks for your suggestions


BJ