1993 Four Winns 180 Freedom Trouble

[Boatgirl27]

We recently got this boat from a friend and was told that it would start up. We went to go put it in the water and it wouldn't start. We had a boat mechanic come look at it, he got it started ( I don't know how!) we drove it to the boat slip, where he told us that we would need to replace the starter. We bought a new starter and replaced it, still didn't start up. It would turn over and almost start but wouldn't stay on. We called around to other boat places and they suggested replacing the fuel filter and fuel pump. We first tried the fuel filter and made sure there were no clogs in the fuel lines. We replaced the old gas with new gas, and still nothing. The next step was to replace the fuel pump. We did that and we noticed that the pump would run constantly even if the boat wasn't on. We were told that it was a relay problem, so we replaced that as well, but that still didn't fix that problem =(. Yesterday we went to go start the boat and it started right up, we thought we were in the clear. Today we planned to go out on the boat, we got to the boat and tried to start it, but it didn't start. It would turn over, but nothing happened. We are at our wits end and spent a lot of money on a boat we haven't been able to enjoy yet. Does anyone have any suggestions?​

 

[alldodge]

First we need to know what motor and you have, assuming its an OMC and probably a carb?

SO far your listening to folks that are not doing any testing they are just what we call "part changers"

Need to find out if there is 12V on the + side of the coil when key is ON and when cranking?

This also being a new to you boat, need to do maintenance
Change oil and filter
Change water pump impeller
Check/change distributor cap and rotor
Clean battery cables on both ends to shinny metal

 

[kpg7121]

We recently got this boat from a friend and was told that it would start up. We went to go put it in the water and it wouldn't start. We had a boat mechanic come look at it, he got it started ( I don't know how!) we drove it to the boat slip, where he told us that we would need to replace the starter. We bought a new starter and replaced it, still didn't start up. It would turn over and almost start but wouldn't stay on. We called around to other boat places and they suggested replacing the fuel filter and fuel pump. We first tried the fuel filter and made sure there were no clogs in the fuel lines. We replaced the old gas with new gas, and still nothing. The next step was to replace the fuel pump. We did that and we noticed that the pump would run constantly even if the boat wasn't on. We were told that it was a relay problem, so we replaced that as well, but that still didn't fix that problem =(. Yesterday we went to go start the boat and it started right up, we thought we were in the clear. Today we planned to go out on the boat, we got to the boat and tried to start it, but it didn't start. It would turn over, but nothing happened. We are at our wits end and spent a lot of money on a boat we haven't been able to enjoy yet. Does anyone have any suggestions?​

You can't just keep throwing parts at it & hope your issue with this boat is solved. If you're not into doing the diagnostics yourself you should take it to a shop & let them figure it out. Otherwise, you're just throwing money at it, which can get real expensive fast. Best of luck & post what engine/drive you have.