89 Evinrude 150 XP fuel pump

[brusk]

I've only ran the boat twice this season since I've bought it. This last time after not running for a few months it wouldn't start. After inspecting it after leaving the lake I found it wasn't getting any fuel even though there was pressure to the pump. It did start after getting back home so it leads be to beleive the pump was stuck somehow.

Is it common for the VRO pump to stick/not work?

Is the VRO a reliable piece I've heard alot of boat owners in the past getting rid of their oil injection and mixing it themselves for peace of mind. After looking at it I would think that if it stops working it will stop working for fuel and oil together eliminating the possibility of running without oil or am I wrong on this assumption.

since I don't know the history of the boat should I rebuild the VRO? Or is there a better way?

 

[jonesg]

Re: 89 Evinrude 150 XP fuel pump

Before working on it , get the shop manual, either Ebay or
www.outboardbooks.com
Don't buy seloc or clymer (or the CD manuals).

You should get an alarm if the pump is failing.
Do the alarms work?
Do you get a test beep?
Do you know the service history ?
Did you drain the carbs when it sat for months?
Did you try hitting the choke to bypass the carbs when it wouldn't fire?

 

[jonesg]

Re: 89 Evinrude 150 XP fuel pump

When I got my engine 2 yrs ago I hired a tech off craigslist to go through it and show me how to take care of it, took less than 3 hrs and answered all my questions, first thing he did was compression test, we wrote the numbers in my manual for future reference.

Then he drained the gear oil, water! ,
we used new drain seals and that fixed it.

Then he read the plugs, cleaned them and fired it up.

We also did a seafoam treatment to bring the compression up.
It was well worth the money at $65 hr.
Turned out it was running weak on the port side, I learned how to quickly diagnose the problem, he put 2 fingers in each throat to see if it was fuel related, then a spark test showed weak spark, we disconnected the shift assist switch but that made no difference, he declared a bad powerpack, took him 20 minutes. HE ordered me a pack, I installed it and it runs strong.
You might consider having someone guide you through it.

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: 89 Evinrude 150 XP fuel pump

VRO pump should not "stick"
You really need to do a basic health check on your motor.
See "top secret files" for info. Ask any further questions from there.

 

[brusk]

Re: 89 Evinrude 150 XP fuel pump

Shouldn't stick? Sounds like most things in my life when people tell me that shouldn't happen but with my luck. lol. It had a compression check when I bought it had the fuel system cleaned out and ran it once. Since then all new coil packs, wires, plugs seafoam ran through it this last time.

Beeps? I didn't hear any beeps that I'm aware of. But I do need to go through the electrical system the horn, fish finder and cig lighter aren't getting any power (or ground) and the fuel guage does nothing. So I guess I'll check for beeps after I go through the electrical.

So is the pump pretty reliable still a bit concerned after hearing stories about people running without oil cause the stupid alarm didn't beep.