Engine won't start anymore.

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

The shift interrupter is what allows you to get the drive out of gear. It grounds the ignition for a fraction of a second while shifting out of gear to kill the torque from the engine so the dog clutch can separate. A problem with that switch would not allow your engine to run, or you would not be able to get the drive out of gear with the engine running.

Before you tear the carb apart you should at least look at the little filter. It just takes a minute.

Another possibility is your fuel pump might not be putting out enough pressure.

Or maybe your choke is broken or way out of adjustment... That doesn't usually cause backfiring though.

The little filter looks great.

 

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

When you pump the throttle and gas squirts into the carb, (not cranking the engine) do you see any beads of water on the throttle bores and plates?
Gas will just be smooth and shiny, water will bead up on the gas.
I find it hard to believe it could be water for the simple fact that water sinks to the bottom of the tank and would be near the pickup at all times. One wake isn't going to knock enough up into the pickup to cause all the problems you are having.

Water in the carb also doesn't make a loud bang and kill the engine.

Next, pull the distributor cap off and see if anything looks out of place. Try to turn the rotor. See any cracks or damage to the cap or the contacts? End of the rotor turned to one side?

If all looks good there, do a compression test.

Beads of water? Do u mean bubbles. I dont think there were anything like in there. I drained the fuel tank and put fresh fuel in it. I kno for sure the fuel is good because i pumped out all the old fuel that was in the carb. I checked the distributor cap and found no cracks. I cleaned the points although they werent that dirty. The rotor turns fine. The end of the rotor by that do u mean the metal part that makes contacts with points? The distributor is tight on the motor. I don't think that it got moved when i hit the wake. It won't idle enough for a timing check. I cant find my compression tester.

 

[alldodge]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

I have another nickle's worth. I see that when it tries to start there is smoke that shoots out of the carb. I'm now thinking maybe it jumped timing. Crank the engine over until the timing mark is on 0 degrees. Pull the distributor cap and is the rotor pointing to number one, if it's pointing the opisite direction crank it again and bring it around again to 0 degrees and see if it is pointing to number one? Pull number one plug and stick a wire or coat hanger in spark plug hole and the pistion should be right at the top. If it is not you jumped timing, if it is forget what I said.

 

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

I have another nickle's worth. I see that when it tries to start there is smoke that shoots out of the carb. I'm now thinking maybe it jumped timing. Crank the engine over until the timing mark is on 0 degrees. Pull the distributor cap and is the rotor pointing to number one, if it's pointing the opisite direction crank it again and bring it around again to 0 degrees and see if it is pointing to number one? Pull number one plug and stick a wire or coat hanger in spark plug hole and the pistion should be right at the top. If it is not you jumped timing, if it is forget what I said.

I did what u said. The mark was close to the zero degree, #1 piston was at TDC and the rotor is pointing at the #1. I guess the last thing to do is checking the compression. I changed the fuel filter and all the spark plugs too. It still doing the same thing.

 

[wrench 3]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

The distributor cap problem might not be a crack but a carbon track. Look for a dark line running between the metal contacts inside the cap. Something like a lead pencil mark but not as shiny.

 

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore

Re: Engine won't start anymore

The distributor cap problem might not be a crack but a carbon track. Look for a dark line running between the metal contacts inside the cap. Something like a lead pencil mark but not as shiny.

The contact points have yellowish carbon on them. They have a mark where the rotor touches i think.

 

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

Where is the fuel pump anyway? Is it at the fuel filter ?

 

[cecho]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

I'm not sure exactly where it is on your motor, but follow the fuel line from the carb to it's location on the block... probably near the front of the engine on the side.

Lack of fuel pressure makes sense to me since it sounds like you have to pump the carb to keep it running. You can rent a fuel pressure tester kit from an auto store like autozone or o'reilly's to check the pressure.

 

[Don S]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

Where is the fuel pump anyway? Is it at the fuel filter ?

Maybe you should find a Merc certified Marine tech to look at your engine. If you can't find the fuel pump on a 3.0L engine, then you are way out of your league with this problem. You could actually see the problem and not even recognize it.

It's mounted right next to the oil filter. Has a metal line and a clear hose going from it to the carb.

 

[wrench 3]

Re: Engine won't start anymore

Re: Engine won't start anymore

The contact points have yellowish carbon on them. They have a mark where the rotor touches i think.

The yellow would be corrosion. The cap and rotor should be replaced, but it shouldn't cause the symptoms that you have.

 

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

Ok, the compression test went well. Im getting between 120-135 psi on all cylinders. Im also getting fuel pumping out of the fuel line that goes into the carb. Still no start. So i looked underneath the shifter area and i found a disconnected wire. The wire is yellow-red color. One end leads into the shifter box. I have'nt traced the other end yet. I wanted to try to start it up but now the battery is too low from all the cranking. Frustrated...

 

[achris]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

B..... I checked the distributor cap and found no cracks. I cleaned the points although they werent that dirty. The rotor turns fine. The end of the rotor by that do u mean the metal part that makes contacts with points? The distributor is tight on the motor. ...

Shouldn't be any points in that distributor... Please post the engine serial number. If you have points, you don't have a TKS carburettor. Oh, and the rotor shouldn't turn when the engine's not running...

To troubleshoot this thing any more you are going to need to get yourself a remote starter switch, so you can crank the engine at the engine bay.

The wires coming from the shift control box are from the 'neutral safety protection switch'... If they are not connected it just means you could start the engine while it is in gear. If they were the problem, you wouldn't be able to crank the engine at all...

Chris.......

 

[glenn property of pam]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

intresting read at no point do i see that you have drained the carb bowl. you looked in the throat of the carb and cleaned there but if any water got into the system it would be in the bowl of the carb where it will spin around happily as the engine can not suck it up and it will play havoc with the fuel feed. There should be a drain screw on the carb so its a quicky to check

 

[Don S]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

There should be a drain screw on the carb so its a quicky to check

When was the last time you seen a drain screw on an IO carb? The answer is never.

 

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

Now that the battery has full juice, i was able to start it up. This time i was able to start it up more often. Several things i noticed today. When it is running, it would die if i throttle forward while in gear. It would stay on for a long period of time during idle though. Another thing i notice is that when in "throttle only" position, it seems like it's not getting enough fuel fast enough and it wants to die when i try to throttle forward. However, as soon as i stop throttling, the fuel seems to up and the engine would rev up. So, is it my fuel pump that needs replaced? Or maybe my battery is going bad? Or maybe both?

 

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

One more thing. If i turn the engine off via the key switch, i was able to restart it almost everytime without problems. But if it dies on its own, it would take more tries to start it up again.

 

[cecho]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

It sounds like a bad fuel pump to me, but a fuel pressure test kit would tell you for sure.

How fast is the engine cranking on that battery? You probably just drained it while trying to start it.

 

[kip s]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

It sounds like a bad fuel pump to me, but a fuel pressure test kit would tell you for sure.

How fast is the engine cranking on that battery? You probably just drained it while trying to start it.

Not very fast. It got to a point where it just keeps clicking when try to start it. I know it got low because of all the cranking. I just thought maybe it got knocked around from the wake i hit and damaged it. There is a battery strap but it wasn't used at the time. Anyway, I had to use the 50 amp jump start feature on my charger to start it.

 

[third times the charm]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

Yep, sounds like fuel pump or carb to me.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Engine won't start anymore.

And did you set the timing after you got it running?