I think the starter on my Mercruiser 3.0LX has burned up. Do they Burn up??

[sharkeydude]

We had a great day on the lake today except for a few starter issues. I have a 1995 Mercruiser 3.0LX on a Sea Ray 175. It has had issues with not wanting to start real easy. I have had to jiggle the throttle or jiggle the key to get it to engage. When it does, it is slow to start.
Well, today when we pulled in to the dock to unload I turned the motor off on the boat, pulled the truck into the ramp then, got back on the boat to trailer it. When I went to crank the boat, all I got was the familiar click when I turned the key. At the same time I noticed that there was a rank electric type smell. I thought it may be from the guy weed eating on shore until I noticed a whiff of smoke coming from the bilge. I lifted the cover and a billow of smoke came out. Mind you, the motor ran great when I finally got it started. Before we left I checked all the fluids as I normally do. Oil pressure was good, temp was good, volts, everything running fine. But when I saw smoke I feared the motor might have burned up due to a faulty guage. I touched the block, it was hot but not blister your hand hot. Then I touched the starter. I thought my finger was going to fuse to it! I checked the motor for any smoke coming from it. I popped the oil cap expecting the tell tale smoke from the block, nothing. Checked the oil, full.
Since I have had problems with starting, I can only discern that the starter literally burned up. My questions are: do these boat motor starters burn up like that? Has anyone had the same problem? Is there something else going on that I should look for?
If you can help in any way please post. I'm pretty bummed right now. Thanks.

 

[fat fanny]

Re: I think the starter on my Mercruiser 3.0LX has burned up. Do they Burn up??

Well the 1st thing I can tell you is I have basically the same rig. And the first day I owned it I had the same issue starter smoked but in my driveway! They do tend to get realy hot especially when constantly cranking(hard starts) If it is in fact fried get it rebuilt (cheaper) and resolve your hard start issue (look up in the stickies adults only post top of forum) for trouble shooting tips and when you re-install starter make sure all your connections are clean,lubbed and tight. Good luck and post back with your findings.

 

[sharkeydude]

Re: I think the starter on my Mercruiser 3.0LX has burned up. Do they Burn up??

I was stressed until you replied, fat fanny. I pulled the old one and ordered a new one. It had never been replaced so, now it will be. Thanks for the sticky info as well. I'll let you know how it came out. Thanks for the reply!

 

[sharkeydude]

Re: I think the starter on my Mercruiser 3.0LX has burned up. Do they Burn up??

Update: I put a new starter on. The old one was definitely fried. After going through a contortionist routine to put it on, I crank the motor and all I got was CLICK at the motor. So, I went through Don's check list in the Adult sticky. I found that the neutral safety switch had already been bypassed however, the RUN/STOP switch still worked last time I ran the boat. A little perplexed about that. I checked the slave solenoid next and found that the "C" terminal was dead as was the next terminal. So, I've determined that the slave solenoid will get changed tomorrow. If that doesn't get it, I really don't know what to do. I'll keep you posted.

 

[fat fanny]

Re: I think the starter on my Mercruiser 3.0LX has burned up. Do they Burn up??

Stay with the trouble shooting procedures iit willl get you through this I believe there is a section on selinoid testing as well as ignition most likely a loose connection. Keep at it! post back

 

[NHGuy]

Re: I think the starter on my Mercruiser 3.0LX has burned up. Do they Burn up??

Good going, if you follow the guide IN THE SEQUENCE GIVEN you will solve it faster.
So many folks get out to the wrong step and end up going back. I did it myself on a different problem last week.

 

[sharkeydude]

Re: I think the starter on my Mercruiser 3.0LX has burned up. Do they Burn up??

The Sea Ray CRANKED and is ALIVE! Following the trouble shooting procedures in the correct order is the way to go. After installing a new solenoid I still had just a click. I rechecked from the front to the back with my tester. I discovered that the red and yellow wire on the new starter was on the wrong post. The OEM starter has only one post, however the new ones have two (smaller posts). Just a matter of putting it on the right post and she fired right up. I probably didn't need to get the new solenoid but, now, I have a back up. Thanks for all of your help! This forum, as you know, is a wealth of information that has saved me hundreds of dollars so far.

 

[dswi]

Re: I think the starter on my Mercruiser 3.0LX has burned up. Do they Burn up??

You might want to save the old starter, take it apart, check for corrosion/rust (making it not turn), grease the bearings, check the brushes, and emory cloth the surface that the brushes ride on...
I had almost the exact same problem...cleaned the starter up and re-installed it...boat never cranked easier!
I'm glad I took mine apart though (saved $100.00).
Or you could just throw it away (your decision)

Good luck