I'm Green and New to the Forum. Baretta SS problems, round 1

[blawmtih]

Well, My name is Brandon and I've been wanting a boat for sometime and finally bought a 1988 Baretta SS. The deck and hull are in good shape, outdrive looks good, engine looks good, upholstery is in great shape. Now the problem, I went to start the engine to prep for an oil change and nothing. No clicking, groaning etc. Battery was a little low but the voltmeter doesn't dip at all when I try to start. A few things, there is a red button next to the ignition, anyone know what this does? The Penta AQ151B manual says to turn the key to the right and push it in to start, I didn't push the key in but is this boat dependent? Anyone know where I can find old boat owners manuals? Does anyone know where the fuse block is in this boat? The trim indicator had a red flashing light and was in the highest possible position, will this prevent engine start?Finally, does anyone have suggestions on what I should try next or start looking for. Thanks for the help ahead of time.

 

[Scott Danforth]

welcome aboard.

first, get a battery charger on the battery.

next, make sure that all the cable connections from the battery to the motor and back are clean, I mean clean enough you can eat with them clean.

yes, the red flashing light on your trim indicator is to indicate you are in the tilt mode (to high to run). this is for when you are on the trailer.

as with all new to you boats, you will want to make sure the boat is in good running condition prior to dropping it in the water.

replace the impeller and bellows since you have no history when they were last changed. get a good set of muffs to run the boat on a garden hose when its on the trailer.

Scott

 

[Grub54891]

A pic of the red button would help. photobucket is a good place to set up for pics, and put the link on here for us to look at. Also we all like to see more pics of the boat too!
As stated, never run it with the drive trimmed up high, it's bad for the u-joint's and never run it without a set of muffs, the impeller would get eaten up pretty quick.
I'm just guessing here but by turning the key and nothing happen's, it could just be a bad connection, or a bad switch. Also it could be the safety lanyard switch is not on.

 

[blawmtih]

I'll take some pictures this evening and post them. Thanks for the replies so far. Do all boats have a safety lanyard switch? After some research I am guessing the red button may be a circuit breaker reset? It was getting dark last night and I couldn't see too much.