please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

[suzukiking07]

this will be a long post but i need help..i have had nothing but problems with boat and my wife if close to kicking me out along with the boat..i have a 2004 stingray 195LR with vp 4.3 gxie motor..very low hours only like 80 i think..here is what it is doing..when i got the boat the outdive was messed up..the foward cone was messed up and wouldnt go into gear unless you reved it up..took it to marina they said its a common issue with the sx drive..i can deal with that..payed them to fix it..not foward gear works perfect..first time out on the boat the boat..it reached a easy 55mph at around 47-4800 rpms..awesome.. next time on boat..the boat would start to surge about 45 second into it and i heard a loud wineing noise..took it to mechaic found high pressure fuel pump was on its way out..had that fixed..took boat out still same issue..after hous of google and internet..found the paint isse with the pump housings..took it to mechanic..found pupm screen clogged with paint..cleaned that out..boat runs great..idles great..runs great until 4000 rpms and does 50..feels a little sluggish..i drove the boat for a few weeks like that until it started to act up again..took the fule assy apart mysel found paint again..i replaced the entire fuel pump assy,,replaced the regulator and cleanned the injectors..boat runs great again..but only does 4000 rpms and only 50mph..i have check the tach settings..its good..prop is good and the same one that was on when the boat did 55 at 4700 rpms..fuel is great..anti syphon ball removed,,fuel system is clean,a ll new fuel pumps and assy,new plugs wires, i have check every connection more then once.. here is where it gets tricky..my local prop seller tells me that if im only doing 4000 rpms i can change the prop to a 18 pitch that the math should bring me up to 4800..guess what..i got a 4 blade 18 pitch and the boat rips out of the hole but still only does 4000 rpms but only like 45mph..so i have no clue to what the issue is..i keep thinking the computer went into limp or safe mode from all the back firing it was doing when the pumps were clogged..please any help would be great..my wife didnt want me to buy the boat in the first place..she thinks our pontoon is perfect..but i want a ski/tube boat so i got this boat..i know im all over the place but i forgot to tell you compression was perfect in specs mechanic said..im just trying to answer everything that was fixed or checked already

 

[trophy boat]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

A four blade of the same size and pitch will give you less rpm and less top speed than a 3 blade.
Since the boat ran right originally your issue is elsewhere. I am not quite getting the paint issue. But since fuel issues got you to this point I would guess that is where the problem lies.

 

[suzukiking07]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

The paint getting into the fuel system and clogging The fuel pumps. When Volvo painted the fuel pump and water seperator housing. Paint made it into the housing and over time the fuel breaks the paint down and it clogged the fuel pump screens. It's all over the Internet and that was part of my issue. Let clarify the prop. The prop that's on it was the same one I had when the rpms went up to 47-4800. The only reason I changed the prop was to see if it would raise the rpms. By going down in the pitch it will raise the rpms. The prop that did 55 was 14 3/4 x 21 I swapped it to a 14 3/4 x18. The rpms were still the same. Only 4000. So the problem is something other then the fuel system and has nothing to do with the prop

 

[Maclin]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

You may need the injectors cleaned/flushed. They could have received particles of paint that made it thru the screen before the larger pieces plugged it up.

 

[Kjthelen]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

Other things to look at...check you fuel pressure coming out of the tank, place the gauge on the low side to eliminate a defective low pressure fuel pump...if this measurement it's solid...then check the high side fuel pump going into the rails to the injectors...a high side pump rarely fails but it should be checked to verify your not having a fuel delivery problem to the injectors...note your local marine mechanic can do these checks in less thatn 30 mins and it worth a check ride with him to continue your diagnosis of the problem you face...boats are not like cars they are finiqy to fix and maintain...also check to see that the distributor and components are not caroded...also pull a spark plug to see that your not fouling at high rpms...the plugs should look clean and dry...not black and messy...if you think your dealing with a ECM computer problem these typically kick in at or around 2500 RPMs on v8's...and since your getting aprox 4000 reves out of the boats motor then you are likely not having an ECM stall problem. If the engine's performance is smooth all the way to WOT under load as you say then your likely dealing with a stern drive problem that's left over from your previous fix? Good luck...

KJ

 

[suzukiking07]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

Ok just got the boat back from the dealer. They say the boat is running perfect and they cant find anything wrong with it. They suggest the trim tabs are what's slowing the boat down. So who knows. I guess 50mph is all the boat will do now for what ever reason. Odd that the tach still says 4000 rpms. But what's ever. I can't keep banging my head and loseing money on repairs if no one can figure it out. It will just have to do. Thanks for all the replies and help

 

[Maclin]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

I do not see mention of trim tabs in your previous posts, when were they installed? What brand and type are they? It is usually pretty easy to set the tabs all the way up, or even remove them, and see if it changes anything.

 

[suzukiking07]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

I set them up. Yes they are very easy. They are nautical sx60 smart tabs. I dont see how installing trim tabs would not let the rpm guage stop at 4000. It should still go up to 47-4800 but maybe drag so top speed would be down a little. Idk anymore I seriously give up. I'm just gonna use it the way it is

 

[Maclin]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

At what point in your timeline did they get installed? Was it before or after the 50mph limit showed up?

 

[suzukiking07]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

They were installed after the boat did 56-57. But I don't see how it would cause so much drag that the engine would not reach full rpm

 

[Scott Danforth]

Re: please read..about ready to sell the boat as no one can fix it

thats an easy thing to check. remove the tabs or fully retract them and try it. my guess is that these are not bennetts and you cant fully retract them.