I bought a 1997 35 evinrude 3 cylinder outboard this spring. The problem I am having is the engine will be going along just fine and then VERY suddenly die (not sputter, not slowly rev down - i mean die exactly as if the saftey/kill switch was thrown). The other strange thing is, it usually only does this when under load - meaning if it is just me it is usually fine, but when I pile some people in the boat, the odds of it happening increase. The odds also increase when I punch it (although it has happened at lower throttle too). Here is what I have found so far... I started by jostling the key and safety around while driving to rule out a loose connection - could not make it die that way. I then opened up the controls and disconnected the black and yellow lead from the ignition. At first it seemed to work - but eventually i was able to make it die. i followed the wiring harness and found that at the juncture where the controller connects to the engine there was melting between 2 pins where it looked like it had been arcing (it was the black and yellow pin and the one beside it (yellow and red as i recall). thinking I solved the issue, I hardwired these 2 wires bypassing the connector but this did not fix the issue. I then started the boat and unhooked the wiring harness (the second one from the top containing the black and yellow wire) directly on the engine itself (thereby bypassing the entire wiring harness completely). This also did not fix it. I then noticed a split plug wire (so i replaced all 3 plugs and wires) - not fixed. I also noticed that the group of wires leading into the top of the oil reservoir was worn bare due to rubbing on the cowl. thinking this could be arcing and triggering a low oil warning, i disconnected that wiring harness completely - not fixed. This engine has a speaker which i believe is supposed to give warnings but I am not hearing any - can't be sure it is working mind you. Most people think it is fuel related, but the suddenness with which it dies seems more like electrical - but i am looking for any tips at this point. Could a fuel issue kill the engine this suddenly? thanks in advance.