2015 Mercury 3.5 HP FourStroke weird startup procedure ??

[yhsesq]

So i just bought a 2015 mercury 3.5HP fourstroke (tohatsu rebadge i think). Tried to follow the instructions in the manual for 3 hours with no dice. even refilled the tank with 93 octane no ethanol with seafoam. refused to start. took it to a local dealer who started it within 30 seconds.
He showed me his modified start procedure :
button clip on, fuel on, tank vent on, choke out, handle on start (as per the manual), then - 1 pull, move handle to restart, 1 pull - instant start.
weird that mercury would not put the correct start procedure in the manual. anyone have any idea why ?
Also in the stop procedure he said - motor to forward, fuel off tank off AND as it sputtered pull choke out slowly until full choke then wait for it to die. that removes excess drops of fuel from the carb. dont know why mercury didnt put that in the manual either.

 

[yhsesq]

also to add to that the restart procedure in the manual is wrong. its throtle on restart, choke on 1/4 and pull. then shut off choke. weird.

 

[Sea Rider]

If engine is sufficiently warm after stopping for some time, no need to pull choke again, just move grip to re start and voil?. Engines could be tricky to start depending on local environment temp. Owner's Manual re not that precise or lacks information, it's a good thing to ask dealer, he can know shortcuts that are not well specified or documented on OM.

It's good to consume all fuel leftovers on carb bowl if engine will not be used for long time periods. If with daily or weekly uses, no issues leaving engine with fuel. Just close fuel lever and tank's upper air intake. Use an engine stand when possible.

Happy Boating

 

[Silvertip]

Folks today have become so used to fuel injection where you simply turn the key and the engine springs to life that they have lost touch with how to start a carbureted engine. Since you didn't explain what the factory manual procedure was, I will assume it said pull the choke, set the throttle to start and pull the cord. There is nothing wrong with that procedure. The problem is it didn't start on the first or second pull so you continued to yank away with the choke pulled which only flooded the engine. The dealer showed you that one or two pulls and then push the choke all the way in or partially in gives the engine the extra air it needs to run. I don't see this as a weird starting procedure. Had you been in a colder climate like northern Minnesota I'm betting that engine would have fired off using the procedure in the manual. Carburetors, chokes, and fast idle have been a mystery to many boaters for decades and will likely continue to be until they no longer exist (carburetors that is!!).