auto vs marine stater

[krisnowicki]

I was at the ramp today realigning my boat on the trailer. I was in normal shorts and a shirt and as I pulling the boat out ( i am at a 4 boat ramp) The boar next to me a 23 ft chapparral bow rider has two guys under the swim platform. I ask if they are ok and they say they have had a "small engine fire" and now the trim wont go back up so they can pull it up the ramp. I asked if the knew how to pull the trim pin out to lift up and they didnt. So i hop in the water and help pull the trim pin out then we tie the drive up so they can drive home. I ask them what cause the fire. They said they didn;t know but let me look. whadda you know. Starter was charred. I said somthing about it and he said a local mobile marine mechanic whose name i will omit replaced his starter recenltly and used an automotive one when he did it he told him to make sure he ran the blower and it wouldn't matter... At least they were still at the ramp huh....

 

[ne7800]

Re: auto vs marine stater

Yeah that sounds about right

 

[ne7800]

Re: auto vs marine stater

I think I would be in a heap of trouble for whuppin a mechanic.

yeah hope that he makes it right and fixes the boat for them

 

[krisnowicki]

Re: auto vs marine stater

I sarcasticly said " well did you run the blower?" and he was says" yea thats why this makes no sense" hahhaha. I explianed the difference and 15 secs later he was on the phone calling the mechanic.

 

[HT32BSX115]

Re: auto vs marine stater

Yeah....if someone had gotten hurt or killed I think the "victim" would be owning the "mechanics" house after the lawsuit!!

 

[JustJason]

Re: auto vs marine stater

I don't think the blower would have mattered, nor that it was an automotive starter. If it boat had that many fumes and the starter sparked, you woulda had an explosion, not a fire.
Sounds like it was probably an electrical fire. I've seen so many battery cables hanging off the starter so dangerously close to engine ground or a motor mount.... scary huh.

 

[turborich]

Re: auto vs marine stater

I don't think the blower would have mattered, nor that it was an automotive starter. If it boat had that many fumes and the starter sparked, you woulda had an explosion, not a fire.
Sounds like it was probably an electrical fire. I've seen so many battery cables hanging off the starter so dangerously close to engine ground or a motor mount.... scary huh.

I tend to agree. It was a fire, not an explosion.

 

[180shabah]

Re: auto vs marine stater

Bottom line though - poor installation(wire routing) is bad workmanship BUT wrong parts used is a huge lawsuit. Lucky nobody was hurt no matter how the "fire" started.

Mechanic ows you a new starter(marine) at no charge(including install).

 

[krisnowicki]

Re: auto vs marine stater

It wasn't mine. He was on the phone with the mechanic while he was still at the ramp. I felt bad I hope the mech. does whats right and I am just glad they were still at the ramp because they had two kids with them...

 

[mthieme]

Re: auto vs marine stater

You need a different mechanic.
Sidebar...
I just got my money's worth out of a recent marine starter replacement this weekend. Seems the float switch on my bilge isn't working properly. We had a little rain (4" +/-) and my neighbor called to say that my stern looked a little low. A little low was an understatement. The boat looked like it does just before planing off! I've never had so much water in the boat...the engine was half submerged, battery boxes full, etc. Pumped it out and it fired right up. Submerge a car starter in water for a day and see what happens (if anything).