[rockyracoon]

My 70 hp rude smokes a lot at start up. It runs strong and compression is 130 across all 3 cylinders. VRO is orignial and still operational. Is there a way to address this? Will putting in a new VRO improve this? Also when I squeeze the bulb, gas leaks out of the pump. Is this a ruptured diaphragm? It doesn't seem to leak when running. Thanks for any help.

[hoeser]

I'm not sure why your fuel pump is leaking but I can tell you that a newer VRO pump actually mixes more oil at lower speeds than the older pumps. You should however still consider replacing the pump - it is probably old enough to be highly susceptible to failure due to alcohol (ethanol) in the gas. I'm not sure in what year they started to compensate for this by adding alcohol resistant rubbers in the pumps, but I'm pretty sure it was way later than 1987.

[tashasdaddy]

Welocme to iboats, i would upgrade or go to premixed gas/oil. pump should not be leaking. are you sure the hose is not leaking going into the pump. have you ever done a decarb on the engine. excess carbon build up, could be causing the smoking.

[jtexas]

if gasoline comes out the pump, then it needs rebuilding. That will cause excess smoke as the VRO cycles more when you have a fuel leak, you get more oil in the mix.

[Kevin W]

I would agree with Jtexas it most likely has a hole in the diaphram and a rebuild is in order.
I would make sure it is definately the pump and not a fuel hose connection.
your choices are rebuild or replace the VRO or change over to a premix by getting a regular pump.
there are tons of articles about switching over the VRO.

[rickdb1boat]

And when you get that taken care of, use synthetic or semi-synthetic oil and you will see much less smoke. I used Pennzoil Semi in my 70 Rude and it made a big difference...

[rockyracoon]

Thanks everyone for the responses. It is definitely not leaking from a hose connection. When the bulb is pumped, it leaks from the end of the oil chamber at the top of the pump. I will be changing it out soon.