1987 125 Force

I have a 1987 125 Force,I have two questions ,one is when I go to start the boat it turns over really slow like if the battery is low but I recently replaced the battery with a new one, it is doing the same thing, so I took the battery to have it tested and it comes back as fully charged.I take the plugs out and it spins over perfectly, I thought it might be a ground problem so I traced all my wires and they are intact with no breaks.
My other question is where do i add fluid and what kind of fluid in my tilt/trim pump? Any help would be much appreciated.

Re: 1987 125 Force

Slow turning over may be a starter issue. I have read you can dismantle and clean it up. Do a search of this forum on this subject, plenty of information.

Tilt trim, fluid type depends on what you already have in the system. Red fluid is automatic trans fluid, honey color is 30w motor oil. I've never had to add any on my 125 but I think there's a cap on the side of the reservoir. Search for proper checking and filling proceidures.

Others will chime in soon with more help.

Re: 1987 125 Force

Double check your connections, both ground and hot. I've seen many connections that appear good, but turned out to be bad. Also inspect the cables themselves. If the cabling/connections check out, it's either the starter itself, ot the starter relay. To eliminate the relay, take a jumper cable and go directly from the positive side of the battery and momentarily touch it to the post on the starter. You'll see some sparks as there is a lot of current being drawn by the starter. If it does the same thing (turns slowly), it's the starter. If not, it's the relay or a bad connection/cable. Starters are available on the internet at a decent price.

There are several types of tilt/trim set ups on these motors. The fill plug is generally located on the side of tilt/trim motor. Either a round knurled threaded knob with an "O" ring seal, or a hex shaped plastic metal threaded plug. The resevoir is built into the tilt/trim motor so it looks like it's just a motor but it also includes the resevoir.

Re: 1987 125 Force

Thank you both for your helpfull info. I tried the jumper cable from the pos. to the starter itself and it does do the same thing. I also noticed that the starter drive is not kicking back in so I am going to dismantle it and check the brushes and bendix and try to clean them up. Hopefully this works, so thanks again for all your help.

Re: 1987 125 Force

You can get a brush kit for the starter for around $15 - $18. Replacement starter drive for about $30. There is also a starter repair kit for around $30 that includes the end housing already loaded with the brushes.