1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

I just got a great deal on a 1988 cheetah bass boat with an 87 johnson 110 vro. I have never owned a boat before and am in need of some technical help. I am certain that the vro has been removed, as the previous owner told me to premix. I think the vro pump used to sit on the intake cover - there is definetly something missing there. Anyhow - the boat will start, but will hardly idle unless the high idle lever is used. I have to remove the engine cover and move the red lever on the primer solenoid straight back towards the rear of the boat. Then when a smooth idle is reached I have to turn the red lever 90 deg. clockwise. Then with a little jockying of the high idle lever and the forward/reverse control I can keep the motor from dieing and go forward. Next when I give the motor full throttle I have to turn the red lever back 90 deg(towards back of boat). The motor will gradually gain rpms until it sounds like it will die agian, then turning the red lever clockwise 90deg for the final time the motor will make enough power to plane out. I replaced the primer bulb, cleaned the carbs, and checked the plugs. Does anyone have any advice on what is going on here? Any help would be greatly appreciated!!

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

All you are doing by turning the red lever is adding fuel, does the electric side of the primer work. You should be able to do the same thing by pushing in the key to activate the primer solenoid. If the carbs are clean, you might run a fuel pump pressure test, by the way you describe it you are running out of fuel.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

Im not sure if the electric side of the primer is working. How will I know if pushing in the key works? What else should I check? I appreciate your help.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

Have you tried constantly priming the fuel hose bulb? Does the engine run any differently? You did not mention whether the engine will run on it's own at max throttle. When you finally get the engine running, does it come up to full rpm's and run at max rpm on it's own? That red lever on the primer solenoid is actually a port through which you can inject fogging oil and engine tuner. The normal "run" position of that lever is parallel to the length of the body of the primer solenoid. I wouldn't try to run the engine normally -in anything but that position.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

Can you hear the solenoid click when you push the key in? You can remove one of the primer lines going to a carb, push in the key and see if you get fuel out of the line.
emdsapmgr is correct in that if your problem goes away if some one keeps pressure on the primer bulb, you most likely have a fuel pump problem.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

Constantly priming the fuel bulb doesnt seem to change anything. Once the engine gets up to speed it runs great and stays running on its own. The problem seems to be at low idle and midrange power. High idle and max throttle are fine. There is no click when the key is pushed in. Thanks all for the help - greatly appreciated.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

Check the voltage to the primer solenoid when the key is pushed in, should have battery voltage there.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

Thanks guys. Gonna go do some checking and will get back with the news.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

Sounds like your fuel pump is OK-it runs full throttle.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

When I push in the key there is a faint click at the primer solenoid. Removing one of the lines to the carb and pushing in the key results in a stream of gas coming out. Like I said I am new to boating and didnt even know I was supposed to do that. Where and when should I push the key in for the primer trick? Would me not doing this affect the midrange power that bad? Thanks guys - I feel dumb, but that is why you guys are the pros.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

You mentioned that you cleaned the carbs, but just how thoroughly did you clean them? Did you clean the orifice / jets that are threaded into the float bowls? Since you have eliminated the fuel pump as the cause, your symptoms have all the ear markings of dirty carbs.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

I didnt pull the jets, but sprayed carb cleaner thru all the jets/orifices. Could the jetting be the problem? The boat was run at about 4500-5000ft in Colorado. It is now being run at 7500 ft in Colorado. Still wondering when to push the key in for priming. Thanks.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

The key should be pressed in during the initial cold start cranking of the motor, once the motor fires you release it. If the motor feels like it's going to die, press the key back in for 1 second or less just to give it another shot of fuel prime, you shouldnt need to press it again for start ups after the motor is warm.
Many folks believe that soaking the carbs in cleaner then blowing out the orifices with compressed air is the only way to properly clean them.
My factory service manual is 100 miles away up at the trailer park so I cant provide any advice on your elevation question.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

How long should I soak the carbs before blowing them out? Should I check into rebuild kits? Is the jetting ok? Thanks for the priming info.

Re: 1987 johnson 110 vro. help.

I'd rejet the engine. It's jetted to run close to sea level when shipped from the factory. At 7500 feet, it's probably way overfueling. You can call Bombardier and ask them for jetting specs for high altitude operation. Their Waukegan, ill consumer phone is: 1-847-689-7090.