wi4x4man
Seaman
- Joined
- Aug 25, 2010
- Messages
- 55
Last weekend my son and I went out on Lake Superior with my 28' fishing boat. Everything was going just fine and we were having a great time. At any rate, I had been using the main (and only) engine to troll. Suddenly the engine just died out. It didn't bang, pop, or anything, just slowly died out. After trying to start it many times, I thought that perhaps the plugs fouled up. I pulled one out of the #1 cylinder, and it was full of carbon buildup. So, I figured I had found the problem. I was able to remove and clean all but 1 of the plugs due to the tools I had on board. I again tried to start it, but again I had nothing. It almost sounded like I had lost compression on two cylinders when I cranked it over. I had plenty of spark, fuel, and air, the only thing I figured I must be missing was compression. I checked the dipstick, and the level was about 1 inch higher than the full mark. The crankcase was loaded with gasoline. Thankfully a friend of mine was 12 miles away in his sailboat, and he towed me the 15 miles back to the marina.
So here is the question:
Could I have flooded the engine so badly, that it washed the cylinder walls down with gasoline and removed the oil on the walls? It somewhat makes sense that this might have happened, but has anyone ever heard of this happening or have had it happen to them? Without the oil to help the rings seal, I would have lost compression.
The engine in particular is a 4.3L Mercruiser with a 2 barrel carb.
I am in the process of getting a 9.9 Hp kicker for the boat so I don't use the main engine to troll anymore. Plus, it will help me keep my speed down from 3 mph to more like 1 or 1.5 mph as this is too fast for trolling anyways. Another major added benefit is that I will have another means of getting home.
If anyone sees any holes in my theory, or might have another explaination, please let me know.
So here is the question:
Could I have flooded the engine so badly, that it washed the cylinder walls down with gasoline and removed the oil on the walls? It somewhat makes sense that this might have happened, but has anyone ever heard of this happening or have had it happen to them? Without the oil to help the rings seal, I would have lost compression.
The engine in particular is a 4.3L Mercruiser with a 2 barrel carb.
I am in the process of getting a 9.9 Hp kicker for the boat so I don't use the main engine to troll anymore. Plus, it will help me keep my speed down from 3 mph to more like 1 or 1.5 mph as this is too fast for trolling anyways. Another major added benefit is that I will have another means of getting home.
If anyone sees any holes in my theory, or might have another explaination, please let me know.