Hello,<br /><br />I am a newbie to boats so please bear with me. I have a new toy that I bought from a friend as a restore project. It is a 1978 Sea Ray. The motor is a 165 Mercruiser I/O. When I purchased the boat, the motor did not run. It's been sitting for a few years without being started. My dad and I rebuilt the carburetor and the motor started. It sounded great at low rpms. Idles great, and runs great until it hits about 3000 rpms, then it stalls.<br /><br />Since this time we've replaced:<br /><br />1) The fuel filter<br />2) Replaced all spark plugs (gapped .035")<br />3) Replaced the coil<br />4) Replaced the condenser in the distributor<br />5) Set the timing according to specs<br /><br />Still, the motor bogs and dies above 3000 rpm.<br /><br />It feels like a fuel problem to me. Needs a new fuel pump maybe? Is the engine starving for fuel? I tried to list all of the information here that I can. Any help on this would be greatly appreciated!!
<br /><br />Before replacing the fuel pump, check the source. Your pick-up in the tank could have a clog, or the check valve on top of the tank might be sticky. Also check for fuel or air leaks in the connections and lines.<br /><br />I'm a tad more inclined to look at the points. If the key had ever been left on for a long time, the spring weakens and doesn't close the points at higher RPMs.