2002 Mercury 200 Saltwater EFI Warning Alarm

Joined
May 18, 2012
Messages
1
I recently purchased an older ('88) Grady White walkaround cuddy which was re-powered with a 2002 Mercury 200 Saltwater EFI. On my first trip out, after about 45 minutes of running the motor (not full throttle the whole time, mostly idle and wake speeds), an alarm started. The alarm is a high-pitched "beep-beep-beep-beep" (4 beeps) approximately every 2-3 minutes. I checked the oil level in the oil auxiliary (the 3 gal tank), and the oil level is fine. Additionally, the engine is operating strong and normal...no sputtering, stalling, smoking, or dropping into guardian mode. The only indication of any problem whatsoever is the alarm, which continued until the end of the first trip and which was also present on my 2nd (and most recent) trip out. My questions are: 1) How can I tell what set the alarm off in the first place? For example, does the pattern of the beeping indicate the cause of the problem? 2) If I correct the cause of the alarm, will the alarm reset itself, or will I need to reset the alarm myself? 3) If I need to reset the alarm, how do I do that?

So far, I'm loving the boat and the freedom she gives:D...any assistance in keeping her running right would be most appreciated.
 

dKspunja

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Joined
Jan 9, 2013
Messages
1
Re: 2002 Mercury 200 Saltwater EFI Warning Alarm

My boat had the same issue when I got it. That specific series of beeps indicates an engine oil temperature overheat or low oil pressure/level. You need to check a few things.

  • Ensure the remote oil reservoir has an adequate amount of oil probably at least 2-3 gallons and caps are seated properly and tight.
  • Take the engine cowling off and locate the engine mounted oil reservoir on the left side (its just barely transparent).
  • Coming from the top of the reservoir are the blue oil level switch wires, make sure they are connected.
  • Check to make sure the engine mounted oil reservoir is full by unscrewing the small cap, quickly tighten it if any fluid starts to come out. That indicates that it is full.
If there is an issue with any of those areas fix it and then run the engine again to see if that remedies it. If all of those areas are good, unplug the two wires and use a piece of wire to connect them and run the engine again. If there is no alarm, then your oil level switch is more than likely bad and should be replaced. What happened to me was that the oil level in the reservoir was slightly low coupled with the reservoir being mounted backwards with the suction tubes in the front and would cavitate before getting on plane. This caused the engine mounted reservoir to trap air in the system. So I reversed the remote reservoir and reprimed the system, which fixed my problem.
 
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