48 HP Evinrude, won't start, not firing

To all, I have acquired my fathers boat due to his passing. It has a model E48ESL model Evinrude. It turns over, and is getting fuel, but seems to not be getting fire. Besides plugs, what else do I need to check. Any help would be greatly appreciated. I really don't won't to have to spend a ton of money on it if possible because I am just trying to test everything on the boat before selling it.<br /><br />Thanks,<br />RickC

Re: 48 HP Evinrude, won't start, not firing

Howdy Rick.<br /><br />There are a couple of possibilities that would be a snap to fix:<br /><br />The gear shift/throttle lever has a switch that prevents starting in gear. It's usually called the neutral safety switch. It may be misadjusted.<br /><br />Somewhere on the dash is an emergency kill switch. It pulls out and is held there by a little clip on the end of a lanyard that attaches to the operator. The purpose is to kill the engine if the operator leaves the helm for any reason. If there is no clip holding it out you will have no fire.<br /><br />If it is neither of those, you may have a faulty ignition/start switch.<br /><br />If it is none of the above you have an ignition problem and you will need a manual to troubleshoot it.<br /><br />Good luck.

Re: 48 HP Evinrude, won't start, not firing

Good ideas, and chances are if it is not one of those it is your power pack.<br /><br />PCG

Re: 48 HP Evinrude, won't start, not firing

Thanks for such quick responses guys. I did wiggle the throttle to make sure it is in neutral, and I checked the tether switch to make sure the clip was in. I will meter it though to make sure it is good. Thanks for the inputs. I appreciate it very much.<br /><br />RickC

Re: 48 HP Evinrude, won't start, not firing

I found my problem. After checking the switches, I pulled the plugs and noticed them to be very oily. I washed them in gasoline and put them back in, and it fired right up. Must have been needing an octane boost. <br /><br />Thanks again for the help,<br />RickC