I'm having troubles with my 19' 1985ish sea ray bow rider. It has a cobra I/O with the 5.0 V8. Hrs gauge says around 570 IIRC. More info available if you need... It has quite a few small problems, so help me with what you can please. I'm pretty mechanically inclined, but I haven't spent much time with big block carbed engines. I have the factory manuals. Sorry in advanced for the epic post! I'll give details to help you all diagnose better...
The motor barely starts on one battery. I have to switch to both to get it to crank fast enough to fire the engine. One battery is brand new, and the other is one season old. Admittedly, I haven't put them on the charger, but I have no reason to believe that they are undercharged after a whole day of boating. Volt gauge reads 13ish with engine running, 12 when off. I could be wrong, but it seems to me that the engine isn't turning as fast as it should be. Also, the rhythm is not smooth. Its a steady crank, and then two hard spots, as if two cylinders were harder to tdc than the others. I'm guessing a compression test is in order, but what else should I look for. Is this normal for a big 5.0?
First start of the day always needs quickstart (even in warm weather), and plenty of attention on the throttle for the first few minutes of running to keep if from stalling. Once its warm, idle is fine, and as I recall right in the correct RPM range. I think the choke is working, but I could be looking at the wrong thing on the carb.
I typically have to crank for at the very least 5 seconds every time, even with a hot engine. Often, I am hesitant to shut it down, because its a pain in the butt to get going again sometimes.
Before I purchased the boat, it ran seemingly well. It hit ideal rpm range (per the factory book), and got on plane quickly. After a few summer months, it gradually got fairly severe intermittent power loss. The first problem was the shift switch being misadjusted. I fixed that, but the problem returned, and was more consistent. I couldn't get on plane anymore with even 5 people on board at times. The power loss is less severe after the engine has run for at least 20 minutes. It felt like the engine was bogging down, as if I was overloading it trying to tow something.
Tried to take it out yesterday after 2 months (stored on trailer, ran ok before), and couldn't get it started. cranked and cranked, but rarely a catch. It was about 38F outside, compared to the 60F it was in last time I took it out. Could this be a factor? I did not check for spark, but I think that might be a good place to start looking. Am I on the right track?
Also, the temp gauge hovers around 200-220. I saw this when I was just a guest on the boat, and the guy said no worries. I have since learned that 140 is the ideal range. I will replace the impeller, and the thermostat. Is there anything else I should check out aside from hose damage?
I opened the oil fill cap on top of the valve cover, and what appeared to be steam was coming out. Not a lot like a tea pot, but enough to notice. The oil wasn't milky on the dipstick, so I am fairly certain there is no water in the pan, but this doesn't seem normal. Is it?
I get warm water in the bilge after running. I think I can find the cooling system leak, but I thought I'd mention it.
When turning hard, I get a low clicking noise from the outdrive. I'll pull it to look for rust, but the transom was resealed (previous owner said new bellows too) just before the season. What else should I look for?
Thanks again for anything you can help with. Sorry for the novel!
Darcy
The motor barely starts on one battery. I have to switch to both to get it to crank fast enough to fire the engine. One battery is brand new, and the other is one season old. Admittedly, I haven't put them on the charger, but I have no reason to believe that they are undercharged after a whole day of boating. Volt gauge reads 13ish with engine running, 12 when off. I could be wrong, but it seems to me that the engine isn't turning as fast as it should be. Also, the rhythm is not smooth. Its a steady crank, and then two hard spots, as if two cylinders were harder to tdc than the others. I'm guessing a compression test is in order, but what else should I look for. Is this normal for a big 5.0?
First start of the day always needs quickstart (even in warm weather), and plenty of attention on the throttle for the first few minutes of running to keep if from stalling. Once its warm, idle is fine, and as I recall right in the correct RPM range. I think the choke is working, but I could be looking at the wrong thing on the carb.
I typically have to crank for at the very least 5 seconds every time, even with a hot engine. Often, I am hesitant to shut it down, because its a pain in the butt to get going again sometimes.
Before I purchased the boat, it ran seemingly well. It hit ideal rpm range (per the factory book), and got on plane quickly. After a few summer months, it gradually got fairly severe intermittent power loss. The first problem was the shift switch being misadjusted. I fixed that, but the problem returned, and was more consistent. I couldn't get on plane anymore with even 5 people on board at times. The power loss is less severe after the engine has run for at least 20 minutes. It felt like the engine was bogging down, as if I was overloading it trying to tow something.
Tried to take it out yesterday after 2 months (stored on trailer, ran ok before), and couldn't get it started. cranked and cranked, but rarely a catch. It was about 38F outside, compared to the 60F it was in last time I took it out. Could this be a factor? I did not check for spark, but I think that might be a good place to start looking. Am I on the right track?
Also, the temp gauge hovers around 200-220. I saw this when I was just a guest on the boat, and the guy said no worries. I have since learned that 140 is the ideal range. I will replace the impeller, and the thermostat. Is there anything else I should check out aside from hose damage?
I opened the oil fill cap on top of the valve cover, and what appeared to be steam was coming out. Not a lot like a tea pot, but enough to notice. The oil wasn't milky on the dipstick, so I am fairly certain there is no water in the pan, but this doesn't seem normal. Is it?
I get warm water in the bilge after running. I think I can find the cooling system leak, but I thought I'd mention it.
When turning hard, I get a low clicking noise from the outdrive. I'll pull it to look for rust, but the transom was resealed (previous owner said new bellows too) just before the season. What else should I look for?
Thanks again for anything you can help with. Sorry for the novel!
Darcy