VRO Questions Newbie to VRO's

[cub48]

Hi Guys
Here is the facts 1998 150 Faststrike. Everything is as it came from the factory. Just bought it. I am going over everything before putting it in the water. Plan on changing lower gear oil. water pump, cleaning it up. I have premixed before so no problem. I like oil injection system. I read the link on the VRO system Sounds good. Questions are. If the flow of oil stops and the alarm goes off do you have enough time to shut down before engine damage.
Is the no oil flow sensor relieable or is it oh we replace them all the time! I was told by a dealer on a boat my age the VRO may need to be replaced at a cost of around 400.00 or to disconect it and premix. whats the expected life of a VRO and do you run them until they quit. I know engines are not cheap. And if I can do something now to make things last longer without spending 400.00 I would like to do it. If I do disconect the VRO can someone direct me in the right direction as what to unplug and not to. as I want all other alarms to keep working. Steve

 

[seahorse5]

Re: VRO Questions Newbie to VRO's

A 1998 motor has a repairable style "VRO" in it. Parts are available.

The NO OIL alarm starts to go off if there is a loss of oil pump pressure going into the fuel pump chamber. There is still a volume of fuel-oil mix
in the rest of the fuel pump housing, the fuel lines and the carburetor bowls.

Read this about the "VRO"

http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/VRO.html

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: VRO Questions Newbie to VRO's

Big can of worms here. Many folk with many different opinions. Supposing that your alarm system is hooked up and working then if the oil pressure drops and the alarm goes off you will pretty much be stuck where you are. If you have a kicker motor then you can run that home if necessary. Another option is to carry enough 2 stroke oil with you to dump enough in the remainder of the fuel tank to get you home as a premix system. If the OMS system is still pumping some then you will have a richer than required mix at that point. It will run smokier but will do no harm. Alternatively if you do not like the above then convert to premix.
I believe that you have an "OMS" (oil metering system) system on your motor and not a "VRO" (variable ratio oiling)
The OMS system is reportedly a lot more reliable than the VRO system was.
Just my 2 cents though.

 

[Chris1956]

Re: VRO Questions Newbie to VRO's

Cub, I bought a rig wih the same motor as you, a couple of years ago. The first thing I did was to test each alarm to make sure they work. You have overheat, low oil (in oil tank), no oil (at OMS Pump) and Check Engine (gasoline Restriction) alarms.

I believe the "No Oil" alarm is controlled by a motion sensor on the OMS pump. If it doesn't detect the motion of the oil, the alarm sounds.

The Check Engine alarm is sounded when the vacuum sensor sees a vacuum on the gasoline hose.

The Low Oil alarm is controlled by a float in the oil tank.

The overheat alarm is controlled by a temp sensor on each cylinder head.

Do you have a System Check Tach on that boat? If not, I recommend you get one. Ditto for a water pressure gauge.

I have a 60 gal gas tank in my boat. Since that motor runs about 60::1 using the OMS, I therefore keep 1 gal of oil in the bilge, in case the OMS system fails. If the OMS were to fail, I would dump the gal of oil into the tank, and agitate the boat to mix it up. Then I would drive home, slowly at first, until I was sure the premix was being burned. If the pumping function failed, I would have someone pump the primer bulb all the way home. Once at home, it is either repair or replace the OMS.

BTW - the OMS system is supposed to be of high quality.

 

[Fl_Richard]

Re: VRO Questions Newbie to VRO's

OMS is extremely reliable. I would be more worried about a carb jet getting plugged up and leaning out and burning a piston then my OMS system dying. (Many OMS systems are blamed for this problem)

As with all things good maintenance is key to longevity.

Dont be scared of the prices, a replacement OMS pump can be found online for around $230.00