volvo 8.1gi taking water and starting problem.

jgerardi

Seaman
Joined
Feb 27, 2019
Messages
61
I just bought a 07 Chaparral with a Volvo 8.1 and sx stern drive. I am very happy with the boat but i have a couple of issues. The first is when i start the boat, weather it is cold or warm, at first it sounds like it has a dead battery. It turns once or twice extremely slowly and then turns normal and starts right up. The best comparison i can think of is i remember on some of my older cars that had a conventional distributor, if the timing was too far advanced, this is exactly what it would do. If i would back the timing off 2 or 3 degrees, it would be fine. The boat has all electronics so clearly this is not something i can try. Any suggestions? My second issue is that the boat, when i drive it seems to be getting water in the hull. It stays dry when the boat sits in the water over night but if i take it out for 30 minutes, the pump comes on. Anyone have some thoughts on this? Thanks in advance.
 

Thalasso

Commander
Joined
Jan 18, 2011
Messages
2,876
Change the dist cap. As far as water, take it out of the water and fill the bilge(without getting starter wet) and see where it comes out. Only place i would suspect is the bellows or gimble ring
 

jgerardi

Seaman
Joined
Feb 27, 2019
Messages
61
Thanks but the engine does not have a distributor cap. It is all electronic with individual coils for each cylinder. As far as the water problem goes, duh, i guess i could have thought of that myself. lol
 

Scott Danforth

Grumpy Vintage Moderator still playing with boats
Staff member
Joined
Jul 23, 2011
Messages
47,306
the slow cranking is a dirty or corroded terminal in the battery/starting circuit. clean all connections so that they are shiny enough your wife would eat off them. regarding taking on water, when was the last time you serviced the impeller? check the circulating pump for a leak at the vent hole. other than that, get a flashlight, a mirror and your cell phone (because it fits in areas your head dont) and look to see where the water is coming from. filling your bilge is always a bad idea.
 

jgerardi

Seaman
Joined
Feb 27, 2019
Messages
61
Thanks, i wasnt thinking to totally fill the bilge, just 4 or 5 inches to see if the drain hoses might be causing it. As far as the dirty terminals go, i will certainly try that.
 

QBhoy

Fleet Admiral
Joined
Mar 10, 2016
Messages
8,286
Mmmm....the pessimist in me might suspect you have damage to your exhaust and or risers. Perhaps causing internal and external water ingress. Your slow then fast cranking would be explained by this. Any sign of slower than normal idle, water emulsification in the oil filler cap ?
Just a thought. Hopefully not.
 

BRICH1260

Lieutenant
Joined
Jul 6, 2011
Messages
1,342
Does the boat collect water while at idle or only when moving boat in forward or reverse. If water collects with engine on and not moving, then probably coming from the cooling system. If it only occurs while moving in the water, better chance that it is a thru hull or rub line issue.
 

BarryTurano

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Oct 26, 2014
Messages
145
If you are only collecting water when you are running, you may want to reseal the cap to the hull. My Albemarle would collect water in the bilge while running. Removed all of the sealant where the cap sits on to the hull and resealed it . Problem solved. I was getting spray seeping in.
 

Bt Doctur

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Aug 29, 2004
Messages
19,093
there are numerous ways for water to enter a hull, Spray entering from the engine room vents or a loose top deck to bottom hull cracks. Look at the rub rail. There should be no gaps
loose/cracked hos or hose connection. check the exaust rubber components. Sometimes an overheat burns thru the rubber coupling hoses
 
Top