1984 evinrude 140 no top end wont plane

[Lynn1972]

I have an evinrude 1984 140hp that wont plane out. It is running on 3 of the 4 cylinders and was planing fine until today. we have checked the fuel line because it seem like air was entering them but that was not it. We were out in the lake running fine until we went through a sand bar about 6 ft wide. after that it would not plane out. could this of possibly hurt the engine more? Please help!

 

[crb478]

Re: 1984 evinrude 140 no top end wont plane

First check your compression and then verify that you have spark that will jump 7/16 inch gap. You said that you have spark on 3 out of four, try swapping a coil and see if the problem follows the coil. When was the last time the impeller was changed? It would not hurt to drop the lower unit and make sure that the sand is not stuck there. Did you hear any alarms? Any chance that the motor over heated? I would want to flush the lower unit and the power head if any sand from the sand bar got into the motor. Strat with the basics and then report back and the real experts here will be able to help you more than me.

 

[Lynn1972]

Re: 1984 evinrude 140 no top end wont plane

Thanks again! I admit .... I'm not at all a boat mechanic and am only semi familiar with other motors. I know enough to just get me in trouble, but iboats has again walked me through another problem. As I started with the electrical wires I found one loose. There are two orange ones going to each plug. They join at a rubber coated connector and then split again going to the spark plug. One of the wires was loose inside the rubber connector just enough to not come out but not touch. I fixed it and works fine. Thanks again you guys make it easy for even a begiiner like me! This was my friends boat and he plans on restoring the compression on the fourth head soon.