1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

[markvan]

I have a Evinrude 225hp (1987) on a 21' starcraft, last year was getting about 55mph at 5750 rpm, always been hard to start (tempermental). This year once i finally get it started and out of the marina, i punch it and cant get over 2800, sometimes i am able to get it to plane after a mile or so, once it does I can only get about 4000 rpm. Also around the same time as this problem it will not idle below 1500 rpm for more than 5-10 sec then sneezes when cold and boges down when hot then dies. The sneese seems to be coming from the exhaust not back through the carbs. The problem seems to be getting worse. 1 Power pack, 2 coils, plugs, fuel filter changed and carbs cleaned. compression is #1-98, #2-95, #3-97, #4-83, #5-98, #6-96. Same prop as last year, had about 1/2 tank of fuel from last year topped it off with preminum this year (shop that winterized it doesnt know if they put stabilizer in it).

 

[Dhadley]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

Welcome!<br /><br />Compression looks OK (#4 might need a closer look)and I see the carbs were cleaned. Were they disassembled and soaked with new OE kits? That side plate can sometimes suck air too. <br /><br />The sync-n-link all OK?<br /><br />If you have last years fuel, get rid of it. Not good in your outboard. Topping off with hi-test doesnt help. Use fresh 87 octane only!<br /><br />Post the model number. There were significent changes in 1988. It may have some bearing on the problem.

 

[markvan]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

not sure of the model number...boat is 3 hours away. The carbs were taken apart, soaked and cleaned off. What do you mean by the sync-n-link? I will get rid of the old fuel, should the tank be cleaned out?

 

[markvan]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

Dhadley do you know off hand where the model number would be on the motor, I had my neighbor at the lake have a look for the model number and he said he couldnt find it.

 

[Dhadley]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

It should be on one of the stern brackets. Port side I believe.<br /><br />When you run it again, try unhooking the shift interrupter. I dont think thats it but its easy to try.<br /><br />Also clean each connection on each coil. The ground, primary and hi tension terminals. It sure sounds like we could be losing some spark at times.

 

[markvan]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

Thanks I will give that a try this weekend and let you know how it worked. When I drain out the old fuel should I also be cleaning the inside of the gas tank with something? Its approx 40 gal tank about 1/3 full.

 

[Dhadley]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

If the tank itself is dirty the it probably will have to be removed to clean it properly. Just check your fuel filter regularily and see what you find.

 

[markvan]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

Dhadley - could it possible be the reed blocks, just reading over some posts and I seem to be having a number of the same problems, not idling, boggs often when I put it in gear and give throttle. Are there other things I should be looking at as once I get to the lake I will be there for two weeks and will do not have internet access there.

 

[Dhadley]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

Usually your problems are carb and / or sync & link related. You mentioned that the carbs were cleaned but that didnt solve the problem. <br /><br />Sometimes getting the linkages on those carbs can be a bear. There is a connector under the middle carb on each side that hooks to the bottom carb. If any of the throttle plates are open, even slightly, it will sneeze like that and act like that. You may also be losing spark intermittently. <br /><br />Also make sure the timer base is moving freely. OMC used some pretty big carbs on those early loopers that were prone to bogging if not set up perfectly. <br /><br />What spark plugs are you using?

 

[markvan]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

not 100% sure, but got them form a envinrude dealer, champion #$#$##10, he said I could go with 9's or 10' i believe is what he refered to them as, when I told him that I was at approx 3000 ft elevation he suggested the hotter plugs.

 

[markvan]

Re: 1987 - 225 Evinrude no power & wont idle

problem solved, drained gas tank, sync-n-link set properly - 2 throttle plates were open, and timing was off a lot...........runs like a dream now.