40 HP Mariner not idling or coming up to speed

[jcow154]

I have a 40HP mariner outboard and I tried it at the beginning of the year and seemed to be idling fine but then when I put it in the water it was a little sluggish starting off and then I got it up to speed and held the throttle lever steady but the rpms (and thus the speed) started dropping. Now when I go to start it, I need to take the cowling off and manually hold the throttle open for it to start (or crank the high idle lever) and then switch over to the throttle really quick. I was thinking (hoping) something simple like the throttle cables. Any thoughts?

 

[Guest]

Always falls on the proper checks before u go further. First, check compression then check for spark. If u get a good compression and healthy spark i would open up the carb to see whats inside and clean it with carb cleaner