Boat turns over but will not start

[michael0610]

Hi all. New to the iBoats forums so I hope I'm posting properly. I have a 2003 Crownline 180BR with a Mercruiser 3.0 and Alpha I outdrive. It has been in storage for about 3 years (Due to dragged out divorce sad to say). It was last shut down in 2019 and at the time I followed my normal procedure of draining both the block and lower unit as well as fogging the motor with Stabil fogging oil. At the time of shutdown, the following had recently been completed: New distributor cap and wires, new head gasket, new lower unit seals and bearings, new thermostat gasket, oil/filter change. I recently brought it down from NC to SC and began the process of bringing it back to life. I have since completed the following: New starter and new starter solenoid (Both tested bad), new spark plugs, new starting battery, changed lower unit gear oil. Problem is motor turns over fine but will not fire. Tried starting fluid in the air intake to no avail. I'm thinking no fuel to motor is the problem( fuel pump or fuel filter?) but not sure and have not tested fuel pump yet. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

[Eric 3.7LX Alpha 1]

Ethanol gas does not like to sit for 3 years. The needle valve in the carb is probably welded closed with corrosion. I'd drain the tank right out and pull the carb off, get a gasket kit for it and open it up, clean out the bowl and passageways. Remove the gas line at the carb inlet and check the filter screen at the carb inlet.

Have you checked for spark? They sell inline spark testers that are pretty cheap and easy to use with the plug in the block, but I think your issue is bad, old fuel and a dirty carb.

 

[Scott06]

Check for spark. If you put starting fluid in it and it didn’t cough suspect u have no spark.
also if you had a head gasket done was it running afterwards? might be the valves arent adjusted right and there is no compression. What cuased head gasket failure

 

[michael0610]

Ethanol gas does not like to sit for 3 years. The needle valve in the carb is probably welded closed with corrosion. I'd drain the tank right out and pull the carb off, get a gasket kit for it and open it up, clean out the bowl and passageways. Remove the gas line at the carb inlet and check the filter screen at the carb inlet.

Have you checked for spark? They sell inline spark testers that are pretty cheap and easy to use with the plug in the block, but I think your issue is bad, old fuel and a dirty carb.

Thanks for the reply. I have been suspicious of the gas since the beginning but haven't had the time yet or figured out the proper disposal resources to dump it. It is not ethanol though. I have never run ethanol in the boat since I've owned it because I learned years ago with my small engines that don't get regular use that it's evil. Still, old gas is usually bad gas. Also, glad you mentioned testing spark. I've got a tester in my chainsaw case and didn't think to try it but will tomorrow. I'll also pull the carb as you suggest and clean it and replace gaskets and let you know how it goes. Thanks again.

 

[michael0610]

Check for spark. If you put starting fluid in it and it didn’t cough suspect u have no spark.
also if you had a head gasket done was it running afterwards? might be the valves arent adjusted right and there is no compression. What cuased head gasket failure

Thanks for helping. I've got a spark tester in my chainsaw case and will see if it fits tomorrow. Also will pull the carb ad drain the gas. The local mechanic told me the gas should be alright since it's non-ethanol and I had Stabil in it, but old gas is usually bad gas. Someone today also asked about a fuel/water separator on the motor. I'm not sure o the Merc 3.0 but I will bird dog that too. Will keep everyone posted in case I figure it out so that hopefully my success will benefit the next one with the problem.

 

[michael0610]

Check for spark. If you put starting fluid in it and it didn’t cough suspect u have no spark.
also if you had a head gasket done was it running afterwards? might be the valves arent adjusted right and there is no compression. What cuased head gasket failure

Also, didn't respond to your head gasket question. I have no idea as to why it failed but when my mechanic in NC pulled it, he showed me the gasket. It was barely torn on one edge but he said that's al it takes. It ran fine with the new gasket.

 

[nola mike]

The local mechanic told me the gas should be alright since it's non-ethanol and I had Stabil in it, but old gas is usually bad gas.

Not sure why people think that ethanol makes gas bad. It doesn't. ANY gas that sits oxidizes and loses the most volatile components through evaporation. Pretty sure there were plenty of cars and boats that didn't start prior to the 90's.

 

[QBhoy]

Hi. The matter of the head gasket mentioned, would be a notable point for me. Would be a very rare event for it to fail on these engines, all being well and normal. Not a common thing at all, unless there was a reason for it or something else going on.

 

[poconojoe]

I have a couple of dumb questions.

Did you check to see if gas is squirting into the carb?

How about the dead man lanyard switch? Mine got accidentally switched off once and it cranked and hicupped, but wouldn't start.

 

[JASinIL2006]

I have a couple of dumb questions.

Did you check to see if gas is squirting into the carb?

How about the dead man lanyard switch? Mine got accidentally switched off once and it cranked and hicupped, but wouldn't start.

Checking the dead man switch is actually a really good idea. I did that once too; the switch got bumped when changing drivers while skiiing. Took a while to figure it out...

 

[poconojoe]

Checking the dead man switch is actually a really good idea. I did that once too; the switch got bumped when changing drivers while skiiing. Took a while to figure it out...

Yeah, it was actually a good learning experience.
It would crank, hiccup and seem to almost start.

 

[michael0610]

Sorry I haven’t replied sooner. Been busy with work and the boat. I went ahead and changed the carb and fuel pump since they appeared original and the motor is an 03. Haven’t tried turning it yet since I just got finished with the fuel pump at 11:00 last night. Any advice/prep before trying? I understand the fuel pump to be self priming.

 

[michael0610]

Sorry I haven’t replied sooner. Been busy with work and the boat. I went ahead and changed the carb and fuel pump since they appeared original and the motor is an 03. Haven’t tried turning it yet since I just got finished with the fuel pump at 11:00 last night. Any advice/prep before trying? I understand the fuel pump to be self priming.

Also, I did check the dead man switch. Mine is a simple off/on toggle and the lanyard just knocks the switch off if pulled. It doesn't have to be on there for the boat to run as long as the switch is in the on position.

 

[michael0610]

Hi. The matter of the head gasket mentioned, would be a notable point for me. Would be a very rare event for it to fail on these engines, all being well and normal. Not a common thing at all, unless there was a reason for it or something else going on.

All I really konw is that the head gasket was slightly turnaround one cylinder. My boat guy installed the new one and it ran fine for the rest of the season. I was baffled as to why is was damaged but I've had it happen on a car before too and once replaced I drove it for another 120,000 miles before selling it. May be just a defective gasket but if so I would have thought it would have failed way earlier in the motor's life although the motor only has 122 hours on it.

 

[Bondo]

Sorry I haven’t replied sooner. Been busy with work and the boat. I went ahead and changed the carb and fuel pump since they appeared original and the motor is an 03. Haven’t tried turning it yet since I just got finished with the fuel pump at 11:00 last night. Any advice/prep before trying? I understand the fuel pump to be self priming.

Still, old gas is usually bad gas.

Ayuh,...... Welcome Aboard,...... Pull abit of the gas, 'n Smell it,.....
If it Smells like gasoline, it'll burn,... If it Stinks to high heaven, it's gone bad,....

'n ya, the pump will prime itself, provided the tank will give up it's fuel,.....
Some of the reasons it might not give up it's fuel, include a plugged anti-siphon valve, a cracked or broken dip-tube, or crud in the tank,....

 

[michael0610]

Ayuh,...... Welcome Aboard,...... Pull abit of the gas, 'n Smell it,.....
If it Smells like gasoline, it'll burn,... If it Stinks to high heaven, it's gone bad,....

'n ya, the pump will prime itself, provided the tank will give up it's fuel,.....
Some of the reasons it might not give up it's fuel, include a plugged anti-siphon valve, a cracked or broken dip-tube, or crud in the tank,....

I should have mentioned I also drained the tank of the old gas and added new to the tank. I’ll be trying to crank it this afternoon and will let everyone know.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Sorry I haven’t replied sooner. Been busy with work and the boat. I went ahead and changed the carb and fuel pump since they appeared original and the motor is an 03. Haven’t tried turning it yet since I just got finished with the fuel pump at 11:00 last night. Any advice/prep before trying? I understand the fuel pump to be self priming.

Why would you replace the carb and fuel pump vs simply spending $50 on a carb gasket kit?

 

[stresspoint]

i hope you remembered to put the lanyard key in .