DANGEROUS unexpected start up

[grtrvrd]

My 2006 50 EFI, parked at the dock, tilted up, fired up on its own and ran until the fuel line melted through and choked off the gas.

Looks totally destroyed.

Anybody else have any experience like this?

 

[Malibu1921]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

Wow, It trimmed up and cranked? Sounds more like sabotage to me. How long did it run before you noticed?

 

[DuckOfDeath]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

Sabatoge/vandalism seems the most obvious answer.

 

[Silvertip]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

A starter solenoid failure can indeed cause the engine to crank unexpectedly. It has happened to me. However, I question how the engine could run since the ignition needs to be on for that to happen. Therefore, I suspect a bad ignition switch caused the problem since two things needed to occur. Only the switch or associated wiring could cause that to happen.

 

[CharlieB]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

I would REALLY like to be able to inspect this one.

Tilted

Fired and ran

Melted a fuel line?

That's a LOT of things happening and NOT all on one switch.

Was there a lightning strike?

 

[cell]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

Don't those new mercs come with an tilt safety switch like the old ones?If they don't then......jeeze.

 

[grtrvrd]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

The first time we had an unexpected start up we were out fishing and had shut the motor off with the tiller kill. So the motor was down. It started. The key had been in the on position. We took it to a repair shop who looked it over and reported they couldn't find the problem. OK.


This time the motor had again been shut off with the tiller kill, and the key was on. Motor up.

No vandalism, sabotage, pets, animals were present. Granted the key should have been off as a -redund( make that primary) safety.

But wow, if this had been in my garage, i hate to think of the potential consequence..

 

[grtrvrd]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

Wow, It trimmed up and cranked? Sounds more like sabotage to me. How long did it run before you noticed?

SInce the boat is about 500 feet away from the house, we have no idea how long it ran. Long enought to melt the fuel line.

 

[grtrvrd]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

A starter solenoid failure can indeed cause the engine to crank unexpectedly. It has happened to me. However, I question how the engine could run since the ignition needs to be on for that to happen. Therefore, I suspect a bad ignition switch caused the problem since two things needed to occur. Only the switch or associated wiring could cause that to happen.

Is it true this motor should not have been able to run tilted? You'll see from my post this am that we had left the key in the on position.

 

[grtrvrd]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

I would REALLY like to be able to inspect this one.

Tilted

Fired and ran

Melted a fuel line?

That's a LOT of things happening and NOT all on one switch.

Was there a lightning strike?

No lightning, some human error, ie., junior shut it off with the tiller kill, left key in on position.

 

[CharlieB]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

I would change the starter solenoid, a weak or broken spring could possibly allow the plunger to contact the terminals and cause the starter to operate.

Test the solenoid by removing it from the motor, attach an Ohm's meter then gently shake, rock, and roll the solenoid around, changing its angle as if wave were rocking the boat, see if the Ohm's meter registers ANY continuity between the larger terminals.

I still can't picture the fuel line melting unless it was laying against the motor leg and heated.

 

[sschefer]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

Didn't I hear something about the 2006's being the transistion year from Yamaha to Merc and that the motors that were transitioned were plagued with problems.

 

[cell]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

Is it true this motor should not have been able to run tilted?

Id like to know also.

 

[sschefer]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

My 2006 50 EFI, parked at the dock, tilted up, fired up on its own and ran until the fuel line melted through and choked off the gas.

Looks totally destroyed.

Anybody else have any experience like this?

Did you actually see this happen or was it after you docked, went somewhere and left your keys in the boat. Having this happen on it's own is too far fetched.

A person seeking vengance might wait for someone to walk away from their boat and then notice the keys still in it and tilt their engine up out of the water, start it and walk away.


A dishonest type might consider doing something like this for the insurance money or if they were behind on payments and the repo man was nearby.

 

[grtrvrd]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

Did you actually see this happen or was it after you docked, went somewhere and left your keys in the boat. Having this happen on it's own is too far fetched.

A person seeking vengance might wait for someone to walk away from their boat and then notice the keys still in it and tilt their engine up out of the water, start it and walk away.


A dishonest type might consider doing something like this for the insurance money or if they were behind on payments and the repo man was nearby.

First of all, there are no payments, also no insurance.

Secondly, it was docked on my own private property, very little traffic on the upper Mississippi.

Third and most importantly, I had the experience in person once before and had taken it in for a Mercury mechanics review. They found nothing.

The motor did not tilt itself up. We did that.

It just started and ran until it overheated and cooked everything.

 

[cell]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

I would still like to know if it is able to start tilted.

 

[sschefer]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

O.K. In the original post it sounds like the motor tilted itself up. Motors will start and run in trim mode but they shouldn't in tilt mode. There's one problem that needs to be resolved. Mine is older and has a mercury switch that shorts the ignition to ground when the motor is tilted. Still, it doesn't work until fairly far into the tilt.

The motor starting on it's own would require a short to occur. That short could occur at the ignition switch. I've seen switches that were broken internally and became heat sensitive (so to speak) in that the when the dash heated up in the sun they would change shape just enough to cause contact to occur and seemingly operate on their own. The one I saw do this didn't start the engine but it did turn the igniton on an allowed power to the gauges. When the engine was started, you couldn't turn it off either.

My advice is to get the engine checked. Make sure it is safe to run and replace the ignition switch. This type of problem will be difficult to trouble shoot without the perfect condition occuring again and the switches are not all that expensive.

 

[sschefer]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

I would still like to know if it is able to start tilted.

Obviously his did but at what point it cuts out the ignition may vary. Mine shorts the ignition to ground just like the saftey switch does. It uses a mercury switch to accomplish that but isn't effective until quite a way into the tilt. There are several other way's it could be done also.

 

[Capt_Jon]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

I'll be unhooking my battery in the future.

 

[cell]

Re: DANGEROUS unexpected start up

Obviously his did but at what point it cuts out the ignition may vary.

On mine it grounds the ignition.It will still crank,but it wont start.....least I think it does I can't remember to be sure.


Disconnecting the battery is a excellent idea.