Still a relative boating novice here, and definitely an engine maintenance novice!
The wife and I had our pontoon out on the lake yesterday - the boat initially started right up with no issue, we tooled around the lake a little bit, then dropped anchor in a relatively quiet spot. When we got ready to turn in, I had trouble starting the motor up. I got the typical beep from my console I always get when turning the key, but absolutely nothing out of the engine. No clicks, no warning tones, nada. After pulling the cowling off and making sure that everything looked to be connected and in place, I eventually remembered seeing a buddy of mine rock the throttle lever on his old boat prior to starting it up. So I gave that a shot - hit the button for neutral, put the throttle full forward, then full reverse, then back to idle. The dang thing started up like a charm after that.
I'm starting to suspect this happened once last summer too - didn't think to try anything with the throttle, just pulled the boat out and hauled it to the local (and now suspect) mechanic who told me I had "some loose electrical connections". Pretty vague and non-specific stuff.
So - is it possible that I had the throttle just marginally out of idle, preventing the engine from starting? Or do I potentially have a problem either in the setup of my throttle position sensor or the first signs of failure of the TPS? Or something else entirely? The wife is developing "trust issues" with the boat after this, and I just need to set her at ease. If this is a normal thing, great. If not, I'll pull the boat out and see about getting it checked.
The wife and I had our pontoon out on the lake yesterday - the boat initially started right up with no issue, we tooled around the lake a little bit, then dropped anchor in a relatively quiet spot. When we got ready to turn in, I had trouble starting the motor up. I got the typical beep from my console I always get when turning the key, but absolutely nothing out of the engine. No clicks, no warning tones, nada. After pulling the cowling off and making sure that everything looked to be connected and in place, I eventually remembered seeing a buddy of mine rock the throttle lever on his old boat prior to starting it up. So I gave that a shot - hit the button for neutral, put the throttle full forward, then full reverse, then back to idle. The dang thing started up like a charm after that.
I'm starting to suspect this happened once last summer too - didn't think to try anything with the throttle, just pulled the boat out and hauled it to the local (and now suspect) mechanic who told me I had "some loose electrical connections". Pretty vague and non-specific stuff.
So - is it possible that I had the throttle just marginally out of idle, preventing the engine from starting? Or do I potentially have a problem either in the setup of my throttle position sensor or the first signs of failure of the TPS? Or something else entirely? The wife is developing "trust issues" with the boat after this, and I just need to set her at ease. If this is a normal thing, great. If not, I'll pull the boat out and see about getting it checked.
