I have a 94' Mercruiser V8 350 engine in my boat (21' chaparral). For the
past year I have had some difficulty starting it. I dry dock it and when I
start it up on the hose in the beginning of the weekend to make sure
everything is working before taking it out, it's extremely difficult to
start, I usually have to put it in neutral and pump/push it forward and back
maybe 5 times then almost put the throttle all the way forward for it to
start (and still it has to crank for a about 5 seconds before it starts),
once started i run it at maybe 2000rpm for a minute or two then I can put it
back to idle and no problem. If I let it run for a while the next time i go
to start it, it turns over perfectly.... Now when I put it in the water an
hour or two later, i have the same problem except it is magnified and more
difficult to start.

Things I have done: Check the plugs / regap, outdrive serviced / impeller
etc...

My thoughts are that it probably isn't the plugs because I would have a
difficult time starting it weather it was warmed up or not correct?? I'm
thinking maybe something in the fuel line putting gas to the carb? But then
why is it more difficult once it's in the water?

Any troubleshooting suggestions is appreciated!

One more thing, The carb was rebuilt about 4 years ago.


"oelf92" wrote in message
...
I have a 94' Mercruiser V8 350 engine in my boat (21' chaparral). For the
past year I have had some difficulty starting it. I dry dock it and when I
start it up on the hose in the beginning of the weekend to make sure
everything is working before taking it out, it's extremely difficult to
start, I usually have to put it in neutral and pump/push it forward and
back maybe 5 times then almost put the throttle all the way forward for it
to start (and still it has to crank for a about 5 seconds before it
starts), once started i run it at maybe 2000rpm for a minute or two then I
can put it back to idle and no problem. If I let it run for a while the
next time i go to start it, it turns over perfectly.... Now when I put it
in the water an hour or two later, i have the same problem except it is
magnified and more difficult to start.

Things I have done: Check the plugs / regap, outdrive serviced / impeller
etc...

My thoughts are that it probably isn't the plugs because I would have a
difficult time starting it weather it was warmed up or not correct?? I'm
thinking maybe something in the fuel line putting gas to the carb? But
then why is it more difficult once it's in the water?

Any troubleshooting suggestions is appreciated!

Reluctant starting after sitting can be the fuel line leaking back into
the tank. This is mroe common on boats because they often have more
crud in the gas. Also could be that your choke is not working. I
would definately suspect fuel rather than ignition.


oelf92 wrote:
One more thing, The carb was rebuilt about 4 years ago.


"oelf92" wrote in message
...
I have a 94' Mercruiser V8 350 engine in my boat (21' chaparral). For the
past year I have had some difficulty starting it. I dry dock it and when I
start it up on the hose in the beginning of the weekend to make sure
everything is working before taking it out, it's extremely difficult to
start, I usually have to put it in neutral and pump/push it forward and
back maybe 5 times then almost put the throttle all the way forward for it
to start (and still it has to crank for a about 5 seconds before it
starts), once started i run it at maybe 2000rpm for a minute or two then I
can put it back to idle and no problem. If I let it run for a while the
next time i go to start it, it turns over perfectly.... Now when I put it
in the water an hour or two later, i have the same problem except it is
magnified and more difficult to start.

Things I have done: Check the plugs / regap, outdrive serviced / impeller
etc...

My thoughts are that it probably isn't the plugs because I would have a
difficult time starting it weather it was warmed up or not correct?? I'm
thinking maybe something in the fuel line putting gas to the carb? But
then why is it more difficult once it's in the water?

Any troubleshooting suggestions is appreciated!

"oelf92" wrote in message
...
I have a 94' Mercruiser V8 350 engine in my boat (21' chaparral). For the
past year I have had some difficulty starting it. I dry dock it and when I
start it up on the hose in the beginning of the weekend to make sure
everything is working before taking it out, it's extremely difficult to
start, I usually have to put it in neutral and pump/push it forward and
back maybe 5 times then almost put the throttle all the way forward for it
to start (and still it has to crank for a about 5 seconds before it
starts), once started i run it at maybe 2000rpm for a minute or two then I
can put it back to idle and no problem. If I let it run for a while the
next time i go to start it, it turns over perfectly.... Now when I put it
in the water an hour or two later, i have the same problem except it is
magnified and more difficult to start.

Things I have done: Check the plugs / regap, outdrive serviced / impeller
etc...

My thoughts are that it probably isn't the plugs because I would have a
difficult time starting it weather it was warmed up or not correct?? I'm
thinking maybe something in the fuel line putting gas to the carb? But
then why is it more difficult once it's in the water?

Any troubleshooting suggestions is appreciated!




\Check to see of the choke is working. Look at the choke butterfly when
cold and see if it is closed. Also check that the throttle pump is working.
Does the gas get shot into the carb when the throttle is moved?

I have a 94' Mercruiser V8 350 engine , it's extremely difficult to
start, I usually have to put it in neutral and pump/push it forward and
back maybe 5 times then almost put the throttle all the way forward for
it
to start (and still it has to crank for a about 5 seconds before it
starts), once started i run it at maybe 2000rpm for a minute or two then
I
can put it back to idle and no problem. If I let it run for a while the
next time i go to start it, it turns over perfectly.... Now when I put
it
in the water an hour or two later, i have the same problem except it is
magnified and more difficult to start.

I have the same problem with my '95 4.3L 4bbl Mercrusier. I think the
problem is that the carb allows the fuel to leak out while sitting. The
electric fuel pump on mine is connected to power via an oil-pressure safety
switch, which means that the carb doesn't get any new fuel until you start
cranking the engine and the oil pressure comes up enough to activate the
pressure switch and turn on the electric fuel pump, which then starts
filling the carb bowl. The accellerator pump works, so I pump the throttle
10-15 times to shorten the cranking time. Another thing I did was to run
another switched power line to my fuel pump that I can use to turn on the
fuel pump before I crank the engine. The pump gets it's power from a lug on
the coil on mine.