Virgin boat owner needs help...

[Guest]

Last Saturday I took my new boat (also my first boat) out for the first time. After idling for about 15 minuets then running all out for about 45 seconds a warning alarm started going off. I shut the motor off for a while and when I restarted it. The alarm did not go off again. So I slowly went back to the dock and got it out of the water. There was plenty of oil in the motor and I did not see the over heat light on.

Yesterday I took it back to the place that I bought it from and the service manager was quite rude and acted like since the alarm stopped after I shut it down that there was no reason to have them look at it.

Is he right? Do warning alarms just go off sometimes even if there is nothing wrong with the motor?

P.S. The motor is a 1995 50hp Yamaha 2 stroke tiller.

[Fathead]

Hello Herkey,

I would say that it is probably a faulty sensor. But... you definetely can't bank on that. I think that bringing it into a service department is warranted. Have them run a diagnostic check to see if anything shows up. Diagnostic checks are not cheap, but a blown powerhead is more expensive, not to mention the time you lose your rig during fishing season.

If you have problems with the particular dealer you went to go somewhere else. The dealer has to remember that customer service still matters to some of us. I am not sure who you dealt with, but I have had some success with Rapid Sports in Ham Lake, and Pierz Marine in St. Cloud. I prefer Pierz, but they are a little too far for me to bring my rig into since I live in the Twin City area.

[Guest]

Bring that motor back and have the sensor tested. When increasing RMP's the oil injector calls for more oil. The alarm my be an indicator that not enough oil is blending at high RPM's. Bring it back and tell him the alarm wont shut off, thats just bad customer service... By the way, thats a great motor you have.

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MILLE LACS AREA GUIDE SERVICE
651-271-5459 http://fishingminnesota.com/millelacsguide/

[Guest]

Thanks for the info. That is what I thought.

One other thing I forget to mention. When I did open it up it did not seam to have as much power as I expected. Could the old gas with stabilizer in it cause it to run a little slow at first?

[Guest]

No, the stablizer should have no effect, at least i have not seen it in my yamaha. It sounds like you have a mixture adjustment problem, don't run it until you have it checked. If there is any kind of warranty from the dealer, have them check the compression which they should have done when they took it on trade, you may also ask to contact the previous owner and see if he has any info on how it was winterized and where it was serviced.. Also be sure your running 90 octane with yamalube. Don't use any other oil......

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MILLE LACS AREA GUIDE SERVICE
651-271-5459 http://fishingminnesota.com/millelacsguide/

[Guest]

There was about 1/4 tank of gas in the boat and added another 10 gallons of 87 octane. Does it make enough of a difference to warrant draining the 87 that I just added?

[Guest]

It wont run as good with the 87, unless you have a place to store the 87, just burn it up and use 90 or better. Two strokes burn hot and run much better on higher octane. The oil is the most important. Burn up what ever is in there and get the yamalube.

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MILLE LACS AREA GUIDE SERVICE
651-271-5459 http://fishingminnesota.com/millelacsguide/

[This message has been edited by D-man (edited 04-10-2002).]

[DTro]

Not sure, but does this motor have a rpm limiter if oil is not flowing properly?
An excellent place to find help is www.iboats.com go to the boating forums and learn learn learn. Good luck.

[This message has been edited by dtro (edited 04-10-2002).]

[fishinphyl]

Hi Herkey
If I am reading your notes correctly you said you used old gas. My dad always told us to take the gas out of everything from the boat to the lawn mower. A friend of mine had his motor go bad last year - when he took it in the repair guy said the same thing my dad did. Get rid of the old gas every year. He said that a large percentage of the problems he sees in the spring are from motors that have used last years gas.

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Phyl

[Ret-ro]

FYI to all,

Today's gasoline starts to breakdown after 30 days. Adding stabil to the gas prior to storage is a very good idea. However, even gas with stabil added starts to loose it's combustion properties after 45 to 60 days.
Moral: Get the freshest fuel into your engine as soon as possible.

Just my two cents. Facts are from technical seminars from small engine manufacturers.

Retro