Help with power loss

[Robertrosen]

Hey guys, I need a little help. I have an 89 Merc 150 xr4. I was out last week for the first time since December and the boat ran great for the first run. When I was returning, The motor was real sluggish. It did'nt miss or anything and it started fine. But when I hammered down to get out of the hole it did'nt seem to wind up, when I got it on plane I could'nt get it over 5300 rpm. I shut it down and started it again, but there no differnce. I usual spin right up and WOT is it 5900. Any ideas where I should look. I filled the boat with fresh gas before I headed out. Also I have changed the regulator last season. So that should be good. I have 14.8 volts while I'm running. Thanks in advance,, Rob

[Jay Smith]

Did you "treat" ( Stabil ) the gas in your tank before winter ? If not I'd suggest a clean tank full of fuel and a new set of plugs..Your fuel might be stale, as well as fowled plugs.Check and change your fuel filter too. Is your battery "FIRE CRACKER HOT"if not put it on slow charge , it MUST be 12.5 volts BEFORE you go out. Clean all battery terminals, at battery as well as motor.Check all grounds , take the 8 pin connector loose at motor to key switch harness and clean take a razor blade and spread the male terminals so they contact the female with more tention.. ..

Always try the cheap easy non intrusive fixes FIRST

Jay

[Robertrosen]

Thanks for the advice, Yes I used stabil, and the batteries were fully charged, the boat is in a headted garage all year. I will check what you said and go from there. I never cleaned the 8 pin wire yet, I will do that first. Do you think it could be the stator, I have another one on hand if it is. Just never changed one.

[Jay Smith]

I'd do all the quick checks first before you tackled a stator change .. Might be something simple right in front of you .. After those are confirmed of might go to a next step.

jay

[Robertrosen]

Thanks Jay, I will do that. I will let you know how it works out since you were good enough to help me out.

[flabum1017]

Had the same thing with an Opti, turned out to be a cracked coil..... could be something as simple as that.... check all your grounds too.....

[CKMATE225]

Do you have a temp gauge? Could it possibly be overheating and causing the stator to short? Then once it cools down the stator will funtion properly again? Did you see any brown goop under the flywheel? Try letting it cool completely and see how it performs. If it seems to run fine after you let it sit for a while and cool completely it may be the stator. Especilly if you just took it out of storage the impeller may have stuck over the winter and gotten damaged.But do what Jay says and let us know what you find. The stuff I suggested are some of the things that have happend to me after winter storage over the
years.
Good luck!! I hope its something simple.

[Robertrosen]

Thanks, I will do that and let you know what I find

[koncit8]

have you figured out what was wrong with your motor i am having the same type of problem right now i have changed the stator,the rectifiers,fuel hoses,rebuilt fuel pump,new primer bulb,new fuel selector switch and have tried numerous things your problems sound similair to mine and was just wondering what you found wrong

[Robertrosen]

No sorry, I won't get a chance to work on it until this weekend. When I do I will post what I find

[sschefer]

You lost 600 RPM off the top end and your sluggish off the bottom. I highly doubt its a stator but I won't completely rule it out.

My guess is that the tank of gas you got was E-10 and it's cleaning your fuel tank for you. The result is garbage gas and plugged filters.

If you remember what gas you filled it up with and it was E-10 you'll be working it out for a while. Because of the age of your engine, I'd drain it and start over with a different fuel.

Either way, Jay's got you on the right track I just thought I'd throw the E-10 factor in there since I didn't see it mentioned.

[Robertrosen]

Ok, thanks for the heads up. If it is E 10, what can I do to keep this from happening again?

[olmo40]

Dont use E-10 ?

[Robertrosen]

Duh. Good answer. lol

[Robertrosen]

Ok everyone, I found the problem. It was the fuel filter. It was full of a jelly like stuff. I changed it out and the all the fuel lines from the tank and on the motor . It ran great. Im guessing there was water in the fuel. Thanks for the help everyone.

[sschefer]

Ok everyone, I found the problem. It was the fuel filter. It was full of a jelly like stuff. I changed it out and the all the fuel lines from the tank and on the motor . It ran great. Im guessing there was water in the fuel. Thanks for the help everyone.
Cool! I like success stories. I said E-10 and there is that possibility but with the junk they're selling at the pumps today it's a hard call. Do try to stay away from it though. Even poor pump gas is probably better than E-10.