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1983 Mercruiser 488 wonbt start in the water

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geosync99

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"I have a 1983 Beachcraft 19&#

"I have a 1983 Beachcraft 19' with a Mercruiser 488. I can get the moter to start while its in my yard (hose hooked up for the water cooling). It will run rough sometimes, but it will run. As soon as I put it in the lake, it wont start. It will turn over and come so close to starting, but won't. It acts like bad fuel or no fuel, but I've tried fresh clean fuel from a separate tank with the same results both in and out of the water. Any ideas?"
 
"Points gap & timing corre

"Points gap & timing correct? Plugs, wires, rotor and cap good? Good spark from the coil? Carb accellerator providing good squirts of fuel? Choke working? Fuel filters clean?

Try starting w/starting fluid while cranking. If it starts then it's a fuel problem."
 
"As far as cold starts go, the

"As far as cold starts go, the boat should not "know" whether it is hooked to hose or setting in lake. Only difference I can see is that the lake water wave action could rock the boat about causing carbuerator float valve to perhaps open and close and maybe flood engine.
Has the float level been checked lately?
As the engine dates to 1983, and perhaps with no major work on it, has the compression been checked? Low compression can definitely cause hard starting/no starting."
 
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