2009 Tohatsu 40 TLDI dead

Recently purchased new 40 hp t

Recently purchased new 40 hp tldi engine.I'm not a mechanic and know only a reasonable amount about outboards(older type 2 strokes) so i'll try to explain problem as simply as I can.
Engine ran fine for about first 8 hours. Broke it in nice and slow etc...went through all the procedures. Last weekend noticed something amiss when running engine...sounded a bit like a bearing going in a car engine...rattling noise. My hunch proved to be correct as yesterday the engine shut down when motoring at about 3/4 trottle...started again straight away but sounded terrible....and eventually got home on the 4 hp auxiallary. Called dealer...he said plugs may be fouled have a brief look at them and drop engine in for 10 hour service if you can next week...looked at plugs...ok...engine appeared to run perfectly again this evening and went for a spin around bay but when opened up on way home engine completly shut down again. Got home on auxillary.This time it turns over but won't start at all....dead
Had experienced outboard mechanic have a brief look at it down the marina...no problem with fuel up as far as filter...full of oil..all looks good etc. Bit of a mystery...engine sounds like a bag of spanners inside a tin can tonite when turned over..serious problems i'd say.
Pretty disgusted after forking out €6000. For an engine that everybody on the net raves on about reliability this is a joke after less than 10 hours light use. Regretting not getting evinrude e-tec now...but dealer was a good distance away from me. They better have a good explanation for me when I bring it in next week or i'm finished with Tohatsu TLDI's for good.
I should add when restarted engine on both occasions it ran roughly but then cut out when put in gear...left to cool off for a few hours it seems to work again...don't know if this adds anything to solve the problem but maybe someone could have a stab at whats happened

"Only your dealer can tell you

"Only your dealer can tell you what is wrong...And that will only be after they determine where the noise is coming from.


"Regretting not getting evinrude e-tec now...but dealer was a good distance away from me. They better have a good explanation for me when I bring it in next week or i'm finished with Tohatsu TLDI's for good."

Since you have no idea what the problem is or what it might be caused by, your venting is a little premature. Also, there are a lot more problems with new Etecs than TLDIs. Even if your TLDI has a problem count your blessings because so few people have any failure that it is statistically remote that you would EVER have another problem.

When you find out what the problem is please let us know."

I'll let you know...no pro

I'll let you know...no problem.
Have to say up until this nightmare was very impressed with both power and fuel consumption of this engine. Perhaps i'm a little irate this evening being just in from being stuck out in the Atlantic off the west coast of ireland in a freshening wind in the gathering gloom and with a 4 hp auxiallary to get me home it tends to focus the mind...i'm pretty pissed with my Tohatsu...i had narrowed my choice between the tldi and the e-tec.
I won't say what make the small aux engine is lest you think i'm trying to play games/ bullshit here with brand names etc but it did the job admirably...if a little slowly.
good evening

Every manufacturer has issues

Every manufacturer has issues with engine failure from time to time...don't forget human beings assemble them and mistakes will be made. The test is how they respond and look after you when something like this does happen. If they are smart and truly want you as a long term customer they will look after you quickly and at no cost. If not say goodbye and spread the word.

"Just an up date on my problem

"Just an up date on my problems with tohatsu TLDI 40 hp. Engine has been in workshop for two weeks. Initially they said one of the sensors in the engine was faulty. Got the new part. Still wouldn't start.No fault lights showing up. Tohatsu technician came out to look at it. He's baffled by it.I think the Mechanic said compression is about 55 should be 155 approx don't know units, pressure i presume).Tohatsu are saying a build up of oil from turning it over without firing the last 2 weeks is causing this and its not an issue.
personally i think this engine is finished and will have to be replaced.
Hows that for reliability? a joke in my opinion"

"If compression is 55 it's

"If compression is 55 it's clear what's wrong with it. The piston and block are scored on that cylinder or the head gasket is blown. Get it into a different dealer as the one you have is retarded.

I am confused by this though:

"Engine has been in workshop for two weeks. Initially they said one of the sensors in the engine was faulty. Got the new part. Still wouldn't start. No fault lights showing up. Tohatsu technician came out to look at it. He's baffled by it".

It sounds like you didn't have your engine at A Tohatsu dealer for that two weeks and instead you had it at someones shop who was completely unqualified to change a spark plug. Then the retard from a Tohatsu dealer came out and told you about the low compression. If that's the case, you need to understand that you have to get the engine into a Tohatsu dealer's facility...Preferably one that doesn't have the retard."

"They told me the tohatsu tech

"They told me the tohatsu technician came out and plugged it into a diagnostics program. He doesn't think the low compression is a problem, its caused by excess oil in the cyclinders...thats what they've told me.... i was thinkin along your lines that its badly damaged.They can't decide on what to do.
I think i'm goin to be in trouble with the warranty claim as it has 50 hours up on it and wasn't serviced after 10 as i live a fair distance away and the weather was good so we were boating away. As far as I know the 10 hour service was to change the gear oil and possibly the plugs, and would have no impact on the actual nuts and bolts of the engine.
The manager of the dealership are saying I should have brought it in at 10 hours so they could manually decrease the oil mix????....first I heard of it I thought it did this automatically. I told him that was bullshit and there was an angry exchange of words.
What are Tohatsu generally like on customer service? I think I'll have to deal direct with the suppliers in the uk.Have I a good chance of getting it replaced?? i'm down about €7000 otherwise. You're thoughts on this would be appreciated"

i might add i can't go to

i might add i can't go to another dealer...they're the only one in the country i'm aware of.

"More oil should increase the

"More oil should increase the compression as it acts as a barrier. During break in of a new motor the oil pump is set to a heavier mix of oil to fuel then backed off for normal operation after the 10 hr breakin. They are like a carburator, they can be adjusted. First service usuually includes gear oil change, oil pump readjustment, head re-torque, change of plugs, carb adjustment and shift/throttle cable adjustment. This low a compression and all the noise on a brand new engine indicates a serious problem."

"The TLDI automatically adjust

"The TLDI automatically adjusts itself so your dealer either fibbed or lied. The "10 hour service" is supposed to catch any latent problem with the engine before it turns into a major one. However, it shouldn't be grounds for a warranty denial under virtually any circumstance that I can think of. Your first step is to contact the distributor and see where you can take the engine for a non biased examination. Each country has an independent distributor so each one has their own procedure to follow. Tohatsu Japan is very generous, however, they aren't there and they depend completely on the local distributor to be their eyes and ears as too what to do...If anything. The procedure is supposed to go like this.

Your local dealer diagnoses the problem and secures whatever authorization they need from the distributor to do the repair. That's usually all there is to it.

If the distributor thinks the local dealer is wrong or doesn't believe them they ask for the part(s)so that they can do their own inspection. Assuming that the problem is determined to be a defect, they send new parts to the dealer and your back out on the high seas.

If the distributor decides the problem is consumer caused, you have a decision to make. You can sue them or contact Tohatsu Japan and ask them to intervene."

"i've rang the distributor

"i've rang the distributors in the uk... talked to technician, he said build up of fuel oil/mix will cause low compression after prolonged turning over without firing...i don't understand how but i'll take his word for it...i'd say you're mistaken on that one rose...unless you're a technician yourself and differ on this opinion. It'll have to be shipped back to HQ in uk to deternine whether its a problem i caused or its a faulty engine. Either way i won't be doing any fishing for the next 4-6 weeks i'd say. I'd say the warrenty will hold for serious engine problems..thats thw vibe I gor off them.Nightmare stuff...why didn't i keep my old mariner 2 stroke...Why oh why"

"Rollie's correct. The tec

"Rollie's correct. The technician you spoke to does not have a clue...It's not an opinion, it's a factual statement that is either right or wrong and the tech is incorrect."

Well 2 trained tohatsu technic

Well 2 trained tohatsu technicians have agreed on this diagnosis..i have to go with that.we'll have to wait and see...regardless its a serious problem. Its about time that this aura of invincibility surrounding the Tohatsu TLDI was exposed for what it is. They have the same faults and problems that evinrude/yamaha etc have in building engines for marine use....its a difficult environment and Tohatsu certainly aren't perfect

"It's more like two untrai

"It's more like two untrained Tohatsu technicians with little or no experience have sold you a ridiculous story.

"Its about time that this aura of invincibility surrounding the Tohatsu TLDI was exposed for what it is."

Do you know of anyone else with the same problem you have? No, you don't. Your unique. That actually goes a long way toward making that aura of invincibility the rule rather than the exception.

While I feel your pain about having an engine that is down my sympathy dwindles as you bash a product without any reason."

i'm not bashing anything..

i'm not bashing anything... i'll wait til what they say when it goes to the uk. Personally I think the cyclinder/piston/valve set up is probably damaged beyond repair. Hopefully the computer will show that the engine never displayed any fault codes or light throughout its 50 hour life.
Another thing ...Tohatsu sells a lot of engines and targets poorer countries and vast asian markets at a some what lower price to the big brand alternatives. Did it ever strike you that these people may not have the means or access by which to air their problems with Tohatsu/TLDI engines on forums accross the internet such as this and online boating magazines etc etc ...perhaps thats one resaon as to why statistically we don't see as many people posting their grievances with these engine as with other brands...just a thought!!

"Every time you say something

"Every time you say something negative about a BRAND that is bashing. Saying something about your own, individual, engine is not. here is what you have said so far:

"Pretty disgusted after forking out €6000. For an engine that everybody on the net raves on about reliability this is a joke after less than 10 hours light use. Regretting not getting evinrude e-tec now...but dealer was a good distance away from me. They better have a good explanation for me when I bring it in next week or i'm finished with Tohatsu TLDI's for good."

"Hows that for reliability? a joke in my opinion"

"Nightmare stuff...why didn't i keep my old mariner 2 stroke...Why oh why"

"Its about time that this aura of invincibility surrounding the Tohatsu TLDI was exposed for what it is. They have the same faults and problems that evinrude/yamaha etc have in building engines for marine use"

"Another thing ...Tohatsu sells a lot of engines and targets poorer countries and vast asian markets at a some what lower price to the big brand alternatives. Did it ever strike you that these people may not have the means or access by which to air their problems with Tohatsu/TLDI engines on forums accross the internet such as this and online boating magazines etc etc ...perhaps thats one resaon as to why statistically we don't see as many people posting their grievances with these engine as with other brands...just a thought!!"

Any you wonder why I think you are bashing? Take a couple of deep breaths and look at this as what it is. A new engine with a problem. That's all you know so far. Be logical and reserve the remarks for a situation in which they are called for. Shoot me your serial number and I will follow your engines progress as the U.K makes their determination. If necessary I can always intervene on your behalf by nudging Japan to look into it."

no problem...i'll wait for

no problem...i'll wait for conformation from the place i bought it off that it will definetly have to go over there...and their verdict.At the moment its just sitting there and no-one returns my calls... its the dealership that has me more annoyed than tohatsu. Thanks for your opinions

"I know your frustrated. Just

"I know your frustrated. Just let it takes it course. The things really are as reliable as we say that they are, but, crap happens and it has certainly happened to you. It's just bad luck. Or maybe it's a fiendish English plot against Ireland "

Its bad news boys i'm afra

Its bad news boys i'm afraid.Very bad. Tohatsu uk tell me the engine is severely damaged. They say i ran the engine with no oil and with buzzers and warning lights on . I can safely say MAY GOD STRIKE ME DOWN if I ran that engine with warning lights/buzzer/ or no oil. It broke down with one of the lads i work with in it and there was no buzzer so he can back me up. Oil tank half full of oil when we got in.
I'm finished as they say this is what japan will look to if they were to give me a new one and they've nothing to go to them with outside of operator error and what the laptop is telling them... pretty devastated to be honest and down about €7000 euro all in...nightmare...have I anywhere to go...its just my word against the laptop???

"They are mistaken...No laptop

"They are mistaken...No laptop used at all on these and that makes everything, including their conclusion, suspect. I would urge you to contact Japan directly and ask them to intervene.

[email protected]

I have a suspicion that you are dealing with someone in the U.K. who does not know how to read the fault codes off of the tachometer."

Surely its connected up to som

Surely its connected up to some sort of computer thats giving them this reading?? are you sure.The guy on the phone told me that the cpu of the engine(or something along them lines) is telling them that it ran out of oil twice during its lifetime and thats obviously my fault...Thanks for the e-mail address...and the amazingly prompt reply..i'll get on to it on monday...but i's say i'll have to go to court

i should add that amazingly wi

i should add that amazingly with this amount of damage there was no fault codes at all showing up when the engine was connected to the boat and at the dealer workshop in ireland....they were baffled to use their own words...whats goin on??

"No laptop at all is used on a

"No laptop at all is used on any TLDI model in any way. The engine CPU has a built in diagnostic system which displays through the tachometer. If you had no lights, beeps or anything else flashing on your tach then its likely that it wasn't hooked up correctly or that the CPU is defective. There is no code for no oil...Just low oil. The CPU records that the low oil level condition occurred and it records that the condition was corrected...If it was. IE The tank gets down to about 350ml and a fault code occurs. As soon as you add oil the code corrects. I really think you are dealing with a human diagnostic problem at ye local dealer and distributor..."

i'm confused...how can the

i'm confused...how can they tell you a ball park figure for how many hours its done and length of time run at high speed etc type statistics if they don't connect it to a computer or external device in some way shape or form...how do they know these statistics without some sort of an external connection to a device that can read data??? they can do this as i know someone else who has a tldi and they could tell him this very easily.

"The engine CPU has a buil

"The engine CPU has a built in diagnostic system which displays through the tachometer"

Everything reads out through code on the tachometer.

i don't doubt what you&#39

i don't doubt what you're saying...so they get the engine hours and running statistics from a various combinations of the 3 lights then...Is this correct?
I know the light exist for various faults but for detailed engine management information which they seem to have access to i assumed they were reading data off some sort of device that gave them a lot of detail... someone here is not up to speed as to how diagnostics on these engines function??? I hope you're correct tohatsu guru...i really do..it'll strengthen my case

"Flashes, beeps and where the

"Flashes, beeps and where the RPM indicator rests all contribute to the codes. Armed with a service manual you can tell virtually anything about the engine that you would want to know. Hours used, troubleshooting codes to determine malfunctioning parts, etc. This is a high tech engine designed to be serviced by low tech service personnel with a minimum of service training. But, Tohatsu can't build honesty or intelligence into the people that service them. That's a genetic, environmental and moral issue."

Thank you for your help...In s

Thank you for your help...In short i'm being told that the engine management system is telling them....

A) On two occasions the engine oil went low.
B) Twice the low oil alarm was triggered.
c) Twice I ignored the engine oil alam and failed to put in oil
D)twice the 2 stroke oil tank went dry completly

As a result the engine was severely damaged beyond repair.

DOES ANYONE BELIEVE THIS IS POSSIBLE????
I'm not deaf or disabled or STUPID enough to continue to use an engine like this

Its very obvious the engine was not getting oil/the correct amount of oil but purely for reasons beyond my control.

If its the last thing I ever do i'm goin to fight this every way possible...watch this space

"You would have to be an idiot

"You would have to be an idiot to allow the oil tank to run dry...I don't think you are an idiot, so.....I don't believe that you are the cause(under these circumstances). I would fight it too. Keep in mind that A, B and C are irrelevant. The only one that counts is D as that is the only one that would damage the engine."

You need to test the engine wi

You need to test the engine with the oil tank really low or dry and see if the warning bells/lights work. Hopefully you can do this without the dealer having made any changes to cover their asses.