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honda bf200 engine warning light and peeping

islandboy123

Contributing Member
hello

i have a 2004 honda bf200 that is giving me some problems. ( 1 engine on my boat)

ok this is what it is doing , when idling it works fine and no problems at all . when i run the boat at half throttle it also works good with no issues

but when i start to give it more throttle like maybe over 4000rpm or 5000 after like a few minutes the engine light comes on and starts to beep, the green pressure lights stays on and the red overheat lights stays off. so i slow down and turn off and restart and everything is good again once i am at half throttle or stay below 4000 rpm. just so you know the water is spitting out fine

so we check the theromstats and sure enough they was both corroded very bad and was not even moving. so we replace both of them wit new ones thinking that would have solved the problem

but went back out and same problem again as described, at half or below 4000rpm no problems. but wen we give more power like over 4000rpm the engine lights comes on again and start to peep

now i am lost on what the problem could be , i dont have any honda dealer to really take a look at it . so i have my machanic that does work on marine engines checking it out , but he is not sure now what the problem could be

so any help would be great???

thanks
 
Main water outlet hose's at bottom of exhaust mainfold are corroded and closed off. Not the small one but the large on that you can't see with the side pannel's installed. Thank's Martin
 
Exactly which light is coming on with the alarm? You should have a four-light panel. Oil pressure is green, overheat is red, alternator is red, and MIL (malfunction indicator light) is red. You said that the overheat light did not come on. If the MIL light is coming on, then there could be a bunch of different things, all dealing with the programmed fuel injection system. The first thing I would do is drain the VST and inspect/replace the high pressure fuel filter.
 
hi guys thanks for the reply.

martin i will check what you said, so u tink it could be the main water outlet bad?

hey chawk man- well only the red engine light is coming on wich i assume is the malfunction light. what do u meen by the VST ? or what is vst
ok will aos check the high pressure fuel filter, so you think it good be that?

thank you very much for you guys help
 
Yes, the "engine" light is the MIL light. If you have never changed out the high pressure fuel filter, that can very likely be causing the problem you describe.

The VST is the vapor separator tank. It is located on the right side of your engine at the back where the upper cowling meets the engine cover. The VST is in place to assure an adequate amount of non-turbulent fuel is available to the high pressure fuel pump. (The fuel in the VST tank is kept underpressure to prevent vaporization, thus preventing the fuel from becoming too lean under variable demand.)

On the back starboard side of your motor, you will see a clear plastic tube looped around a holder. Unhook it, and look down at the base where it connects. Beside the connection is a small set screw. Use a long 10”or longer, flat blade screwdriver to open the set screw - slowly. With the end of the hose extended downward into a clear container that will hold at least a quart of liquid, start opening the set screw. Do not open too far - if it comes out, you will need to remove the cowling to retrieve it. Anywhere from two to three pints of gas, and maybe some water and gunk will come out of that tube. Be patient, the last stuff to come out is usually slow, but drain out as muchas you can. If there is water, or any gunk, then your fuel-water separator and low pressure fuel filter have failed and need to be replaced. At that point,you should also change out the high pressure filter which sits on top of the fuel pump and is held in place with three 5 mm screws. If there is no flow,blow low pressure compressed air back through the tube to open it up.
 
hi

well i only bought the boat like 4 months ago, so not sure if there ever changed those parts

by any chance do you know what the part numbers are for the high and low pressure filters that i might need to buy? or if you have a parts diagram of the parts that i might need to get would be great so i know exactly of the right part to get. i was looking the parts up but only seeing the water seperator assembly and the fuel filter, so not sure wich are the high and low ones

thanks again
 
For the low pressure fuel filter you need part 16911-ZY3-003 FILTER, FUEL (Honda Code 6990402) and O ring 16918-ZY3-003 (Honda Code 6990451).

But for the high pressure fuel filter you need part 16911-ZY3-000 (Honda Code 6990394) and the O ring 16078-ZY3-000.
 
ok chawk will get those parts

but just to update you on something , i just went by my boat to do a quik filter check. i check the low pressure fuel filter and there is alot of dirt on the bottom of it and also i check the water separator and there is alot of dirt on the bottom also but i dont seem to see any water in it tho. so do you think this is the cause of my problem?

i did not get to check the high pressure fuel filter as my mechanic will have to disassemble the cover to get to those parts to check the VST and filter, but i will assume since all the other filters are dirty those might be also. but will let him do that when i get the new filter

hey on the water separator can that just be cleaned out or would i have to change that also?

so do you think this is my problem that i now see all of that dirt on the bottom of the low pressure filter and water separator?
 
Visible crude in the fuel line is likely causing your problems. First and foremost your boat should be rigged with an external fuel/water separator, like a Racor 10 micron filter. If that is not installed, do so. It will filter a lot of the junk out of the fuel, and any water prior to the fuel getting into your onboard filters. If you do have one that is installed, then it has failed and the filter element needs to be replaced.

Normally, the onboard fuel water separator element does not need to be replaced. Just clean it well by soaking in carb cleaner. But if it is exceptionally dirty, change it.

The onboard low pressure fuel filter definitely needs to be replaced. It's simple to do. Just follow the instructions in your owners manual.

You will definitely want to drain your VST as described earlier. If any visible crude comes out, then have your mechanic remove it and clean thoroughly. There is a tricky little needle valve in there that you must be careful to reassemble correctly.

And, of course, change the high pressure filter.

I make it a habit to change both the LP and HP filters every 200 hours or every season. Drain the Racor fuel/water separator every time you pull a 100 hour maintenance, or every season, whichever comes first.

If you bring that engine up to snuff and religiously follow the maintenance schedule, it will last you a long time.
 
hey chawk man, i do not have a external water separator but will install one for sure

hey i just downloaded the shop manual for me to have . i notice in there they said there is a warning buzzer when water separator detects water in the fuel, where and how do you know where is coming from? is it the same buzzing sound that comes like from a warning light from the red engine light?
 
Islandboy - I don't think your 2004 has the onboard fuel water separator with the warning buzzer. The new style (starting some time in 2006, I believe) has a float inside and two wires connected at the bottom. If water gets in there, the float will rise, and make a connection, which sets off very rapid chirps on your alarm. None of the red warning lights will come on. The old style, which I think you probably have, just needs to be visually inspected and emptied at every 100 hour maintenance interval.
 
well then maybe i do not have a 2004 year, cuz i check the water separator and it has the wires connected on the bottom and i do see the float systme you are talking about, so i would assume it does have a warning buzzer then. wich is strange now u saying it is a new style from 2006 onwards

but from the bill of sale it has 2004 year , this is the vin#BAEJ-1300083, would u be able to find out from the vin what year it is?

thanks chawk man
 
Islandboy - I'm probably wrong on the year. I just gleaned that time frame from folks that I have talked to over the years about these engines. Understand, I am not a Honda tech, but just an owner who has taken a lot of interest in my first ever 4-stroke outboard. I do most of my own maintenance and repair, except for the 400 hour one, when I take it to a dealer 1.5 hours away.
 
oh ok. thanks for that info

since i have the water separator with alarm, could this also be why my alarm is beeping at higher rpm? i meen looked at the water separator i did not seem to me it had any water, but i could be wrong

hey guys can you also tell me what is the diffrence in the bf200a and k model? i downloaded the shop manual, but i tink it best i get the book manual instead would be easier to have than dragging my laptop on the boat to look at stuff. i can get used shop manual but it says for the k model and i have the a model, so dont know what the diff is or if i really need to get the A model since that what i have?

thanks
 
hey guys , i was just doing some looking around and found some good deals on a Honda Marine Complete Outboard Diagnostic Kits that i see are pretty cheap that some stores are selling i saw online. not really going to buy one well not now that is . but was just wondering what the deal is with these kits , are they worth getting, do they work good to diagnose problems with the motors? . if somebody could tell me more info on what all is involve and if they are worth getting?

thank you
 
hey chawk, i ordered the parts that you recommend i change to see if that would be my problem. so just waiting on them to arrive. so hopefully by weekend we should be able to work on the motor
 
yes for sure i will let you know how it goes once we change out those parts

hey , just was wanted to know if i keep running the boat under the 4000 rpm and no warning lights or beeping going off would that cause any further damage ? just wanted to know if i could run the boat untill i fix the problem when running over 4000
 
I would be reluctant to do so unless I was really sure of the problem. We think it is the HP fuel filter, but not sure of that. Given the cost of replacement or major repairs, I would tend to err on the side of caution and minimize use until I know the problem was fixed.
 
yes you are correct , i also dont want to take the chance going out and the problem is not solved. i will take your advice and not drive it till i fix the problem. well hopefully this weekend i get the parts and can work on it

hey i also ordered the service connector just in case so can check the code readings in case the hp and lp filter tings does not solve the problem.

is the code reading ting hard to work with to figure out what a problem can be wit a motor?
 
hey , was just thinking back on something . dont know if it will help in knowing maybe what the problem is or could be. or maybe it is nothing

but i remember someting , the day before this problem started i was going out fishing a lil further than i normally do so i filled my tank with gas full, but i never fulled my tank since i bought the boat 4 months ago. i normally only fill it with like maybe 6 or 7 gallons of fuel with a gas container that i normally buy gas from texaco station as i dont really go out far for fishing so never needed much. but since i was going a lil further distance i decided to full it at the dock station where i dock my boat with there gas hub station( not texaco). but now thinking about it this all started since i filled my tank full and with another gas supplier.

so do you think that maybe something was wrong with there gas that maybe it was bad or something ? or maybe bcuz it is the first time the boat was filled full with gas that these problem started?

but then i was tinking if it was bad gas or whatever then why only at high rpm and not like low rpm or at idle? so thats why was not thinking it could have been about bad gas or maybe water in it.

just thought i should throw that out there to see if this make any sense or just coincidence it happend the same time i got the warning and peeping. or maybe this is nothing at all that cause the problem

any thoughts?
 
Well that is interesting! Here is a possibility. Take the boat out and while running, open up the fuel tank filler cap, then see what happens when you go above the 4000 rpm mark. If it runs normally, and no alarm, then your fuel tank breather tube is clogged up. I didn't think that would set off the MIL light and alarm, but it could possibly do that. What happens is that as the demand for fuel increases, you are setting up a vacuum in your fuel tank, which would starve the engine of fuel. You'll need to work a wire into the breather tube to clean it out.
 
well i did read a post some where you telling somebody to do this , cant remember where i saw it. but i think that was for a different problem they was getting though. i think you was telling the person do that bcuz his motor was stuttering at high rpm i think that was what the thread was about. but will still give it a try to run it and open the tank breather

by the way where is the breather tube normally located?
 
Typically, the breather tube will be mounted on the outside gunwale near the fuel filler cap. Usually it is covered by a screw-off cap that will have gaps in it to let air in and out of the fuel tank. The fitting will connect to a hose that snakes down to the top of your fuel tank. It is installed to make sure the air pressure in the fuel tank is equalized to the atmospheric pressure.
 
ahh yes i tink i remember i saw a round cap with screws near the filler cap that can come off. i remember opening it once to see what was in there

man i was a lil upset today, my parts got delayed and i will not be getting them today to test for the weekend. wont get them till maybe monday or tuesday now. BUMMERRRRRRRRRR

BUT MAYBE THIS WEEKEND I WILL TRY THAT test thing with the opening of the gas tank cover, but really wanted to just wait till i get all the parts and do everything one time . but will see
 
i should be getting all my parts on wednesday and also the service connecttor

can you tell me how to use that service connector in order to see what error codes i get? or how to use it in general

thank you
 
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