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Basic Starting Sequence? Evinrude V6 200

Alan Carr

New member
Hi, my first post here :)

I used to have a Johnson 90 HP V4. The owner showed me how to start it:

Pump fuel bulb until firm - Raise fast idle lever - Push key in to operate choke - crank engine over - if not started after 3 tries, repump primer bulb - crank again

That, usually, worked on that old 80's 90 HP. However now I have a bigger boat, with an Evinrude V6 200. I'd guess the engine is from the 90's.

Using that sequence on the Evinrude gives no life at all?

When the local boat mechanic, who doesn't speak English very well, opens the air cover and fiddles around with it, it starts no problem. He did that just yesterday, after servicing the tilt n trim for me. He's hard to get hold of and we cannot communicate over the phone or I'd just phone and ask him..

Note that I'm on the island of Borneo, where it's always hot and humid.

Am I giving it too much choke? Too much fast idle? Should I turn it over without choke at first, then add choke later? So many possible combinations..

I know that ultimately the answer is "Get to know that specific engine" but is there some proper or accepted sequence for cold starting in a hot country? I've only used this engine maybe 10 trips at the most. It will usually start eventually but it's already destroyed 2 batteries through difficult starting. I'm obviously doing something wrong but what?

Thanks!
 
Your starting sequence is correct.

It is possible that when he opens the hood and fiddles, he is turning the manual lever on the primer solenoid, starting, and then turning the lever back to run position.

Take the upper cowl (hood) off, and turn key to ON position. Press key in, and listen for the primer solenoid to click. That is a good indication that it is working. If no click, debug why. It will be an electrical problem. There is a purple with white stripe wire at the primer solenoid.
You can test right there by jumping that wire directly to +12v and listening for the click.

If click but still no start, debug why there is no fuel flowing thru the primer solenoid valve.
.
 
Yep, can confirm the solenoid does NOT click when the key is depressed.

I thought it didn't, as I vaguely recall thinking that on my old boat you could hear it quite clearly and this one was very quiet. It's not quiet, it's silent!

This time around I tried without doing anything, just pumping the primer bulb and turning the key, for 3 long bursts. No life at all. Then tried removing the cowling, found the lever, raised it up, repumped the bulb and tried again...

First cranking burst, stopped short as it fired and caught enough to disengage the starter
Second burst did the same but quicker
Third burst rumbled into life, with a huge cloud of blue smoke and running pretty slowly considering the fast-idle was all the way up. Went to the back of the boat and lowered the little lever, even more smoke and the revs went up.

I let her run for awhile to clear the smoke but was soon fumigating the entire neighborhood, so had to shut down. Buy yeah, now she starts!

Can't say I'm looking forward to trying to find the electrical problem but has to be done I guess, as it's hardly practical to keep pulling the cowling off.

Thank you again for your help :)
 
Go ahead and "hotwire" the solenoid for test purposes only.
Take a jumper wire from the POS battery terminal and touch it directly to the purple/white wire on the solenoid.
It should click. If not, double check the ground for the solenoid.
If all wiring seems good, possible bad solenoid.

You could also use an ohmmeter across the black ground and the purple/white wire. I don't know what the reading should be,
but the solenoid coil should definitely NOT be open.

Another test would be to put a voltmeter on the purple/white wire and measure for +12 v when you press the key in.

All these various testing methods can help pinpoint where the defect is....in the keyswitch itself, the wiring harness, or the actual solenoid.

EDIT: One other thing.... go about your testing in a "smart" manner.....go for and test the easiest and most obvious component first...i.e. the solenoid.
Then look to the keyswitch, and absolutely lastly suspect the harness. You might get lucky and find a bad ground on the solenoid...simple...

Good luck.
 
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Yeah, that's why I'm not looking forward to it... There seems to be a large clump of wires in a thick coiled harness directly in the way - I can see a purple and white one among them but it doesn't look to be easy to isolate and reach that one and it wasn't clear where exactly it connects to the solenoid or where the solenoid earths (by it's fixing screws? I presume the main engine block is earth?)

Pulling and pushing at the wires, they didn't really budge but I don't want to cut any wires unnecessarily. I'll have another look tomorrow. It's awkward, as I'm poking around in my garden at home, no assistant to push the key or anything.

So from what you say it seems there's just one wire to this valve, purple and white positive, and if given power it should click into the open position? Would you expect the manual lever to physically move up and down too, or just an audible click from inside the unit?

I love how electrical issues should be a case of cold, hard logic - and I hate how the reality is usually vague, intermittent issues involving things in hard to reach places... I'm pretty confident you're right about it being the solenoid though. No clicking sound and she seems to start easily when the manual lever is raised, so I'm 95% certain that is the problem.
 
Don't cut anything....it is not necessary.
The power connections to the solenoid differ over the years. Some have an inline bullet connector on the purple/white, some use a ring terminal connection
method.
Yes, the engine block is earth.
The red manual lever DOES NOT move when the solenoid actuates. All valving of fuel is under that top cap that the red lever inserts into.

Here's something for you to muse on....When the fuel system is healthy, (no leaks), the primer bulb will pump up and get firm as the carbs fill up with gasoline.
That is normal. Now, consider.....turn the manual valve on the primer solenoid and see what happens to the primer bulb.
It will not firm up anymore. The fuel will be flowing thru the primer solenoid, out the small primer hoses, and distributed to the back of each cylinder's intake manifold.

Hard starting problems? First thing to do is pump primer bulb til firm, turn red lever to manual, pump primer bulb again for maybe two pumps, turn red lever to run position, start engine. That's what I do anyway.

I wonder about your mechanic. Why would anyone, when presented with a problem such as yours, simply fiddle with the manual lever, and then proclaim the problem fixed? That is what happened, isn't it? Makes NO sense.
 
Well in his defense I called him for 2 problems. The first and most urgent was that it was dribbling liquid petrol from the cowling when trying to start. The second was that the tilt and trim, despite topping up the fluid, didn't seem to be working.

He removed the hydraulic unit and took it away for servicing. Basically just cleaned it up inside and changed the fluid. The fuel leak seems to have been the same issue, ie it was dribbling because it was fully tilted up. When lowered, no fuel leak when starting.

So the next day I was reasonably confident it would start, from cold, without requiring any such fiddling. However I had my suspicions that maybe it wouldn't, which is why I tested it and sure enough, it wouldn't start for me, from cold.

From the mechanic's point of view he'd serviced the tilt n trim, it would start without dribbling petrol, so job done. I think he just raised the lever and told his assistant to turn the key, rather than explaining the whole "push the key in" thing. This mechanic is the same guy that completely rebuilt the engine. I bought it running but badly, this guy fitted new bearings, piston rings, carb kits, the works, then fitted it on my boat. He knows the engine inside out but I can only really talk to him via my wife or father in law. I've lived here 10 years and can speak some Malay but he speaks Chinese...

He also serviced my old boat, so he knows that I know to push the key in. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt that he doesn't realize the key switch isn't working :)

I've made a mental note regarding pumping the bulb, operating the lever, two more pumps then putting the lever back to the 'run' position, if difficult to start.

The ironic thing is I just spent $11K on a new gate, driveway and shelter to store the boat at home, precisely because it was always so dirty left at the boat club - and always such a pain to start! I figured if kept at home I can start it once a week and keep it clean, rather than trying to use a filthy boat every 2 months or so, and finding "The b*** won't start again!!"

Oh well. It IS clean now, and I suspect from now on it's going to be easy to start up... ;)

Thank you again for your help. Tomorrow I'll have another bash at following that purple wire. I may be able to set my voltmeter up so I can see the needle from the keyswitch. I'm also keen to see if she starts easily again, with this new 'secret' technique!
 
I should add by the way, that on my engine the lever is black. Took me a moment to find it, even though I knew it was meant to be there.

A google image search shows it is the right lever, the one which on most pictures is bright red.
 
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