It all started on May 28th, Memorial Day Weekend...
I have sailboat, an Oday 272 with a 1992 9.9 Johnson outboard, 2 stroke,electric start. It started out as agreat sailing day, then the wind died, so I fired up the motor to go joinfriends who were anchoring out together that evening. After motoring for about10 minutes, the engine just died. No sputtering or choking – just powereddown. I could crank it, but it wouldn'tfire. I assumed that I had mixed my gas too rich and had fouled my plugs. I gota tow back to the marina, and during the next week, I changed out my gas and plugs.
The next weekend, I got the motor running and planned to take friends out for asunset sail. I started the motor, no problem, and then shut it off whilewaiting for my friends to arrive. When they were on board, I started the motoragain and we set off. Just before exiting the marina, the motor died again andI could not get it started the rest of the evening or the next day. A friend agreed that it looked like I hadfouled my plugs, at least one of them.
Someone suggested that I may just need to get hotter plugs, so I bought new,hotter plugs and put them in. The motor would crank but would not start. Afriend looked at it and said that he didn't see any sparks coming out of theplugs. So I had another friend pull me out to the lake so I could sail thatday.
Later that evening, as we were anchored out, my guy friendsstarted messing with my motor and troubleshooting. They were in the water,behind the boat by the prop and pushed the electric start. When it cranked, the prop turned and one ofthem remarked that the motor was in gear. I said that's not possible because itwill not crank in gear. He insisted it was. He took it out of gear and I'll bedarned if that sucker didn't start right up!!!
The next morning I turned on the motor to head back to the marina. It ran greatout into the lake and then I turned it off to sail for a bit. When I got nearthe marina break wall, I turned on my motor again. It started right up and rangreat...for about 3 minutes. Then it died on me again. No sputtering or choking– just powered down. Luckily my friendwas available to tow me back. Don't know what I'd do without those guys.
So I took my motor to my mechanic a few days ago. He said that the choke spring was bad and itwas flooding the carb with gas, fouling my plugs. He also suggested changing out the powerpack, an expensive fix. I asked him totry to start the motor with it in gear. He said he did and could not get it to crank with it in gear.
Normally when a motor is choked out, it doesn’t justpower down, does it? Seems like I’ve hadto choke my motor out in the past and it sputtered for a few seconds before dying,and it didn’t foul my plugs every time either. Anybody have an idea about my possessed motor?
I have sailboat, an Oday 272 with a 1992 9.9 Johnson outboard, 2 stroke,electric start. It started out as agreat sailing day, then the wind died, so I fired up the motor to go joinfriends who were anchoring out together that evening. After motoring for about10 minutes, the engine just died. No sputtering or choking – just powereddown. I could crank it, but it wouldn'tfire. I assumed that I had mixed my gas too rich and had fouled my plugs. I gota tow back to the marina, and during the next week, I changed out my gas and plugs.
The next weekend, I got the motor running and planned to take friends out for asunset sail. I started the motor, no problem, and then shut it off whilewaiting for my friends to arrive. When they were on board, I started the motoragain and we set off. Just before exiting the marina, the motor died again andI could not get it started the rest of the evening or the next day. A friend agreed that it looked like I hadfouled my plugs, at least one of them.
Someone suggested that I may just need to get hotter plugs, so I bought new,hotter plugs and put them in. The motor would crank but would not start. Afriend looked at it and said that he didn't see any sparks coming out of theplugs. So I had another friend pull me out to the lake so I could sail thatday.
Later that evening, as we were anchored out, my guy friendsstarted messing with my motor and troubleshooting. They were in the water,behind the boat by the prop and pushed the electric start. When it cranked, the prop turned and one ofthem remarked that the motor was in gear. I said that's not possible because itwill not crank in gear. He insisted it was. He took it out of gear and I'll bedarned if that sucker didn't start right up!!!
The next morning I turned on the motor to head back to the marina. It ran greatout into the lake and then I turned it off to sail for a bit. When I got nearthe marina break wall, I turned on my motor again. It started right up and rangreat...for about 3 minutes. Then it died on me again. No sputtering or choking– just powered down. Luckily my friendwas available to tow me back. Don't know what I'd do without those guys.
So I took my motor to my mechanic a few days ago. He said that the choke spring was bad and itwas flooding the carb with gas, fouling my plugs. He also suggested changing out the powerpack, an expensive fix. I asked him totry to start the motor with it in gear. He said he did and could not get it to crank with it in gear.
Normally when a motor is choked out, it doesn’t justpower down, does it? Seems like I’ve hadto choke my motor out in the past and it sputtered for a few seconds before dying,and it didn’t foul my plugs every time either. Anybody have an idea about my possessed motor?