Heyya! First time post after long time lurking!
I bought a used boat 2 or so months ago that had been sitting for a year. Its running a 2003 40hp Merc 2 stroke - I immediately had the carbs cleaned out after buying because it wouldnt stay idle without stalling.
I've been out 6-7 times, and have ran about 24 gallons of fuel though it, most of it has been trolling.
Yesterday, at full power, while making the first run of the day, the engine revved down to 4k, and wouldnt go past it - sounded okay, but just wouldnt accelerate. I changed 2 of the 3 spark plugs (the 2 that had the most black on them), and that seemed to fix it issue - engine ran fine after that.
Now today I just realized something - I never added oil to the reservoir since buying the boat. It was full when I got it, and even though I cant say for sure, I dont think the level dropped much.
Bringing me to the first question - Do these oil injected engines barely use any oil at trolling speed? since that's most of what I've been doing?
second question - What would cause the spark plug to turn black and apparently stop working?
I noticed that the motor blows alot of smoke when I first start it, and then after about 2-3 minutes, the smoke pretty much disappears ( but it still smells). Is this normal for an oil injected 2 stroke? I was under the assumption that 2 stroke all smoke.
I bought a used boat 2 or so months ago that had been sitting for a year. Its running a 2003 40hp Merc 2 stroke - I immediately had the carbs cleaned out after buying because it wouldnt stay idle without stalling.
I've been out 6-7 times, and have ran about 24 gallons of fuel though it, most of it has been trolling.
Yesterday, at full power, while making the first run of the day, the engine revved down to 4k, and wouldnt go past it - sounded okay, but just wouldnt accelerate. I changed 2 of the 3 spark plugs (the 2 that had the most black on them), and that seemed to fix it issue - engine ran fine after that.
Now today I just realized something - I never added oil to the reservoir since buying the boat. It was full when I got it, and even though I cant say for sure, I dont think the level dropped much.
Bringing me to the first question - Do these oil injected engines barely use any oil at trolling speed? since that's most of what I've been doing?
second question - What would cause the spark plug to turn black and apparently stop working?
I noticed that the motor blows alot of smoke when I first start it, and then after about 2-3 minutes, the smoke pretty much disappears ( but it still smells). Is this normal for an oil injected 2 stroke? I was under the assumption that 2 stroke all smoke.