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115 HP Mariner No Spark

T

thebubba

Regular Contributor
Hello all and thank you for your help in advance. I bought a 1994 115 HP Mariner this winter. I started it up on muffs in my driveway and it seemed to start easily and run great. I took it to the lake for the first time this weekend about 180 miles away and it would not start at all. Come to find out there was no spark on any cylinders. I have been messing around with boat motors for years, so I did check everything out that I could on the lake. All the kill switches are functioning normal. Neutral switch good. I even just unhooked the black and yellow wire from the switch box to elimate the kill switches and that did not help. Where should I start on this motor. I found some instructions on how to test the trigger and stator. Any advice will be greatly appreciated. I am puzzled how it would run fine and then not have any spark the next day. Serial Number OG101768

Troy
 
Last edited:
Does your motor have a tilt switch? Did you perhaps have the motor tilted too high on the lake while trying to start it? Check the wiring diagram. (It may also be wired to the black and yellow wire, in which case this info is useless, but something I always forget and then battle with at the lake)
 
Thank you for the reply and for trying to help. I tried it tilted all the way down, I only see one wire attaching to the switchbox that is a black with yellow stripe. I removed it to see if it would help and still nothing no matter the tilt position.
 
I was able to spend 30 minutes on it last night. I have very weak spark on cylinder 2 and 4, but nothing on 1 and 3. I also found one of the yellow wires going to the voltage regulator was melted a little, still intact, but the insulation was melted in one spot. I will use the shop manual I have and the link above to help guide me.
 
I did an ohms test on the trigger and it appeared to be within specs. I did a test on the stator and the low speed side was open. Looks like a bad stator. I am waiting for my DVA adapter to get here to test the rest.
 
I got the new Stator today and installed it. That fixed the problem, it now has better spark than I have ever seen on the motor. I tested the voltage regulator and it is working correctly. I did a complete DVA test on the motor and everything checks out according to the service manual. it starts right up and runs perfectly! The lesson I learned here was always use the service manual and perform the tests exactly the way the manual says to find the problem without having to just throw parts at it. I was able to find the exact part that was the problem immediately by using the service manual instructions on troubleshooting.
 
I took the boat to the lake this last weekend and it ran perfectly. The motor is very quiet for a 2 stroke and smooth at idle. When those two extra cylinders kick in it really takes off. I quite like the motor. Got the boat up to around 40 mph in a few seconds. WOT is around 5100 rpms at 6500 feet elevation. One last question on this motor. This is the 2+2 motor. I ran it out of fuel at an idle, but I realized this would only run the upper two carbs dry as the lower two do not have idle jets. These carbs would remain full of fuel during storage if not manually drained. Is my logic on this matter accurate. Will I need to pull the drain screw on the lower carbs to empty the fuel out between extended uses?
 
Tilt the engine all the way up and the fuel runs out the carbs throats...that's what mine does. Otherwise throw it into 2000 RPM on the concrete ramp and let it kick up a roostertail.
 
These carbs would remain full of fuel during storage if not manually drained. Is my logic on this matter accurate. Will I need to pull the drain screw on the lower carbs to empty the fuel out between extended uses?
Click to expand...
Yes and yes,,, best to drain them or use a stabilizer year round.
 
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