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1983 Johnson 175 wont start

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clementsea

New member
This is my first post to this site...

I have a 1983 Johnson 175hp that I've run for the past two months. It's run acceptably so far; loves high rpms, but hard to start/warm up, and doesn't idle very well...

last week I ran the boat for a full day on the water with lots of starts/stops, and 3500-4500 rpm cruising & it ran as well as it ever has for me... When coming back to the dock, the engine died at low rpm (which happens frequently) and I thought it was just another time it didn't idle well, but after, I couldn't get it started again. I noticed a sheen of gas in the water, so I removed the engine cover and saw that the primer solenoid was spurting fuel when I tried to crank the engine... I replaced the primer solenoid, and it still won't start... wondering if anyone has troubleshooting suggestions, thanks!
 
Compression test needs to be done.---------------Do you have strong spark on all 6 cylinders ??---------These motors run surprisingly well on 5 cylinders.------Repair parts are available for those primers.----Likely just a $3.00 or so O-ring leaking.------Do you hear a click when you push in the key??-------Do you hold the key iin while cranking ??-------------If the battery / cables / starter are in poor condition then the motor may not crank fast enuff for spark to be generated by the magneto.
 
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thanks for your reply!

As far as I know, the cylinders check at 90psi each cylinder... when I checked the plugs, they were soaked with fuel/oil. I cleaned them out and tried again, without success. How do I check for "strong spark"? The plugs are new...

Battery/cables/starter seem strong. what rpm do I need for the magnetos to generate enough spark?... I'll have to get back to you about the clicking. I think it clicks when I turn the key, not sure if it clicks when I push/choke it. I'm away from the boat till Wed PM... I can check then.

My start "routine" is to place the throttle in start position (got that from the markings by the throttle assembly on the engine), choke it on the first crank... it will cough a bit and die. Then leave the throttle in the same spot and crank it as many times as it takes to light off. I advance the throttle as required to keep it going until it warms up enough to get it in gear without stalling...
 
Advance " throttle only lever " almost all the way and see if that improves starting.------------Key needs to be held in while cranking !----After motor starts key may have to be pushed in momentarily to keep engine from stalling.---------------------Are thermostats installed and working ?
 
Sorry, yes, my throttle doesn't have a throttle only lever, the throttle base pulls out while in neutral to allow throttle advance without being in gear... I'll try pushing the key in to keep it started. The mechanic I had get the engine going originally (engine sat for a while without starting after being winterized) did heat tests to the entire engine while running. He didn't mention thermostats in particular, but I'm assuming they're installed and working cause the engine stays cool while running...
 
I've tried giving it all the throttle... I'll be back home tomorrow and dig into the problem for real. Thanks for your reply... hopefully I'll have something to add in a couple of days...
 
I'm sure it's obvious from the time between my posts that I don't get much time to use or work on my boat...

To restate, I had the engine (1983 175hp Johnson) running well for July & most of August. I ran through around 100 gallons of fuel (4 tanks full...) in that time. Around 21 August, the engine stalled and wouldn't re-start after a full day on the water... I got towed home. I found the primer solenoid leaking fuel while cranking, so I replaced that & tried to start the engine with no luck.

Two weeks passed till I had time to work on the boat again... I pulled & cleaned the plugs, pumped the ball & the engine lit off right away... It ran really well at "start idle" for about 8 minutes... I shut it down, and let it sit for a few minutes and re-started it with 1/2 a key turn... let it idle again, and after about 4 minutes, it stalled... I tried several times to re-start after that and had no luck. Very similar symptoms as when it stalled and left me stranded a few weeks ago... I pulled & cleaned the plugs again, and couldn't get it to re-light.

Observations/questions:

1. fuel drips from the bottom of where the black plastic intake manifold meets the carburetor after my 6-8 tries at re-start... is the carburetor bowl overflowing cause I'm advancing the throttle to attempt light off?

2. I begin the start attempt with the throttle in the "start position" and advance it if the engine doesn't light off at the "start position". Usually, if the engine doesn't light off as I advance the throttle, I'll pull it back to the start position and will get a momentary light off followed by a stall...

3. How quickly am I flooding the engine? Is my technique for starting flooding the engine?

4. Is there a fuel filter in the engine? Might it be clogging?

I'm hoping that someone might have a suggestion as to where to go from here... It seems like the engine is flooding itself once it warms up... is that possible? I've had friends tell me it's ethanol related. I have a fuel/water separator/filter installed and show no signs of water in the inspection cup, I've also heard that using "street gas" is a bad idea, but my boat's on a trailer & it's convenient & cheaper to buy fuel at the station vs the dock... if it is ethanol, do I have a carburetor clog/problem?..... Help!?


 
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