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1996 90 hp Evinrude acceleration issue

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bocephus1369

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I am having an issue with my motor. It seems to start fine and idles decently, but when I give it some throttle, it will go at slow speeds. At about half throttle, it will sputter like it wants to go, but bogs down. Increasing the throttle further will cause it to die out. I did notice that pushing the key in while accelerating will allow it to get up to full speed and will run fine until I stop. Then it dies and I have to start and repeat. I have replaced the plugs and the wires and did not see any fuel leaks. The fuel filter looks fine. I have very little mechanical experience and this is my first outboard engine. Any help would be greatly appreciated!
 
Trouble shooting is required here.-----------Start with a compression test to establish the overall condition of the engine.------Then check for strong spark on each cylinder.-------------If the engine sat for any length of time with fuel in the carburetors , then carburetors may be partially plugged.-------------Having to use the primer ( bypassing carburetors ) to get it to run properly indicates a carburetor problem.
 
Thanks for the response! Please forgive my ignorance, but I have a few questions. It is a 1996 Sunbird Spirit 170 17'. According to the specs for the boat and motor, it gets up to the max speed of 33 MPH at about 4800 RPM's after using the primer to get up to full speed. It will continue at full speed with no problems until I pull back the throttle. Would it be able to reach and maintain this speed with a compression or spark issue? If it is a carb issue, would I have to rebuild with a kit or can I use SeaFoam or some Johnson/Evinrude Tuner spray to clean? Thanks!
 
bocephus1369 said:
Thanks for the response! Please forgive my ignorance, but I have a few questions. It is a 1996 Sunbird Spirit 170 17'. According to the specs for the boat and motor, it gets up to the max speed of 33 MPH at about 4800 RPM's after using the primer to get up to full speed. It will continue at full speed with no problems until I pull back the throttle. Would it be able to reach and maintain this speed with a compression or spark issue? If it is a carb issue, would I have to rebuild with a kit or can I use SeaFoam or some Johnson/Evinrude Tuner spray to clean? Thanks!
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I preferr to take carbs apart to clean them. I usually blow air through all the passageways to make sure there clear. A compression test would still be worth doing even if the carbs are your problem.

ideally the psi of each cylinder should be within 5 psi of eachother. As gauges vary a peak psi is hard to say. but i suscpect around 110 to 145 psi (Baised on my knowledge of other 2 strokes)
 
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In order to do " cost effective repairs " you need to do trouble shooting.---------We often see posts like " replaced the powerpack " ------" rebuilt carburetors "-----------" replaced coils " -------" replaced fuel pump " --------followed by " my motor still runs the same ".----------------Replacing parts is an expensive way to find the problem.--------------------Nothing like doing it once the right way !
 
racerone said:
In order to do " cost effective repairs " you need to do trouble shooting.---------We often see posts like " replaced the powerpack " ------" rebuilt carburetors "-----------" replaced coils " -------" replaced fuel pump " --------followed by " my motor still runs the same ".----------------Replacing parts is an expensive way to find the problem.--------------------Nothing like doing it once the right way !
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Thanks for your help! I will be doing some troubleshooting this weekend, but am trying to find a service manual now. How do I tell if my engine is a 60 or 90 degree crossflow or looper? The model number is E90TLEDA if that helps.
 
Your motor is in the " crossflow " family of motors.-----Good rugged motor that was mechanically the same from 1979 to your model year.----Is it running with VRO in service or with 50: 1 premix ??-------------If VRO is in service has it been checked / tested to make sure it is injecting the correct amount of oil ?
 
It is running VRO. It has not been checked. I am trying to obtain a manual so I can do a little more troubleshooting. It scares me because I have heard a lot of bad things about the VRO's! Would you know how I could check it to ensure it is working properly?
 
One way is to mix a tank of fuel with 50:1----------------------Mark your oil tank to see what the level is ...........Ater you empty your tank of mixed fuel , you see how much oil was used by measuring how much oil is needed to bring it back to your reference mark.----Note , motor will smoke a bit more but no damage will be done.--------The factory manual has a different method of checking oil consumption.
 
I found a leak from the top of the fuel portion of the VRO. I am going to have to replace the pump but I need to cross-reference a manual pump but am not sure where to start. I just don't see spending the money on a new VRO! Could this be causing my original issue? Thanks
 
Just order a pump and gasket for an 83 V-4 Johnson or Evinrude.--------------The spot to mount it is on the intake manifold.----------Bit of work changing the hoses, other than that it is the cheap and easy fix.
 
I really appreciate all of your help! I noticed there were three lines on inlet side of the VRO. I know one is the oil, which I would no longer need, the other is fuel, but what is the third? Am I going to need this line?
 
Simple the VRO has -----------OIL IN-----------GAS IN--------------PRESSURE PULSE IN ( from crankcase )-----VRO has mixed gas out.----------------Old style pump mounts on the intake manifold with direct access to pressure pulses.-------------Plug VRO pulse port.
 
Giving you an answer to that would be guessing on my part.----------Normally I " look " at a motor, ask the owner a bunch of questions that must be answered. Then I trouble shoot and listen carefully to a motor.---After that I can decide what needs to be done for a " cost effective fix "
 
I do have another question. I am rerouting my fuel line to connect to the new fuel pump. Can I loop the fuel line because the fuel pump faces down and the line going to the carbs and from the primer solenoid uses a plastic stem? Wasn't sure if this will affect the flow.
 
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