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19982000 Mercury 15hp starting procedure

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Warren Wiley

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I do not know the proper use o

I do not know the proper use of the choke on a 1998-2000 15-HP Mercury. Pull out and leave it? Pull out for a second and push it in? Also an idle speed goes L-Right....where do I set that to start?
Cannot find an owners manual to learn this.
 
"Pump fuel ball till its hard

"Pump fuel ball till its hard ,pull out choke ,
start engine ,when it fires you can push choke in / sometimes only half way for a few seconds then all the way in ,warm up engine, should go to an idle then run boat.

You may have to throttle it a little when starting ,but if all is right it should fire and run with out !
Choke should only be needed for a Cold Start !"
 
"Okay Tom. Owner of motor &#4

"Okay Tom. Owner of motor (an electric start) said to pull it and then push it in...pull it and then push it in, then hit the start button. He said it is a "primer" rather than a choke. Did not make any sense to me. Nice running motor when its going, but sometimes a real pain to get it to go."
 
"Warren, the pull out knob wor

"Warren, the pull out knob works pretty much like Tom descibes.

When you pull out that knob it does two things - a little finger on the assembly presses the primer on the side of the carb and sends a shot of gas into the throat of the carb - also blocks most of the air to the carb throat when pulled "out".

I have a 91 Manual 15 horse (and a pair of 9.9's as well).

Try pulling out once and leaving out as Tom suggests and give it a pull. If the motor is otherwise tuned properly and doesn't start on the first pull, I will usually push in and pull out again (and leave out). Then give the rope another haul.

Once it starts, yes slowly push the "choke" in until she will run smooth on you. By putting slight pressure on the knob (with it all the way back in) and turning clockwise or counter-clockwise you can vary the rpm at idle slightly which you can play with to come up with a decent trolling speed (but that system is a little hoaky at best - but that's the design).

If it doesn't start, or starts hard after the second prime/choke that usually indicates it's time to change the plugs.

If the motor idles a little crappy, check to see if you even have a thermostat. Merc usually did not install them at factory on the 15 horse and below models (probably to save them 50 cents or whatever per model).

If you don't have one it's a worthwhile 20 dollar investment. The motor will idle way better than you could imagine..."
 
"Thanks you guys. Really appre

"Thanks you guys. Really appreciate it. And I will check into the thermostat. Who knew??? HA! I am feeling better about the deal already. As I said, when its running it runs smooth and idles nicely. I had a choice of $2800 for a new one or $750 for this one. And I ain't as dumb as I look!!"
 
"Oh. Did I mention this is the

"Oh. Did I mention this is the shift in the handle outboard, electric start. I was TOLD it was a 98/99/2000. I have not dealt with the shift in handle before. Most of my boats have been over 30' with diesel power so this stuff is sorta new to me. Not that I haven't run outboards before of course."
 
"Warren, excellent price for a

"Warren, excellent price for an electric start...

Starting proceedure is the same except just hit the starter button instead of reefin' on it


The "all in one handle" is excellent. Just incorporated both the shift and throttle cable into the handle. Yours would also have the addition of the start button as well.

The only thing I never liked about it is you can't advance the throttle without it in gear, which would have been a nice feature (in Canada in late October) when trying to get the engine warmed up...

Last note - I think you will appreciate how much less gas this burns than the big rigs - a 6 gallon tank should last you most of the day at 3/4 throttle
"
 
Thank you again. I am pleased

Thank you again. I am pleased with the motor the little bit we have used it. What I've learned here will certainly help. Including the part about the thermostat.
Appreciate the help folks.
 
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