305 Mercruiser fuel problem

[79 Sea Ray]

Hi all,

My 305 Mercruiser is not getting any fuel into the carb. I have tried disconnecting the fuel line at the carb and turning the key to check how far the gas is traveling. When I do that, gas does spray out the end of the line. Also, when pouring gas into the carb itself, the engine will start up and run until the gas is gone. I am not sure where to go next. Any advice is appreciated.

 

[kghost]

Well my thoughts are,

If you have gas getting to the carb but not coming out then the source of you problem would lead me to believe it is the carb.

Maybe a clogged inlet filter?
Maybe a stuck closed needle/seat?

When you say gas is coming out of fuel line, How much....??

With A good fuel pump and gas supply the gas exiting the fuel line should be a good stream that shoots several feet on each pulse of the fuel pump.

 

[79 Sea Ray]

Ok, thank you. The gas shoots out like you mentioned, when the fuel line is disconnected from the carb. Also-I tried starting without the inlet filter with the same results (so it doesn't seem like that is the issue). I will look further into the needle and seat. I appreciate the response!

 

[sandkicker]

Sticky carb float needle per kghost is frequent ethanol related issue. At the age of your boat there is a fair chance that these is a composite tip on the carb needle that is now damaged by ethanol and has become sticky... The fix... find an ethanol proof carb needle setup. Unsticking it is a very temporary fix.

 

[fastjeff]

If that's a Rochester Q-Jet, there's a screen filter hiding inside that brass nut the fuel line connects to. Unscrew the nut and take a look.

I'll bet you a six pack that filter screen is packed with brown crud. Had the same problem on my similar engine.

Jeff

 

[79 Sea Ray]

Ok, thanks for the responses sandkicker and fastjeff. I will investigate further into these solutions and let you know what I figure out.