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OMC vs BRP is it true about VRO Pumps

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frank arnold

New member
subject pre 1996 omc vro pumps were redesigned to new style?
I was told the new style VRO pumps which also come with a blue pulse valve were redesigned so that the fuel pump side would fail but not the oil supply side. Therefore VRO failure would not cause engine damage from oil starvation like the earlier pumps. IS THIS TRUE?....
 
never heard of it........vro pumps,.....in the last 10 yrs,...or so,..are called ..OMS pumps.........they have been redesigned,numerous times....what u r hearing,..is boat ramp bs.............until proven otherwise...the 'OMS' pumps design,does NOT provide the variable ratio oiling.....it provides a more constant 50/1...except at low idle,..leans out to around 60/1.
 
let me ask you this... how many engine have been lost to lack of oiling due to the late model oms pumps that you know of.
Im not tring to be a smart a$4 but I lost a engine after 12 years of hard use.. when I purchased a factor new complete engine I was told they would only warranty it if I installed a new style oms or premix my oil/gas. after 3 years that engine lost # 5 piston to top ring lan broke at the exhaust port and when I took the head off I found #1 piston was what apears to be water washed ( no carbon at all top is just like new) so I figured It has one of those 1st blocks that had foam casting problem.. So now its trashed and I have rebuilt my orignal engine and tring to decide if I should trust the oms or premix it.
Thanks!
 
(VRO Changeover Judgement Call)
(J. Reeves)

The VROs first came out in 1984 and have been upgraded quite a few times. In my opinion, back around 1988, they had perfected them but I think that they were upgraded even more since then. As long as the warning system is operating as it should, I feel quite at ease with them.

Some boaters have voiced their thoughts such as "What if that overpriced plastic horn should fail while I'm under way for some reason, and the VRO decides to fail five minutes later?" Obviously that would result in a big problem which really brings their fears into view.

The word "ease" is the key word though. If one has the slightest feeling of being ill at ease with that setup, then they should take the route they feel more at ease with. A judgement call each individual would need to make on their own.

Thousands of parts in my remaining stock. Not able to list them all. Let me know what you need and I'll look it up for you. Visit my eBay store at:

http://stores.ebay.com/Evinrude-Johnson-Outboard-Parts-etc?refid=store
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(VRO Pump Conversion To Straight Fuel Pump)
(J. Reeves)

You can convert the VRO pump into a straight fuel pump, eliminating the oil tank and VRO pump warning system, but retain the overheat warning setup (and fuel restriction warning if so equipped) by doing the following:

1 - Cut and plug the oil line at the engine so that the oil side of the VRO pump will not draw air into its system. Trace the wires from the back of the VRO to its rubber plug (electrical plug) and disconnect it.

2 - Trace the two wires from the oil tank to the engine, disconnect those two wires, then remove them and the oil tank.

3 - Mix the 50/1 oil in the proper amount with whatever quantity fuel you have. Disconnect the fuel line at the engine. Pump the fuel primer bulb until fuel exits that hose with the tint of whatever oil you used. Reconnect the fuel hose.

That's it. If you want to test the heat warning system to ease your mind, have the key in the on position, then ground out the tan heat sensor wire that you'll find protruding from the cylinder head. The warning horn should sound off.

Thousands of parts in my remaining stock. Not able to list them all. Let me know what you need and I'll look it up for you. Visit my eBay store at:

http://stores.ebay.com/Evinrude-Johnson-Outboard-Parts-etc?refid=store
 
The VRO/OMS pumps have ALWAYS been more durable on the oil side than the fuel side. The 1984-5 models had issues with ethanol damage. Since then, the two most common failure modes won't blow up the motor. The first is a failure of the air motor. In this case it doesn't pump either gas or oil. Once it gets bad enough, the motor won't sustain high power operation. The second common failure is the fuel pump diaphram-check valve assembly. In this case the pump delivers the full charge of oil, but the fuel isn't pumped properly. The end result is a ton of smoke and fuel starvation.

In any event, the VRO-OMS is alarmed on actual oil delivery--not on loss of pump drive like a merc. If the oil pressure pulse isn't felt by the sensor, the alarm goes off. It's important to test the alarm every so often. If the system is maintained properly, you're more likely to blow up your motor by forgetting to premix the tank than by a VRO failure. I've run the VRO on every motor I've owned. I won't mess around with mixing gas.
 
Thanks DCramer.
You explained it well without the BS. my information did not come from ramp talk but from a well respected omc tec and fourm monitor.
I appreciate that!
 
Sounds like you know your stuff.I have a 1993 175 v6 my horn goes off after about 10 min. of running and sounds for about 5 seconds and goes off and comes back on wat do you think this would mean?
 
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