Engine won't start

[itsdgm]

Well, at least it's a simple fix glad that you've got it all figured out. Btw, have you called the mechanic yet to let him know

 

[itsdgm]

Ps. It might help to heat up those broken bolts a bit in order to remove them.

 

[ToddW850]

That's great news @ElRowlando ! Although I did get a chuckle reading your post, it's great news that nothing was wrong and won't cost you anything to get back on the water.

And do not feel bad. There is an entire Thread on this Forum dedicated to these things. https://jetboaters.net/threads/just-to-make-me-feel-better-what-stupid-thing-did-you-do-last-boating-season.4352/ You are FAR from alone.

Also, don't forget to add your location to your profile, that way you show up on the user map. Good Luck on July 4th. I'll be on the water as well.

 

[ToddW850]

Also @ElRowlando while I'm thinking about it, not sure how long you've had your boat, but make sure you have a SS Scupper installed and not the plastic one. While you're doing that, make sure to replace all your hose clamps in your transom area (below the swim platform) with new SS clamps. I had some original clamps that rusted through and broke off. I replaced all of mine with new SS ones. Great peace of mind.

 

[Gym]

Ok, sorry I haven't posted in a little bit but I just got the time to really get in there and figure out what was going on. I'll give you a brief rundown. @ToddW850 I'm in Panama City, so i'll gladly take the name of your mechanic. Anyway, so I had to drill the tops off of 10 of the bolts on the hatch cover. Now I have the stems still in the inserts but I'm hoping I can crank them out with some vice grips. I pulled the deck off and tried to start the motors. Both fuel pumps kicked in, however no fuel was coming out. I undid the fuel line at the motor and nothing. So I figure it's the pump. I pull the pump out of the fuel tank and....(drum rollllllll)...the poor thing was out of gas. I didn't think twice about this because my gauge was reading just above half a tank and I didn't take it very far last time out so I didn't think anything of it. I reconnected everything, added a few gallons of gas that I had lying around and she fired right up. Now all I have to do is get the bolts out and get a new sending unit and i'll be ready to roll for 4th of July weekend!

Also I'm going to create a new login on this forum because I love the information, but i'm sure i'll be the laughing stock for a while! Thank you all so much for your help and your advice throughout this embarrassing ordeal!!!

I'm not laughing at you @ElRowlando, I'm laughing at your mechanic who thought he was going to make a quick buck on you. I'm glad you fixed it for the cost of some bolts and some labor. I'd keep the log on name. You're smarter for it. Now lets work on calibrating or replacing that fuel sending unit if it's giving you bad readings as many do.

 

[bronze_10]

Out of gas! Lol... (I am loudly pointing out your failure to cover up me working on my riding lawn mower for two days for not starting before realizing it was just out of gas... I was so pissed I almost threw it in the dumpster and went to buy a new one! My 6 year old walks out there to tell me dinner is ready and she says.... does it have gas?) YEA... I ALWAYS CHECK THE FUEL FIRST... (looks away nervously)

 

[ElRowlando]

Haha glad to know i'm not the only one that has a brain fart every now and again @bronze_10! I haven't called the mechanic yet, but i'm planning on it today. I'm so glad that it's a simple fix that's under $100 instead of the $1k or so I would have had to spend on new pumps and all that. @itsdgm I was thinking about heating up the bolts a bit but I didn't want to damage the fiberglass or anything. Do you think it'd be alright? I was going to try to snatch them with some vice grips and hope that I can get them out without damaging the inserts, but my father in law has an insert tool so we can add new ones if necessary. (Hopefully, I'm not really sure how they are attached.)

I checked out the FAQ on the sending unit and I planned on calling today to order a new one. Hopefully it's that and not the gauge itself, but either way it's not a huge cost and i'll have a more accurate unit in the end.

@ToddW850 I've had the boat about a year now and it has the plastic scupper. While in the transom area a few days ago I notice the clamp around the hose that goes over the impeller shaft had rusted off, so I need to get a few of those and get that taken care of. There are also some weird clamps on the fuel lines that I have no idea how to replace so i'm going to get some normal clamps for those as well. I can't wait to get it all taken care of and get back on the water! It's been out of commission for a couple weeks and we've missed some great weekends to be out.

@Gym How do you like the throttle sync? I've thought about getting one for my boat but unless i'm maxed out the throttles aren't aligned when running at the same rpm.

 

[itsdgm]

It's not really clear if Yamaha used locktite on those bolts or if corrosion gets to them. But I'd try and beat them up a bit (possibly a heavy duty soldering iron or mini torch?) and put some kind of penetrating oil on them. Then try to remove with the vise grips.

 

[Gym]

@ElRowlando. The throttle syncs work ok for me. It seems that you need one of your throttle levers to be stiff enough to support the other through the throttle sync. If both your throttles are slipping it may not work well.

 

[ElRowlando]

So a little update. I ended up having to drill the heads off of all the bolts. I tried using vice grips to get them out but they are stuck tight. I also tried cutting a slot in them to use a flat head as I saw someone else on here so but that didn't work even with an impact wrench. I soaked them with pb blaster and I'm goin g to try to figure something out tomorrow.

I saw somewhere that they are threaded into an insert but it looks to me like the fiberglass is tapped. Is that a thing? Or is the insert like put into the glass somehow? Hopefully I don't have to make the holes any bigger since I already bought replacement screws!

 

[ToddW850]

Wish I could answer your questions. I ended up leaving the ones that I drilled the heads off. Only use the ones that were still whole. But I've also heard a heat gun might help get them (after they soak tonight).

 

[ElRowlando]

Well nothing worked. We got one bolt to pop out but the others are screwed. I'm thinking we are gonna have to cut the bolts out with a jigsaw and then re glass it somehow. For now I'll use the 5 holes that I have to secure it, plus the cooler on top. I just have to replace the weather stripping stuff.

@ToddW850 did you do anything to fill the holes in the bolts you drilled off or are you not worried about water getting down in there?

 

[ToddW850]

The ones I had to drill the heads off, I left in place as is. So there is just a stem of threads sticking up. Hadn't really put much thought into water getting in there. Haven't had an instance where it would be an issue. Maybe I'll explore some type of plastic cap I can snap on it next time I'm at Ace Hardware or Lowes.

 

[ElRowlando]

Excellent that gives me some reassurance because I was concerned about it. My only other problem now is the bolts that came out are all on one side, but for the mean time having my cooler combined with those bolts ought to hold it until I can get it fixed

 

[subysti]

@ElRowlando don't feel bad about the gas thing. I once ran out of gas on the highway with my Prius. I had to hear about that for years. As far as the bolts go, go and get some real quality carbide or titanium coated drill bits and drill completely through the bolts. Start with a real small bit and increase to couple more sizes. Eventually you get to the point where you just have a thin sleeve left and you can usually pry them out at that point with some heat. It's worked for me many times with cars and snowmobiles. Just be patient, go slow and drill straight.

 

[Thomas Fossett]

OK all, brand new to the forum as I have not had any problems. Since that issue has been remedied, I am now here.

The issue: The Port motor will not even sound the pre-start beep. I switched the harness on the key switch, Switch is good. Starboard motor starts right up. The starboard engine runs great at all times (Except now that I said that out loud, I am most likely screwed.) The main cables are clean and in great condition. The fuses are good. I am not sure where the neutral safety switch is, so I can't check that. The safety lanyard is fine. The rear pumps clean out hatch switches are good.

Anyone know the next step?

Besides turning it into a reef?

 

[Beachbummer]

Have you done any recent work? Any chance cables are loose at the battery? Consider creating a new thread to get more attention to your problem. Check Fuses too!

 

[Thomas Fossett]

No work really. It ran great all the way into Tampa Bay then when it was time to go back, not even a beep to indicate engine ready to run. All the cables are clean and tight. Fuses good.

 

[PaulyB]

Only the starboard key makes the beep. The depth finder is wired to the starboard ignition switch, which beeps when the power is supplied to it.

 

[PaulyB]

The throttles are in nuetral position? The clean out hatch is closed? The battery cables for the port motor are connected to the battery?