Help with losing power in Sea Rayder

[April]

HI. Got a 1994 Sea Rayder and took it out for the first time. Ran great for about 20 minutes, stopped, turned it off, floated around, started again and drove for a few minutes then lost most of the power. Full throttle wouldn't register on speedometer. Got it back to the dock, on the trailer and the bilge had quite a bit of water in it. Any thoughts? Relationship between the water and loss of power? I'm a total newbie....Thanks.

 

[RiverRat]

I'm not familiar with your boat but I bet excess water could be a sign of a cooling system hose being loose or something. That might cause a loss of power.

 

[Gym]

HI. Got a 1994 Sea Rayder and took it out for the first time. Ran great for about 20 minutes, stopped, turned it off, floated around, started again and drove for a few minutes then lost most of the power. Full throttle wouldn't register on speedometer. Got it back to the dock, on the trailer and the bilge had quite a bit of water in it. Any thoughts? Relationship between the water and loss of power? I'm a total newbie....Thanks.

This boat looks like a lot of fun.

Whereas it initially ran well I'm thinking old or bad gas. If there was water at the bottom of the tank you stirred it up on your initial run suspending it in the gas.

The first thing to do on any used boat purchase is to go through it changing oil, spark plugs and checking the air filter. This boat may have sat for a long period of time since it was last run. Let us know how you make out.

 

[tdonoughue]

Was the water in the bilge warm or cool?

 

[Julian]

Need to know a few things:

1. Was the engine running fine and at max RPM? If Yes, then what you are saying is the boat's engine was running fine, but the boat wasn't reaching its normal max speed. If Yes, then how much water was in the bilge? Water weighs 8lbs per gallon, so if you pulled the plug and it ran for more than a few minutes, then the water in your bilge was probably the cause of your not reaching full speed.
2. If the engine wasn't reaching full RPM then the speed and bilge water issues may not be related at all. You may have to diagnose each problem separately. They MIGHT be related but without more info it will be hard to tell. As asked above...was the bilge water hot? How low were the RPMS? Did the engine sound rough?

If you list your location, you might find a member willing to give you a hand trying to get to the bottom of your problems, or a recommendation to a good dealer/mechanic in your area.​

 

[April]

This boat looks like a lot of fun.

Whereas it initially ran well I'm thinking old or bad gas. If there was water at the bottom of the tank you stirred it up on your initial run suspending it in the gas.

The first thing to do on any used boat purchase is to go through it changing oil, spark plugs and checking the air filter. This boat may have sat for a long period of time since it was last run. Let us know how you make out.

Thank you. I will do that. Appreciate it!

 

[cecild585]

i have just purchased a 1994 sea ray rayder 90 hp jet boat and it runs fine but will not run full speed carbs have been rebuilt and flagger and magneto have been changed out any ideas what it could be

 

[tdonoughue]

Is the boat not going at full speed (mph) or is the engine not at full speed (rpm)?

 

[cecild585]

It is not getting full power mph or rpm and now it has lost the spark to the coil

 

[cecild585]

Also did compression test this morning have 90 psi on all 3 cylinders

 

[tdonoughue]

Pretty odd to have no trigger current to the coil and have it run fine. How did you determine that? Is there spark at the plugs?

 

[cecild585]

No no spark to the plugs it was running fine then out of nowhere no spark

 

[cecild585]

Now it won’t crank at all

 

[tdonoughue]

Battery ok?

 

[cecild585]

Yes brand new

 

[tdonoughue]

How many volts does it show when you test it now?

 

[cecild585]

Idk don’t know what to check for power or how to read a volt meter

 

[cecild585]

I am mechanic savy just don’t know how to read a volt meter

 

[tdonoughue]

Sorry, work has exploded.

Do you have a voltmeter? If not, it makes an excellent investment. You don't need one of those expense or fancy ones. Just one that will show DC voltage (which is all of them). Turn the knob to DC Volt (20), put the red lead on the red (+) of the battery, black lead on the black (-) and read the number.

Even with a new battery, after trying to start for a while, it will run out. Hard to tell if there is a problem with the battery (my relatively new battery came loose and bounced when I was in chop--separated the plates...), the starter, or the engine just by looking. If you can take a reading at the battery and confirm that it has full charge, you eliminate one thing and can move to the next.

I suspect given the history that you were trying to start it for so long that the battery now needs charging.