Updated, engine problem, Wake Surfing '09 AR210

[Scottintexas]

each engine has it's own with a small screen on the bottom, it might be worth pulling it just to look and see in your tank (although if you have water in your tank it will be the same color as the bottom of the tank so it can be easily deceiving) it would be better to list it and then siphon some out into a glass jar,

 

[Scottintexas]

here are a couple of threads related to water in the tank for reference,

https://jetboaters.net/threads/so-i...lugs-need-some-help-here-resolved.7029/page-3

https://jetboaters.net/threads/cleaning-out-my-fuel-tank-has-anybody-done-this-yet.4492/#post-76387

 

[Scuba_ref]

You can also disconnect the fuel line going into the engine and then crank it a couple of times. That will activate the pump...just make sure you have something to catch the fuel. If the fuel coming out is not clear then you have an issue or let it sit for a while and see if you get some separation with fuel on top and water below it.

 

[jcsmith77]

So good news first, no discernable water in oil. I checked before starting. Good, plugged in water and ran 5 minutes, still looks the same except warmer and a few bubbles on the stick. Any other thoughts? Or could it be a small enough amount of water that burned up and or was exhausted? I still am not thinking pickup problem because i dont think it would matter the amount of time. Any way fuel in the fuel rail could leak into the cylinders and flood the cylinders with fuel because of list? I just love being the only one special enough for this to happen to.

 

[swatski]

That's very good news!

 

[bronze_10]

If fuel were leaking into the cylinder you would smell it... esp when trying to start due to raw unspent fuel being pushed out of rhe motor... is the motor that is hard to start on the same side as the lean? I might have missed that... I'm still thinking some kind of a fuel pick up issue.. maybe ther is a small hole in one of the lines and when the boat loans it opens it up some and allows the fuel to drain out of the line.. the way u explain it starting tells me it is not an electrical issue because the engine is running it just doesn't like starting but there is fire. I say something fuels related. Bad fuel from the station maybe?

 

[bronze_10]

I use to have to keep some old ragged big rigs running. Anytime we would do work on the fuels system this is how they would start due to small.pocmets.of air in the fuel lines.. we would prime and spin... prime and spin... then two of the 6 cylinders would hit.. and the engine would sound like it is gonna jump out of the truck... slowly the fuel pressure for the other cylinders would push the air out and another cylinder would start working then another and after a few seconds all 6 would run... sounds similar..

 

[jcsmith77]

That sounds about like how it's going, but it only happens to the port engine when listed over to the port side. And seems to get worse the longer it sits listed without running.

 

[bronze_10]

Someone mentioned water in the tank that slowly slides down to that side... maybe the fuel pick up or a line only leaks down due to a small pin hole when leaned on that side... but I still say it's fuel.... stupid question but where are the fuel filters on these boats?... maybe the filter has some water in it.

 

[Bill D]

They're on the bottom of the pumps. And they're more screens than filters. My money is still on a fuel problem too. I'm just not sure about how water in the fuel would clear up after the boat was running. Underway it's logical that the movement could stir the fuel up enough, but I would think that until you got going, the issue would remain. Maybe the fuel being pumped through the starboard pump stirs things up enough?

 

[jcsmith77]

I just don't get how this would only happen when listed and to only one engine. They both start perfectly when sitting flat or if we turn off and turn back on quickly while listed. Water just doesn't make sense to me, but I definitely don't know what the fuel pickups position to each other or where the fuel lines run or anything of that sort.

 

[Scuba_ref]

Have you tried listing to starboard to see if it happens to that engine? If you do and it does then my money is also on the gas being your problem. If it doesn't then I would focus on the gas delivery system for the affected engine.

 

[jcsmith77]

I haven't partially because of the time commitment to do that and I can't stick all the bags under the seats on the starboard side. We don't have anyone with us this weekend, so that experiment may have to happen. Usually before when it happens we have company and we just get it going and play on. My wife surfs goofy but usually the goofy side from our normal ballast is enough for her to surf. Today may be time for a big goofy wave.

 

[swatski]

Have you tried listing to starboard to see if it happens to that engine? If you do and it does then my money is also on the gas being your problem. If it doesn't then I would focus on the gas delivery system for the affected engine.

I haven't partially because of the time commitment to do that and I can't stick all the bags under the seats on the starboard side. We don't have anyone with us this weekend, so that experiment may have to happen. Usually before when it happens we have company and we just get it going and play on. My wife surfs goofy but usually the goofy side from our normal ballast is enough for her to surf. Today may be time for a big goofy wave.

Surfing aside, this could conclusively address the problem.
(I'm just mad I did not think of it!) So obvious. Requires nothing but to move your bags, doesn't matter where they sit as long as you list the boat the other way. If you replicate the issue on the other engine - you have just narrowed it down to whatever floats in the tank (water?).

 

[jcsmith77]

So we filled most of our ballast starboard side and I let it set in the slip for 30 minutes. Fired right up. wife attempted to surf. Oddly she didn't like the way the wave rode with it listed to starboard, go figure. So she road a few times and I even went a few times never really doing more than delaying falling. So we stopped for a while swam and they fired back up fine. So emptied went for lunch and switch to conventional port list. Surfed all dayour and everything was fine until we set and waited for all bags to pump out and boom no start on port engine. Crank for 30 seconds nothing. Crank for 30 more. Nothing. 20 more little life. 5 more times and it starts running rough and then lives. This time I could smell gas though from all the cranking. After that I convinced my almost 4 year old to tube with me for his first time and we road for almost an hour. Boat ran fine. So what the heck is going on????? Mind you we had stopped several times throughout the day for 10-15 minutes when we would switch and had no issues.

 

[buckbuck]

Seems like an injector is sticking open. But that engine does not have a reputation for that. Send the oil out to blackstone to be tested and see what % fuel is in the oil and compare to other engine.

 

[jcsmith77]

Forgive my mechanical ignorance of the engine but I assumed that it had a direct port injection system. Ie. One injector per cylinder. So wouldn't a leaky injector only affect one cylinder and the rest would fire correctly when started? Or is it a throttle body setup?

 

[buckbuck]

You are correct. One injector per cylinder.
I would still suggest an oil analysis. It is a pretty good indicator of what is going on.