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No Start Condition


ALWAYSPDG

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This is a little long, but I am trying to lay down the information, so you, the readers, will have an accurate account of the events that played out!

Cry.gif Ok, here I am again needing the groups HELP Help.gif I originally asked for help about an engine overheating problem and it is now a non issue! Two weeks ago, I tried to start my boat (2001, Indmar Monsoon 5.7 EFI, LSV) in the early morning around 0730 hours and it would not start. All other previous starts (successful) had occurred around 1030 hours (so I thought maybe it was a fuel enrichment problem). It would just crank and crank and crank. I could tell, it sounded like a fuel issue (it sounded like it was very lean, no fuel). I went to the nearest auto parts place and got a can of Starting Fluid - SF. I sprayed some in the throttle body and cranked it over, the engine ran for a couple of seconds and then quit. I did this several times and same results. I thought maybe I was low on fuel, so I loaded up 12 gallons of fuel and came back to the boat about an hour later. I poured the fuel in, and cranked it over and bingo, it started and ran fine.

This weekend, I started the boat (no problem about 1400 hours or 2 PM just FYI) and idled it over to load it on the trailer so that I could install a new thermostat and also a new impeller. I did both. The impeller that I removed looked fine and the existing thermostat did have some corrision on it. But, I threw the old thermostat in a pot of heating water and it did open, but maybe not all the way. I checked the hoses for obstructions and also the intake grate on the bottom of the boat, all were clear!

I drove the boat (on the trailer) back to the launch ramp and tried to start it and it would NOT start. Mad.gif I then sprayed a bunch of SF and tried to start it again. I sprayed some more SF and it finally started. I idled the boat to my slip and all was good. I came back to the boat a few minutes later and tried to start it, and it did with no problems. I then took the boat out and ran it at various speeds across the lake. All seemed good. I had been out for about 25 minutes and then decided to head back in. I was traveling at 25 MPH and all of a sudden, the boat just shut down. It was like someone turned off the fuel or the key! I again tried using some SF and the engine sputtered a little. I tried again and same thing, it would try to start, but not catch. I then called to be towed in.

The next day!

I started it up w/o any SF or issues (about 1300 hours or 1 PM) and I ran it over to the local marina/mechanic for him to look at it. BTW, the boat ran fine running it over to the mechanic (5 minutes at 25 MPH).

He thought maybe it was a fuel pump issue, so he connected a fuel pressure guage and also connected his laptop to the PCM looking for stored codes (and found none) and also viewed live data from the engine.

He ran the boat at the dock for 20 minutes and found all engine live data (voltage, pulse width, rpm, engine temperature, etc...) to be within specifications. The fuel pressure was steady at 40 PSI at idle and 45 PSI at speed. He wiggled the wires around the engine and under the dash but nothing changed (we did not find any bad wiring or connections at this point).

DO YOU GUYS HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS ON WHAT MIGHT BE CAUSING THIS VERY RANDOM ENGINE PROBLEM???????? :unsure:

Two areas of concern that I am thinking might be the problem: 01.) Fuel pump relay and/or 02.) Fuse panel near drivers seat shows signs of corrision on some of the fuses/breakers.

For the few of you that read this entire post, hands off to you and thank you! I hope you can help me find out what the engine problem is, because it is very frustrating Frustrated.gifFrustrated.gifFrustrated.gif

Thanks again, Mike

2001 LSV Indmar Monsoon EFI 5.7

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So next time the engine will not start, remove the fuel pump relay and jump the socket with a paperclip. That will tell you very quickly whether you have a relay problem. If the paper clip worries you, just buy another fuel pump relay and substitute it in - they are cheap, and if the one in your boat is working, then you have a spare to carry in your glove box.

Secondly, if your fuel pump is in the gas tank, and there is any water in your gas, you can have intermittent fuel delivery problems, and the water will make the fuel pump eventually go tango uniform.

Ub

07 Sunscape

BTW, starting fluid was a good tool on carburated engines with mechanical fuel pumps, because it let the engine run long enough to get some gas up to the (empty) float bowl. In an EFI engine SF will only tell you that you have spark, but it will not get your engine to run.

Edited by UberXY
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The fuel pump is mounted on the side of the engine, it is NOT in the fuel tank itself. I am going to replace the fuel pump relay with a new one this coming weekend.

Mike

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I would also look into the EFI (ECM) relay. It is identical and next to the fuel pump relay. The fuel pump relay actually gets it power to run pump via the EFI relay. The EFI relay also signals your ECM that you have your key in on position and also provides the power to your fuel injectors.

Edited by electricjohn
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I had the same problem this summer and all it was a distributor cap and rotor and I decided to throw in some new spark plugs at the same time and everything runs perfectly now. The distributor cap was very corroded and the rotor had some corrosion as well. Hope that helps.

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I was planning on replacing the EFI relay and also the Fuel Pump relay! I will now look at the distributor cap and rotor too! Thanks guys for the suggestions so far. It helps to get other's ideas.

Mike

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  • 2 weeks later...

I FOUND THE PROBLEM!!!

IT WAS THE LANDYARD SWITCH!!! Guns.gifGuns.gifGuns.gifGuns.gif

I have now removed it completely. NO more Landyard switch! It would just shut down the boat randomly.

I just wanted to post this so anyone else in the future that has a problem like mine might find this thread and save himself/herself some aggravation.

Thanks for the help again.

Mike

time to party.............. Clap.gifThumbup.gifBeer.gifBeer.gif

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