Boat is a Dogg

[firefed22]

...but you drained fuel before starting, right?

No it had less than a quarter tank. Not sure if he had put stabilizer in it or not. We have now run 2 tanks in it. Replaced both fuel filters. Also changing the prop cause it has a small vibration at low speed, most thought it was due to some dings in the prop. Trying to solve one thing at a time.

[SMERRILL]

Have you taken it for a run since you replaced the fuel filters?

I had this exact same issue pop it's head on a lake trip away from home. The boat all of a sudden had trouble accelerating out of the hole shot and wouldn't spin faster than about 3k rpm. Out of gear, without a load, it ran just fine. As soon as the boat was in gear it choked at 3k rpm.

I was all worried and was thinking of all the things that could be wrong like a worried parent. First thing I did when I pulled the boat out to examine was pull the fuel filter. I tried blowing through it gently and it was almost completely clogged. Threw a new one in and she was back as good as new.

[85 Barefoot]

No it had less than a quarter tank. Not sure if he had put stabilizer in it or not. We have now run 2 tanks in it. Replaced both fuel filters. Also changing the prop cause it has a small vibration at low speed, most thought it was due to some dings in the prop. Trying to solve one thing at a time.

So have you run it since changing filters?

[Lance B. Johnson]

All plugs are in. Boat is just slow. Spedo is not off. RPMS dont get higher than 3200....Last weekend by buddy had it out and thought it was a bit slow. Then he was with me yesterday and said it was and got worse. We replaced the fuel filters. Wondering if they got clogged up. Checked the throttle cable seems like its tight and moves when you push it.

Sounds like the boat is new to you....did you verify that the throttle is opening all the way at the throttle body?

Edited May 4, 2010 by Ruffdog

[srab]

EDIT: I just re-read your post. Someone here needs to chime in and verify that is the optimal prop for your setup. 4 blade 13.5x17.5. I know different props can affect RPM and hole shot and WOT, and that size may have nothing to do with your issue, but it would be good to know for sure if that is the right prop for your boat.

FWIW, the Acme 381 was the stock prop on my '06 21 LSV Sunscape. While it may not be the ideal

prop for running with heavy ballast, I'm pretty sure the OP's issues have nothing to do

with that prop.

[firefed22]

Have you taken it for a run since you replaced the fuel filters?

I had this exact same issue pop it's head on a lake trip away from home. The boat all of a sudden had trouble accelerating out of the hole shot and wouldn't spin faster than about 3k rpm. Out of gear, without a load, it ran just fine. As soon as the boat was in gear it choked at 3k rpm.

I was all worried and was thinking of all the things that could be wrong like a worried parent. First thing I did when I pulled the boat out to examine was pull the fuel filter. I tried blowing through it gently and it was almost completely clogged. Threw a new one in and she was back as good as new.

Planning on taking it tomorrow to see if it helped along with some injector cleaner. Also put a back up prop on sense the other one has some dings. Take the vibration away. Really hope thats all it needs

[areamike]

Could the whining be associated to the transfer case in the V-drive? Also if the injectors were sticking, would it not run rough? Maybe the pump? Although I am thinking more on those filters cause it got worse in 2 weekend day trips. The guy I bought it from didn't use it for a year and a half.

You can tell what the whining is if you get your head down there and listen.

In my past experience, I had one completely clogged fuel injector. The only thing I saw was loss of top end and rpms.

As another poster said. Check the throttle body at the engine and make sure the throttle cable is opening it up completely. You may have to remove your air filter and plastic covers too see. You can do that with the motor off.

The dead give-away for my boat's power loss at WOT in the end was we ran my boat down the lake with the air filter off. My buddy took a garden sprayer with gas in it and shot it down the intake at WOT. My boat jumped up 600rpm. We then took out all injectors and cleaned them and the problem for me was resolved(#5 injector on my boat was completely clogged with what looked like black sandy grit). Fuel injector cleaner doesn't do squat, by the way. Not if you have any clogged fuel injectors. It's decent for maintenance, but not for fixing issues.

So the boat sat for a year and a half ???? hmmmmm.

[firefed22]

You can tell what the whining is if you get your head down there and listen.

In my past experience, I had one completely clogged fuel injector. The only thing I saw was loss of top end and rpms.

As another poster said. Check the throttle body at the engine and make sure the throttle cable is opening it up completely. You may have to remove your air filter and plastic covers too see. You can do that with the motor off.

The dead give-away for my boat's power loss at WOT in the end was we ran my boat down the lake with the air filter off. My buddy took a garden sprayer with gas in it and shot it down the intake at WOT. My boat jumped up 600rpm. We then took out all injectors and cleaned them and the problem for me was resolved(#5 injector on my boat was completely clogged with what looked like black sandy grit). Fuel injector cleaner doesn't do squat, by the way. Not if you have any clogged fuel injectors. It's decent for maintenance, but not for fixing issues.

So the boat sat for a year and a half ???? hmmmmm.

Well we should see soon. Hoping it was just the filters. Checked the link it opens everything nice. I hope its nothing more. If it is I think I should take it to a shop?! Kinda afraid to pull injectors if I don't know what I am doing. You sound like you know a bit.

Why the Hmmmm about the year?

[firefed22]

You can tell what the whining is if you get your head down there and listen.

In my past experience, I had one completely clogged fuel injector. The only thing I saw was loss of top end and rpms.

As another poster said. Check the throttle body at the engine and make sure the throttle cable is opening it up completely. You may have to remove your air filter and plastic covers too see. You can do that with the motor off.

The dead give-away for my boat's power loss at WOT in the end was we ran my boat down the lake with the air filter off. My buddy took a garden sprayer with gas in it and shot it down the intake at WOT. My boat jumped up 600rpm. We then took out all injectors and cleaned them and the problem for me was resolved(#5 injector on my boat was completely clogged with what looked like black sandy grit). Fuel injector cleaner doesn't do squat, by the way. Not if you have any clogged fuel injectors. It's decent for maintenance, but not for fixing issues.

So the boat sat for a year and a half ???? hmmmmm.

I do like the theory on checking the injectors. Is it hard to do? Still possible when the motor sounds good while running. Plus and this may be stupid....but this boat with the indmar 350 should not be so damn slow right? I mean I get that V-drives are not as quick as ski boats and i did have 6 adults and 3 kids. But I would think this boat can do it.

[FXIGUY]

I do like the theory on checking the injectors. Is it hard to do? Still possible when the motor sounds good while running. Plus and this may be stupid....but this boat with the indmar 350 should not be so damn slow right? I mean I get that V-drives are not as quick as ski boats and i did have 6 adults and 3 kids. But I would think this boat can do it.

My boat has the Indmar 350. It's a beast out of the hole and takes the boat up to about 52 on glass water with three adults.

[firefed22]

My boat has the Indmar 350. It's a beast out of the hole and takes the boat up to about 52 on glass water with three adults.

thought so . Thanks .I hope its just the filters.

[winddawg]

I saw that you said you changed the spark plugs, what did the old ones look like that you removed? Did they all look the same? Did any look fouled with fuel? Inspecting the old plugs is a good start for you before you take the leap into pulling the injectors.

You might also want to buy this book Click This Link from Amazon, while it is general and not specific for everything it has more to look at than the owners manual that Indmar supplies.

Like most of the other posters on this thread have indicated the fuel is probably your problem and the boat sitting up for over a year is a long time, particularly if it wasn't properly winterized for long term storage.

-Dave

[areamike]

Well we should see soon. Hoping it was just the filters. Checked the link it opens everything nice. I hope its nothing more. If it is I think I should take it to a shop?! Kinda afraid to pull injectors if I don't know what I am doing. You sound like you know a bit.

Why the Hmmmm about the year?

Like winddawg said:

Like most of the other posters on this thread have indicated the fuel is probably your problem and the boat sitting up for over a year is a long time, particularly if it wasn't properly winterized for long term storage.

-Dave

Hopefully the filter change did the job.You'll know soon enough. If not, check those screens I mentioned before. I once had a whine in my fuel pump and it was due to the fuel pump screen being overly clogged with grit. Bad gas can do 'wonders' to a fuel system.

FYI: Pulling the fuel injectors is easier than you would think. I was skeptical the first time I did it too. You could at least check them on the OHM meter like I mentioned without removing them, if it comes to that. Wait though and see if changing the fuel filter did the trick. Sure would be great!

[firefed22]

Like winddawg said:

Hopefully the filter change did the job.You'll know soon enough. If not, check those screens I mentioned before. I once had a whine in my fuel pump and it was due to the fuel pump screen being overly clogged with grit. Bad gas can do 'wonders' to a fuel system.

FYI: Pulling the fuel injectors is easier than you would think. I was skeptical the first time I did it too. You could at least check them on the OHM meter like I mentioned without removing them, if it comes to that. Wait though and see if changing the fuel filter did the trick. Sure would be great!

pulled a plug and it looks good. Normal burns. No fuel or deposits.

[areamike]

My boat has the Indmar 350. It's a beast out of the hole and takes the boat up to about 52 on glass water with three adults.

[off topic]

FXi with a 350? Is that the Monsoon? Or Hammerhead? 52MPH with a direct drive? Is that with a GPS?

My boat weighs much less than the FXi and I have a hammerhead 365 rebuilt to about 385+ horsies. It will do 51mph with no load. Without the SSP I can get 53...but don't need it.

[firefed22]

Ok so I finally got the boat out to try it after the fuel filter replacement. Still a DOGG. We took it to a boat shop to drop of and have him see whats up. Never got above 3800rpms. Water was glass and only about 35-40mph with 3 adults.Totally bummed............

[FXIGUY]

[off topic]

FXi with a 350? Is that the Monsoon? Or Hammerhead? 52MPH with a direct drive? Is that with a GPS?

My boat weighs much less than the FXi and I have a hammerhead 365 rebuilt to about 385+ horsies. It will do 51mph with no load. Without the SSP I can get 53...but don't need it.

It is the Monsoon 350. It does 49- 52 on GPS depending on wind and water chop.

[areamike]

It is the Monsoon 350. It does 49- 52 on GPS depending on wind and water chop.

Sounds to me like I need to go footin behind that bad boy then. I'll be in Wisconsin this weekend at Beaver Dam. Looks like we'll be driving right by Okauchee.

Edited May 14, 2010 by areamike

[FXIGUY]

Sounds to me like I need to go footin behind that bad boy then. I'll be in Wisconsin this weekend at Beaver Dam. Looks like we'll be driving right by Okauchee.

Do you get to this area on a routine basis? I wont be around this weekend, but would be happy to sometime over the summer!

[areamike]

Do you get to this area on a routine basis? I wont be around this weekend, but would be happy to sometime over the summer!

We go to a few Barefoot tournaments in Wisconsin through the summer. The next one will be Aug 28 in Madison. There's also one in Sinnissippi in September.

[firefed22]

We go to a few Barefoot tournaments in Wisconsin through the summer. The next one will be Aug 28 in Madison. There's also one in Sinnissippi in September.

It is the Indmar 350. Wish i knew why it was doing this. Hope it doesn't cost to much. I guess we shall see. Someone said a bout they knew was dogging and it was the intake manifold. Sounds like kinda a lot for a bout that is running nice just wont jump up and go and then hit the top end. HMMMMM?????????

[Green_Giant]

Pulling one spark plug won't tell you much, did you note any differences in the collective set you pulled off? There are plenty of visual charts on the internet that can tell you the fuel condition based on the look of the plugs, but you need to look at all of them. The new ones may not tell you much if you just put them in, but worth a shot. Hereis the first one I found.

Also, think it was mentioned earlier but did you tripple check the plug wires match the proper firing order?

Went back and read through but didn't see that you had replaced the cap and rotor. I have to replace mine every year or at least every two, and it makes a big difference. If yours is anywhere near original, it's toast. At the very least, have a look under there, 2 screws.

Finally, for what it's worth, I can't hear my fuel pump at all, the sound of the injectors ticking is pretty much all I hear. If you hear it, my I think the guys above are right, your pump screen is clogged or your pump is on its way out. Running 1/4 tank of fuel that old through your system could easily have clogged up some important things, I'm thinking you should be at least in the neighborhood of 45mph. Good Luck!

Edited May 14, 2010 by Green_Giant

[FXIGUY]

We go to a few Barefoot tournaments in Wisconsin through the summer. The next one will be Aug 28 in Madison. There's also one in Sinnissippi in September.

As that date approaches, get in touch. I have band gigs that whole weekend, but could easily do a pull in the morning on Saturday or Sunday.

Brent

[firefed22]

well we will see I took it to a reputable mechanic. The guy I bought the boat with has known him a while. I hope it is an easy fix. seems odd it would be something bog on a boat with so few hours.

[travlnmannn]

well we will see I took it to a reputable mechanic. The guy I bought the boat with has known him a while. I hope it is an easy fix. seems odd it would be something bog on a boat with so few hours.

Keep us updated. I'm curious as to the results.