Hey y'all,

 

I had the problem on the last trip of my season last year and now I've just got the boat in the water for the first time this year and it happened again. After I dump it in the water it starts and runs fine but if I shut it off to say fish an area when I try to start it again it won't fire. 

 

I changed the plugs this past off season, so I'm not really sure what else it could be? It sounds like it wants to fire but just doesn't. 

Could it be the infamous ignition kill switch/system ?

It's baffled many a boater in the past.

A-Jay

 

Is your primer bulb still firm afterwards.

How old is the engine ❓

Have you replaced the fuel line and filter ❓

When it does this have you tried to manually prime via the bulb ❓

The primer bulb is NOT firm.

 

I thought maybe it was the fuel line as well

 

The engine is pretty old I wanna say 15-20years

If the primer bulb isn't staying firm, then you either have a bad check valve or a leak in the line that's letting air in.  Can you prime the bulb and then it turns over?  If so, then there is your culprit.  I'd replace the line from the tank to the motor including bulb and valve.

squeeze the bulb.  

To eliminate a fuel problem connect a portable gas tank to the motor.

So after a few trips out the problem still remains. Every trip the motor fires up just fine on the initial take off, we would get to our first spot fish for an hour then go to move and it either works or it doesn't, and when it doesn't the kinda fires up but then just kinda putters out and dies. Yesterday it actually died as we were driving which was a first. We were just crusing away from the boat ramp at a slow speed and then you could feel it sputter, then a couple more sputters then it cut out. It started back up and was fine till we got to our first spot. Fishes there for a bit then moved to our second spot no problem but then when moving to the third spot it wouldn't start. I trolling motor 'd it across the lake then tried it again and it fired up. We tested that each cylinder was getting a spark ( and the plus are new) so we are really baffled now by this. We tried taking it to the guy who winterizes it for us and he says it might be the power box but he doesn't know for sure either 

Pull each spark plug and them separated; #1, #2 etc. Look ant each plugs color, should be the same light brown for 2 stroke. If the plugs are dark grey to black the fuel mixture is too rich. Light grey to white too lean. Too lean is dangerous are could fry a piston. Too rich is annoying but usually indicate too much fuel to air mixture or low electrical issue from ignition source.

Make sure the fuel source is vented and no air getting into the fuel line. Change the filters, very simple to do. How old is the gasoline? Make sure it is fresh!

Tom

Remove the gas cap and see if it sucks air.

I had a similar issue years ago and found a paper wasp in the vent tube.

 

First, have you done a compression test and what make, and model engine is it?  A cold engine has a lot more compression than a warm engine.  This would probably not be your only problem if it is low since you said it stalled and then started back up but could add to the problem.

Another problem that causes one to not start or be hard to start after running it, letting it sit for a bit is a thing called heat soak.  That's where all the gas evaporates out of the crankcase and requires a lot of priming/choking and cranking to get it started again.  It may even bog and as you are starting off and need a little more priming/choke to get it up and going.  However, this won't cause one to die once it is running down the lake.

The cause I lean toward the most is the fuel pump but before getting into fuel related problems, you need to isolate if it's a fuel or ignition.  There are a number of fuel related problems it could be as well as a number of possible ignitions related problems and you can spend a bunch of time and money chasing your tail on the wrong one until you isolate which one it is.

Troubleshooting an ignition problem on the water is no fun since the plugs are at the back of the motor but it's something you need to do.  You need a spark checker or some method of checking to see if the plugs have a strong blue spark when cranking (taking a plug out, putting the wire on it and grounding it against some metal on the block).  Red or yellow sparks don't work.  If it has a good blue spark on most of the cylinders, it's most likely not ignition.  Even a bad cranking battery can cause the problem even though it's spinning the engine over. 

 Another quick test to see if it's fuel, have a spray bottle of premixed gas, take the air silencer off and spray gas in carburetor and see if it fires.  You can use starting fluid but DO NOT try to keep a two-stroke motor running with starting fluid.  It washes all the oil out and the motor is running with no lubrication, NOT GOOD!  Just a quick shot of it.

If it starts quickly with a dose of fuel in the carbs, then you have a fuel delivery problem.

There are a number of those, so if isolate if its fuel or ignition, post what you find and I can step you through troubleshooting the problem.

 

 

 

 

 

On 7/4/2025 at 4:57 PM, WRB-2.0 said:

Pull each spark plug and them separated; #1, #2 etc. Look ant each plugs color, should be the same light brown for 2 stroke. If the plugs are dark grey to black the fuel mixture is too rich. Light grey to white too lean. Too lean is dangerous are could fry a piston. Too rich is annoying but usually indicate too much fuel to air mixture or low electrical issue from ignition source.

Make sure the fuel source is vented and no air getting into the fuel line. Change the filters, very simple to do. How old is the gasoline? Make sure it is fresh!

Tom

The plugs were just replaced, we pulled them and they are all the same no real discoloration. Slightly oily tho. Fuel is vented from the can, what filters are you referring to? The gas is fresh 

1 hour ago, Way2slow said:

First, have you done a compression test and what make, and model engine is it?  A cold engine has a lot more compression than a warm engine.  This would probably not be your only problem if it is low since you said it stalled and then started back up but could add to the problem.

Another problem that causes one to not start or be hard to start after running it, letting it sit for a bit is a thing called heat soak.  That's where all the gas evaporates out of the crankcase and requires a lot of priming/choking and cranking to get it started again.  It may even bog and as you are starting off and need a little more priming/choke to get it up and going.  However, this won't cause one to die once it is running down the lake.

The cause I lean toward the most is the fuel pump but before getting into fuel related problems, you need to isolate if it's a fuel or ignition.  There are a number of fuel related problems it could be as well as a number of possible ignitions related problems and you can spend a bunch of time and money chasing your tail on the wrong one until you isolate which one it is.

Troubleshooting an ignition problem on the water is no fun since the plugs are at the back of the motor but it's something you need to do.  You need a spark checker or some method of checking to see if the plugs have a strong blue spark when cranking (taking a plug out, putting the wire on it and grounding it against some metal on the block).  Red or yellow sparks don't work.  If it has a good blue spark on most of the cylinders, it's most likely not ignition.  Even a bad cranking battery can cause the problem even though it's spinning the engine over. 

 Another quick test to see if it's fuel, have a spray bottle of premixed gas, take the air silencer off and spray gas in carburetor and see if it fires.  You can use starting fluid but DO NOT try to keep a two-stroke motor running with starting fluid.  It washes all the oil out and the motor is running with no lubrication, NOT GOOD!  Just a quick shot of it.

If it starts quickly with a dose of fuel in the carbs, then you have a fuel delivery problem.

There are a number of those, so if isolate if its fuel or ignition, post what you find and I can step you through troubleshooting the problem.

 

 

 

 

 

Wow, thanks for the post but it all seems a bit overwhelming. We did test the spark on the water a couple days ago, just as you said we took the lid off and tested a spark plug on a bolt head and each one of the 3 sparked a white/blue colour. The motor is a 96 Evinrude, not really sure the model. 

Another waste of time, why I rarely answer post anymore

 

@IneedAnewScreenName-98161861 - it is worth the effort to provide @Way2slow with your exact Model Number and Serial Number from your motor (those numbers should be on your motor, on the outside of the motor, near the jack plate/tilt trim area) - that info. will help him help you - last year I had some significant motor issues and he helped me solve each of them and the motor (a 1993 Evinrude V4 90hp) is running strong this year - before starting the work on the motor last year I had NO experience with boat motors (and low level mechanical aptitude) - he not only helped me correct/repair the issues, he helped me significantly increase my knowledge and build my confidence/skills in taking on future repairs/maintenance of the motor - I wish you all the best with finding and solving the engine issues