Does it seem like engine problems is all we’ve blogged about lately? It sure feels that way. Sooner or later we’re gonna solve this ongoing performance issue. Jennifer says that we “jinxed” ourselves when we posted about being “Boat Ready“. She may be right.
Engine Problems and Poor Performance:
Along with the list of things to make our boat ready for the season, we have also recently replaced much of our ignition system and removed and rebuilt the carburator. While these things were certainly needed, the improvement to the boat’s performance was very short-lived.
Another Thursday Evening Cruise :
Soooo…. Thursday afternoon and it looks like the planets are lining up for another evening boat ride on Lake Conway. Our cooler is full and we’ve even picked up some Chinese carryout for a sunset dinner. We’re all set so we head to the boat ramp.
As soon as we launch the boat the engine begins to run rough at idle. When I got on the gas, the engine began to stumble and run extremely rough.
We have already used the boat since the ignition overhaul and carb rebuild and everything seemed to run smoothly. So now I’m really confused and growing more and more frustrated with our engine problems. Maybe it’s time to call in the Pro.
Steve To the Rescue
It’s still early in the afternoon, so instead of putting it back on the trailer, I pick up the phone and call the expert.
Jennifer and I are fortunate enough to have many great friends. A couple of our best friends are Steve and Trish. I have known Steve for some time and we were there when Steve and Trish were married years ago. They are great to be around and over the years Steve has been like a brother to me, always willing to help.
Did I mention that Steve and Trish own a boat repair shop? Yep, I’m about to be executed and my best friend is the Governor!!
I make the call to Steve and coincidently enough, he has a boat to pickup on the lake and take to his shop this afternoon. Our timing couldn’t have been better. This will be a great opportunity to get Steve on our boat while it is failing.
In Need of a Tow
Apparently the ski boat that Steve was picking up didn’t have any steering, so we offered to help by pulling him to a boat ramp where he had a trailer waiting.
The wind was blowing pretty good that afternoon and our attempt to put Steve and the ski boat straight into the ramp didn’t work out as well as it could have. Ultimately, Steve and his crew did a great job getting it on the trailer and soon it would be our chance to get some of Steve’s valuable time.
Coil, Carb, or Both?
Steve climbs aboard and begins by telling me that he suspects the ignition coil may be failing and has brought a new coil with him. As we start to swap the coil, Steve notices a couple of connections at the coil that have worn with only a few strands of wire remaining. The connections are repaired and the new coil is installed.
After Steve verifies that all spark plug wires are good and inspects our distributor cap and rotor, he makes a slight timing adjustment and determines that these areas are all functioning properly.
Steve tells us to get the boat up on plane and find out how it runs. The engine stumbles almost immediately and as I accelerate it begins to smooth out. By the time I get it up around 4000 RPM, our boat is running just like it used to!
But Wait…
As Jennifer and I begin to high-five each other, I look over and notice that Steve does not share our enthusiasm. He tells me to pull back on the gas and bring it to idle. Just as I pull back on the throttle, the engine begins to stumble again.
Even though I just had the carb off and did a rebuild, Steve tells us that he wants to replace the carb with something different. Our original carb is a Rochester QuadraJet and is actually the original carb from 1985. It’s Steve’s opinion that we should replace it with an Edelbrock carb.
While I like to keep some things on our boat the way they were originally designed, I also trust Steve with everything boating related. If he says we need a different carb, I’m going with a different carb.
As I write this post, Steve already has our new parts coming and we are hopeful that we will be back on the water this Thursday to try out the new carb. We’ll keep you updated on our progress with the engine problems.
Thanks for visiting our blog and please leave us a comment or suggestion if you have a topic you would like us to post about. Don’t forget to subscribe below for notifications of new posts.
“See you on the water!”
You must be logged in to post a comment.