1996 Challenger died suddenly...Now no spark on either plug

[Andy Hunter]

Hey guys!

New to the forum and new to the jetboat world. Just got a 1996 Challenger for my wife for our 5th anniversary. (traditional is wood, but I thought that a boat floats so it's sorta like wood ) She loves it and has been having a great time!

Boat is really clean and was running great for most of the weekend until Sunday afternoon. I wasn't there, but my wife said that the boat was running fine until she noticed that the bilge pump was still on (she had turned it on earlier after some wave jumping) when she turned off the bilge, the boat died and wouldn't restart so she assumed it was related. A neighbor towed her to his dock and they pulled the plugs and checked with a spark tester and there is no spark on either plug. Engine cranks, but no joy. I checked the fuses and they were fine. The DESS is working as it should, I believe; 2 beeps when I put the cap on. 4 beeps in gear, single short beep for neutral and as I said; it will crank when in neutral. I think the bilge pump may be just a red herring, as she wasn't sure if it died at that exact moment or a split second later...I thought I would ask if there is some connection between the acc and the ignition? I do suspect that the DESS could be part of the problem as the cap popped off while cruising a couple of times over the course of the weekend..made for a pretty quick stop! But if the DESS wasn't working properly the engine wouldn't crank would it?

Any thoughts would be much appreciated.

Also; Where is the best place in the Toronto, Ont Canada area to get parts?

 

[Dr Honda]

Check the grounds going into the black box, with the ignition parts. But, the 800 engine does have a known issue where the pick-up coil will break from it's mount. (Then the spark goes away)

I would check the grounds first... but then pull the MAG cover, and see what the pick-up looks like.

 

[Andy Hunter]

Thanks for the response. I will check all of the grounds first, but after all the talk about the pickup bracket I'm guessing that will be the cause. What is involved in replacing the pickup, if that is the cause?

 

[Andy Hunter]

Thanks doc! I finally got back to the cottage to look at the boat andI found the culprit. The ground wire for the MPEM broke at the lug on the engine. Question: where does the ground attach to the motor? I can't see under the airbox and the wire was completely off. Or Ned to the point where is the best accessible place to reattach?

 

[Andy Hunter]

Reattached the ground and have a solid ground at the MPEM but still no spark. What should I check next? Anything that would typically blow if that ground went?

 

[Andy Hunter]

Also I should note: I have the shop manual but the wiring color codes are different on the boat from what the manual says. The first thing the manual suggests is temporarily removing the black red green wire (rev limiter) and seeing if I get spark. I have no black/red/green wire from the mag harness. Mine are 3 x yellow/green, 1 x yellow/white and 2 x black. Thoughts?

 

[Andy Hunter]

Anyone have any thoughts? I can't do the static tests until I know which wires are which. I'm thinking maybe the cdi went when the ground broke?

 

[Dr Honda]

Sorry I missed this one.


On your stator....

the yellow/green is the power. (AC voltage) The Yellow/White is your pickup coil. The 2 blacks are grounds.

I would verify that the blacks have a good ground to the engine case.

Then, put the meter on AC volts, and check the pickup coil, by cranking the engine. You should see a pulse. AND, then check the resistance. With that said... I would still take the MAG cover off. Sometimes the pickup gets coated in metal filings (from the starter) and that messes up the signal.

 

[Andy Hunter]

Thanks for your help with this. I will pull the Mag cover and take a look. One question: The manual states that it isn't necessary to remove the engine to remove the Mag cover, but I can't see how else you could get at the bottom bolts. Is there a trick to it that I haven't thought of? if not, what is the procedure for getting the engine out of the way enough to get at the cover? Sorry about all the newb questions. I have spent a lot of time working on outboards and I/Os, but none on jets, so I don't want to mess anything up out of ignorance.

 

[Andy Hunter]

Sorry about the long delay...can't get away from work long enough to work on the boat. I got a new trigger hoping it is the problem. I will switch it out this weekend. I have one question tho: everything I read says that you can lift the front of the motor to get at the bottom 2 bolts on the mag cover. Do I have to pull the pump, or otherwise disconnect the pto in order to lift the front of the motor? Sorry if that's a stupid question, but I don't have any experience with these boats.

 

[Dr Honda]

You should be able to get to the 2 bottom bolts without lifting the engine. The issue with the boats is... you have to stand on your head. (literally)

It's an 8mm socket.


Good luck.

 

[Andy Hunter]

Boat is fixed and back in the water!

When I got the cover off the trigger was in several pieces. (as you suspected Dr Honda!) I did end up lifting the motor to get at that mag cover tho. I couldn't get a wrench on the bolt that is behind the motor mount and there didn't seem to be enough room to back that bolt out without hitting the fiberglass support. It isn't that big of a job to remove the engine anyway. (in for a penny, right? ) I also found a small oil leak and couldn't see well enough with the motor in place to figure out the source. It turned out to be at the fitting under the carbs. The hose clamp had pinched a small slit in the hose. I also pulled the pump to take a better look at it. The impeller had a couple of dings on the leading edge, but nothing too bad, so I just filed them down a bit. It did seem to help with the hole shot a bit and the boat is hitting just under 50mph on gps. Next summer I'll service the pump and replace the impeller.

Thanks again for your help. This forum saved me a lot of time and now I have a much better understanding of how the boat goes together. (and comes apart!)