2002 Utopia 205 Wont crank

[Brichjeep07]

Hi all. 7th season with our Utopia, first issue with the engine. its the merc 240efi. Went to start it after swimming out on the lake yesterday and it wouldn't crank. The starter sprocket pops up and tries to spin the flywheel, but as it tries to spin it just makes clicking noises. Battery shows 12.4 volts, kill switch is fully depressed. Could it just be a bad starter motor? thanks in advance!

 

[Spider4real]

Still could be the battery. I would have the battery load tested at an auto parts store. It's not volts that crank the engine, it's the amps. So you could show 12 plus volts and still have a bad battery.

 

[Brichjeep07]

Still could be the battery. I would have the battery load tested at an auto parts store. It's not volts that crank the engine, it's the amps. So you could show 12 plus volts and still have a bad battery.

thanks for the reply. I'm glad you mentioned this, I hadn't thought of that. I'm used to just replacing a battery when its unable to keep a charge at 12 v or better. what you've mentioned does appear to have been the issue. I replaced the battery, the starter is able to crank the flywheel now. I'll test it out in the water Saturday to be sure, but appears to be healed. Thanks!