Stalling while out on water

Note: This site contains eBay affiliate links for which SeaDooForum.com may be compensated
Status
Not open for further replies.

Wress89

Well-Known Member
Hello,

My problem only occurs out on the water. The first time it happened i was going 3 mph in a no wake zone and the boat stalled. Engine complete shut up. The next time i took it out i ran it for about 15-20 min before it cut off at about 35 mph. I restarted it and it kept running. Happened a few more times before it finally gave up. When i opened the engine compartment the second time i noticed about 3-4 inches of water in it. I could not get it to that back up. It would crank and sound like it’s about to start and then let out this kinda faint winding sound which would make it so the start button would not work. Once the sound went away after 4-5 seconds i could continue to try and start it but it wouldn’t start. After draining the boat no more water was coming in so i don’t know where it come from. The boat works perfect connected to the house in the drive way and always starts when i put it in the water but after a a few minuets it starts acting up.

After spending days reading every thread i could about this i still couldn’t find an answer and i can’t replicated it on land. Just prior to the problem i had the boat out for over an hour for 49 mph according to my gps running fine. Only thing in that time i changed was the speakers. Upon starting i notice a bit of white smoke in the drive way but besides that it runs pretty normal.

Thanks for reading!
 
I don't know about the Challenger hull , but I have to drive my Islandia with the bilge blower fan on the whole time the engine is running. Apparently it doesn't get enough fresh air in the engine compartment, and my motor would mysteriously stall out at different speeds and rpms. It would also not restart until raising the engine compartment and waiting awhile. It Left me stranded on the water several times before figuring this out. Maybe it will work for you.
 
I don't know about the Challenger hull , but I have to drive my Islandia with the bilge blower fan on the whole time the engine is running. Apparently it doesn't get enough fresh air in the engine compartment, and my motor would mysteriously stall out at different speeds and rpms. It would also not restart until raising the engine compartment and waiting awhile. It Left me stranded on the water several times before figuring this out. Maybe it will work for you.

Thanks, i haven’t tried that. I have tried leaving it open for a while but it took like 45 min to get it to restart and then after it did and i closed the hatch and tried to get up to speed it stalled again lol.

I bought it a few months ago and took it out for an hour and it worked perfect and that was the last time it worked with no problems. Some of the times it sounds like it wants to start but the computer forces it to cut off.
 
I had an old SPX jetski that had similar problems. It had an exhaust leak starving the carbs from clean fresh air.
 
After it stalled out on the water I took the seat off and a lot of smoke came out. Also the engine sounded a little louder than usual than before I worked on it. I had a loose clamp where the muffler attaches to the exhaust manifold. So check all the muffler clamps and hoses for cracks/holes.
 
You did not say what engine you have- I think there were 3 different engines used.

If you are getting 49 mph, it sounds like the engine is mechanically OK.

If you have the 240 EFI, here is something for you to check.
On the injector pump (Merc calls it the vapor separator tank vst), port side of engine, on the front side, are 2 wires that power the pump. On my engine, one of the wires broke and was held by the insulation. Ran fine on trailer, on hose. Extremely unreliable on the water. Once I found the problem, it took 15 minutes to fix. Be careful- polarity matters on those wires.

As for exhaust leak- check the condition of your large hoses from the expansion chamber to the mufflers. Also, can you look around the base of the engine while someone else drives the boat? Looking for smoke.

Have you checked the water separating fuel filter for water? If you have water in it, you have it in the tank, too. Hve you checked your other fuel filters?
 
All the advice above is great, and should be checked. But, a couple things come to mind.

1) If it's an exhust related issue... generally when it's stalling... it will be a stumble as is slows.

2) If it's a fuel issue on the low pressure side... it will also stumble.

3) If it's fuel on the high pressure side, CAN shut off abrupltly, but it's still normally a stumble.

4) if it's shutting off like a switch.... then it's electrical.

FYI... I had this issue last summer. It would randomly shut off, but re-start without issue. I found that the safety lanyard switch went bad. BUT... the key switch don't live forever on these boats.

And finally... the water in the bottom is kind of normal. That's why we have bilge pumps. BUT, on the sport jet engines, there is a gray hose you will see tied up on the back of the engine. This is a bilge drain, but they are normally plugged up with junk. Follow that down to the bottom of the bilge, and you will see a strainer on the end of that hose. Make sure it's clean, and it will drain the water out while the engine is running.
 
All the advice above is great, and should be checked. But, a couple things come to mind.

1) If it's an exhust related issue... generally when it's stalling... it will be a stumble as is slows.

2) If it's a fuel issue on the low pressure side... it will also stumble.

3) If it's fuel on the high pressure side, CAN shut off abrupltly, but it's still normally a stumble.

4) if it's shutting off like a switch.... then it's electrical.

FYI... I had this issue last summer. It would randomly shut off, but re-start without issue. I found that the safety lanyard switch went bad. BUT... the key switch don't live forever on these boats.

And finally... the water in the bottom is kind of normal. That's why we have bilge pumps. BUT, on the sport jet engines, there is a gray hose you will see tied up on the back of the engine. This is a bilge drain, but they are normally plugged up with junk. Follow that down to the bottom of the bilge, and you will see a strainer on the end of that hose. Make sure it's clean, and it will drain the water out while the engine is running.


Thanks for your reply! I found that hose and i actually moved it out of the bottom of the bilge because i thought it was some sort of intake lol

I actually started the boat on water in the driveway and it ran for 8 min 30 seconds and stalled the same way and then wouldent restart just like in the water. I read a lot about the safety switch and i would think it’s that but it often doesn’t restart unless i wait 30-45 min. Sometimes it will briefly restart for about 5-10 seconds and die again. It always sounds like it wants to start but just doesn’t get there. I’m thinking electrical or fuel related because when it it running I’m hitting 50 and getting on plane in 2 seconds. I just get scared going fast because it will shut off unexpectedly and then I’ll be drifting at high speeds lol.

In the driveway i notice a bluish smoke consistently coming out of it but not in massive amounts.
 
The smoke is because it's a 2-stroke. Without a load... the smoke is VERY normal.

Be careful running it on a garden hose. Most don't have enough pressure, and the engine could overheat. I would check on the fuel pressure also. Put a gauge on the high pressure side, and see if you are getting 36 psi when it's not starting.
 
Thanks, I’ll try that out today. I’m also thinking of draining all the gas to see if the gas stilling for the last 14 months is the issue even though i put in another 30 gallons worth of fuel. The old gas had stabilizer in it
 
Hey,

So an update is i replaced the ignition because looked like someone DIY fixed it with electrical tape, replaced the gas cap because the gas had some water in it and took all the gas out and replaced it. It’s getting good fuel pressure but still running 10 min then shutting out no matter which speed I’m going 50 mph or idoling. It engine turns off, no sputtering just dies. The gauges all work right when it shuts off. I wait about 20 min and start it again and it does the same thing. Can’t make it past that 10 min mark in the drive way. Water from the hose going through is coming out really good. No water in the engine compartment and open to the air and blower kept on. Spark good on all plugs. Boat run amazing in the water as well until this problem happens. It idols at 1000 rpms still. Anyone have an idea of my next move? Maybe a sensor?
 
Running on the hose isn't good. Most of the time, it doesn't keep the engine cool, and it may be shutting off because it's over heated.


BUT... when it shuts off... what have you checked? Did you look for spark? Did you check the fuel pressure?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top