My Engine Pooped Out On Me....

[Catch and Grease]

I bought a 1988 Lowe boat with a 25 HP mercury and the other day it ran but it was going slower than it should and it was having trouble idling, then the next day I ran it for 20 minutes out to a spot on the lake then back to the ramp another 20 minutes to retrieve something. Then when I went to go start it again it wouldn't crank at all, wouldn't even try to turn over, when I was pulling up to the ramp I put it in neutral and right before I turned it off it kinda sputtered out on its own, that's the last time it ran.

What could it possibly be? I was thing the carborator is the problem, like its not getting gas or something.... Could the carborator also be the reason its not running as fast as it should? Its an old mercury btw

Me and my grandpa opened it up and cleaned the carborator alittle but it still didn't run, it is very gunked up under the cover on the engine.... I'm ordering a carborator cleaning kit to actually clean the thing.

[F14A-B]

I'm not a outboard motor expert, ( aviation..power plant & airframe ) but.. Does it have a fuel filter? Have you checked your fuel bulb & hose? ( leak or lack of pressure) pulled the plug and inspected it? It sounds like a fuel delivery issue. The fact it won't fire up now is concerning. What about the fuel itself? Fuel tank? Lot of simple steps you can go thru if you haven't already.. Or while your waiting on a rebuild kit.. Carb sounds like it needs a proper cleaning too..

[Catch and Grease]

Yeah there is a leak in the fuel line that is attached to the fuel filter. It needs to be replaced, that's a simple fix. The gas should be fine because its brand new.... Would a little leak cause enough of a pressure loss that it would cause the engine to not even try to start??

[Way2slow]

You've gotta be a little clearer with the details.

Is it electric or pull start?

Won't crank means the motor will not spin over. Is it locked up?

Won't start means the motor spins but will not star.

Before spending money on a carb kit, there are a lot of checks I would do first.

First, you need to determine the cause of the problem. Right now, you haven't determined if it's fuel or ignition, or if it's locked up or not.

[Catch and Grease]

It isn't locked up, its electric and pull start but I've been having to pull start it because the solenoid is bad and needs to be replaced. I was thinking it could also be the spark plugs, could that possibly be the problem?

[F14A-B]

I had a slight fuel line leak on my Yamaha motor, and yea, it really affected the start up.. That's how I came to be aware of it.. I found the problem, (brass nipple) and bingo.. No more problem. Leaking fuel is loss of fuel pressure. I suspect there is another issue as well.. What about that filter? About 3 bucks..

[Catch and Grease]

I honestly don't know much anything about outboards, my grandpa has been helping me a lot. How would I even go about seeing if the filter is bad?

[Crappiebasser]

What Way2slow said plus trying to run an outboard with a leaking fuel line is crazy. Fix that before you even try to diagnose anything else.

[Catch and Grease]

Alright I'll try replacing all the fuel lines before i do anything else, that should be a quick and easy thing to do....

[F14A-B]

It's pretty straight forward, fuel&oil passes thru the filter under pressure, depending on how it's installed in that system, is it glass or plastic (housing)? glass typically have internal elements which can be replaced, plastic are usually throw alway.. at any rate you can disconnect one end and using the primer bulb, try to pump fuel, depending. Compressed air, or just try & blow thru it ( yuck ) fix your leak, check your filter, check your plug/plugs then if needed, move onward to the next series of potential problems. I'm simply trying to give you very basic info to help with this, & it may well fix your problem. At the very least, you will become more familiar with your engine & componet's. Boating=Tinkering

[Catch and Grease]

Yeah any information is awesome.... Its a plastic fuel filter IIRC but there is gasoline coming through, I took the line off that connects to the carb from the filter and pumped the bubble and gas went through....

[Catch and Grease]

Yeah any information is awesome.... Its a plastic fuel filter IIRC but there is gasoline coming through, I took the line off that connects to the carb from the filter and pumped the bubble and gas went through....

[Way2slow]

First, start by fixing any leaks in the fuel system.  I'm not much on Mercs but if your 88 25 is like my 83 25, I think the fuel pump is part of the carburetor.  If that's so, any fuel line leaks would be before the fuel pump.  Any leaks before the fuel pump lets the fuel pump pull air instead of fuel, so it does not pump fuel.

 

After fixing any fuel leaks, just to keep from setting it on fire if nothing else, you need to determine if the problem is fuel or ignition.

 

Pull both spark plugs out, connect the top plug wire to one of the plugs you removed and hold the base of that plug against the block (on some bare metal) pull the rope and see if you are getting a blue spark from the electrode.  Then do the same thing with the bottom plug wire.  If both cylinders are giving a good blue spark, you are probably having a fuel problem.  If you did not get a good blue spark, you have an ignition problem.

[Smokinal]

^^^^That is a good way to diag for spark but be sure you have no residual gas hanging around in the base of the motor cowling. I would really recommend fixing the fuel leak before you go any further with anything; that may be your whole problem.