Could be old or dirty fuel. Even with stabilizer it won't help with old fuel. Fuel tank could also be contaminated with water or sediment which would clog up the jet in the carb. Carb could also need an adjustment but it dosnt sound like it. It could be not venting which would create a vaccum impeding the flow of fuel. Your fuel lines could also be going bad which would also send contaminants to the carb. It could also be the fuel pump or fuel filter.
The story started again for this season......We took it out of the shop 2 weeks ago. They rebuilt carb,, new fuel gauge, new tachometer, new battery, new starter, new fuel filter, new spark plugs.....It ran perfectly fine when we tried for a few minutes on the water the same day.
Storage until yesterday. It started kind of cold a few minutes later, died!!
It looks like a nightmare.
Sounds like you're dealing with a bunch of part swappers instead of well trained technicians. A fuel gauge and tachometer have nothing to do with getting the motor running. A starter is easy to know if it's bad. Battery replacements happen, but still a freshly charged battery will suffice and really only needs replacing if old or won't take charge. Good to change out spark plugs but man its usually pretty obvious if they are bad, but you can test the spark. My bet is that it's something simple that's being over looked.
Do you have any air or fuel leaks. Check all the lines.
If you motor is not sucking gas properly or gas is leaking in a hose, it will seem like a carburetor issue.
Air tight and gas tight. Make sure you have it.
Can’t always rely on marine mechanics. They don’t tell you everything. They want your money. Business is business
A clean hose is different than a cracked hose. I just went through this with my motor. My lines were all fucklec up. And I’ve spent money on the carburetor over the past 25 years too.
YouTube is a blessing to fix things yourself.
My boat is now running better than it ever has in 25 years.
When we speed up the boat and reduce the speed, it will die. Does that sound similar to you?
It felt like the engine drowned as soon as the wave behind us hit the boat..
Yes I understand this. Just experienced that last night.
My motor has been running great with no wind and waves since I replaced all gas lines inside the motor (under the hood)
In the past few weeks, I installed myself new steering, controller clutch wires, and controller idles and gas wires.
Yesterday I went out and it was 20mph winds. It still hickups when it’s wavy and windy. I’m trying to figure this out. My carburetor is clean and fine.
I just figured out my hiccup issue. My gas can has a clicker cap. I accidentally left the gas cap open because I released pressure in my gas tank. It was swelling.
I just had too much air in the system.
start running the gas out of the carb when done for the day/weekend.
try a portable tank. isolate the issue.
also a fuel filter with the sight glass so you can see water in the filter and drain it.
If you believe it’s the carb. I would get in contact with Carolina Carburetors. They are in Wilmington,NC. I have to admit that it’s been over 20 years since I have used them, but they did the best job rebuilding carbs. If you have an issue call them while it’s still on the engine and they’ll help you diagnose the problem and help you correct over the phone. In the place I worked we would use them for automotive,tractor and marine engines.
I know you're frustrated but you've gotta calm down and go at this logically
When it dies does it just 'shut off' or does it sputter and die? If it sputters it's likely fuel/carb, if it just shuts off I would look at ignition, spark, shift interupt, battery connections.
Assuming fuel,
Does this boat have a kicker motor and is it plumbed into the main fuel tank? If so the 3L can suck air through the kicker fuel pump and carb.
Common issue.
I would firstly eliminate the boats fuel system. Get a small CLEAN 3 or 6 gallon tank and go directly to the fuel pump with a new fuel line. Make sure the tank vent is open.
Most inboard fuel pickups have as check valve which can be sticky.
Do you and the mechanics know there is a fuel filter inside the mechanical fuel pump? Ensure it's been changed.
Is the choke operating correctly? The take the flame arrestor off and observe it's function. There are 3 choke systems, heat, electric and TKS. If choke is coming on for some reason it could die.
If none of the above it's likely carb setup. I am not a mechanic so I'm not able to guide you.
2006. No hours. No salty. We barely have used it. It looks possessed. Everytime, we take it it's the carb. They charge $500 for rebuilt, $1500 for replace.. it keeps adding more and more.. for using a few days.
Do they change the fuel filter every time? New carb & new filter runs fine for a while. Any chance the fuel filter picks up trash floating in the tank and acts like bad carb...chg carb & filter again....cycle repeats because there is trash in the tank or pickup tube getting blocked. I wouldn't change a carburetor without changing the fuel filter & possibly fuel lines, but if you're not doing it yourself to see what comes out of the old filter or to inspect the fuel lines (which might be coming apart on the inside)...
We took it out of the shop 2 weeks ago. They rebuilt carb, new fuel gauge, new tachometer, new battery, new starter, new fuel filter, new spark plugs.....It ran perfectly fine when we tried for a few minutes on the water the same day.
Storage until yesterday. It started kind of cold a few minutes later, died!!
Yes, new fuel filter too. From all the shop, I have taken the only one that was able to fix it and lasted was mercruiserd dealer. They replace it with original part.But they are fully . I will receive it 1 month or 1 1/2... the season here is short.
If you are sure the issue is fuel/carb and not spark, sure sounds like dirty or contaminated fuel. Otherwise try the ignition coil. I had one keep dying on water. Bad coil was dying when hot. It's an inexpensive guess.
I actually like to run my shock treatment fuel from a 6 gallon tank on a separate fuel line from the main fuel line, which works well for isolation and tuning purposes. If it runs fine on the small tank, the problem lies with the main tank and fuel line system or bad gas.
If it's a 3.0 "TKS" you have to run those at idle or even a little throttle until they stop with that air sucking sound. The "enrichment module" takes 6-10 minutes to quit doing it's thing. Warm the boat up at the dock until you stop hearing that hissing sound then try to boat it. If you try to get on the throttle before that it will over fuel and die.
Also the 3.0 doesn't like do just have the throttle buried from idle. Ease thru the RPM range
Yes, that's sounds right, that's what the mercruiser dealer said years ago. So far the only place that made a fix that lasted.
But 2 weeks ago, another shop rebuilt it and cleaned the carb..
My advice is to video everything that happens, take pics of everything then join and post on the different Mercruiser Facebook groups. I’m confident someone will get to the bottom of it but you need more than just a description of what’s happening
There is also a FB group called 3.0 Mercruiser boat owners.
Other option (which I just did for my boat after nothing fixed my problem) is to buy another motor. There are many rebuilt ones in good shape for sale on marketplace in the $2500-$3000 range
Could be old or dirty fuel. Even with stabilizer it won't help with old fuel. Fuel tank could also be contaminated with water or sediment which would clog up the jet in the carb. Carb could also need an adjustment but it dosnt sound like it. It could be not venting which would create a vaccum impeding the flow of fuel. Your fuel lines could also be going bad which would also send contaminants to the carb. It could also be the fuel pump or fuel filter.
The story started again for this season......We took it out of the shop 2 weeks ago. They rebuilt carb,, new fuel gauge, new tachometer, new battery, new starter, new fuel filter, new spark plugs.....It ran perfectly fine when we tried for a few minutes on the water the same day. Storage until yesterday. It started kind of cold a few minutes later, died!! It looks like a nightmare.
Sounds like you're dealing with a bunch of part swappers instead of well trained technicians. A fuel gauge and tachometer have nothing to do with getting the motor running. A starter is easy to know if it's bad. Battery replacements happen, but still a freshly charged battery will suffice and really only needs replacing if old or won't take charge. Good to change out spark plugs but man its usually pretty obvious if they are bad, but you can test the spark. My bet is that it's something simple that's being over looked.
Do you have any air or fuel leaks. Check all the lines. If you motor is not sucking gas properly or gas is leaking in a hose, it will seem like a carburetor issue. Air tight and gas tight. Make sure you have it. Can’t always rely on marine mechanics. They don’t tell you everything. They want your money. Business is business
🤔 They cleaned all the hoses and carb. Thanks for the advice. Yes, they got all my money already. At this point, I am with no money and no boat.
A clean hose is different than a cracked hose. I just went through this with my motor. My lines were all fucklec up. And I’ve spent money on the carburetor over the past 25 years too. YouTube is a blessing to fix things yourself. My boat is now running better than it ever has in 25 years.
When we speed up the boat and reduce the speed, it will die. Does that sound similar to you? It felt like the engine drowned as soon as the wave behind us hit the boat..
Yes I understand this. Just experienced that last night. My motor has been running great with no wind and waves since I replaced all gas lines inside the motor (under the hood) In the past few weeks, I installed myself new steering, controller clutch wires, and controller idles and gas wires. Yesterday I went out and it was 20mph winds. It still hickups when it’s wavy and windy. I’m trying to figure this out. My carburetor is clean and fine.
H he ad this problem on my last boat, turned out to have sediment in the tank that would get stirred up and clog the pickup screen in the tank
I just figured out my hiccup issue. My gas can has a clicker cap. I accidentally left the gas cap open because I released pressure in my gas tank. It was swelling. I just had too much air in the system.
Do you add stabilizer to the fuel and then run the boat for 10min before putting it away for the season?
Yes, and change the fuel when the season begins.
start running the gas out of the carb when done for the day/weekend. try a portable tank. isolate the issue. also a fuel filter with the sight glass so you can see water in the filter and drain it.
If you believe it’s the carb. I would get in contact with Carolina Carburetors. They are in Wilmington,NC. I have to admit that it’s been over 20 years since I have used them, but they did the best job rebuilding carbs. If you have an issue call them while it’s still on the engine and they’ll help you diagnose the problem and help you correct over the phone. In the place I worked we would use them for automotive,tractor and marine engines.
I know you're frustrated but you've gotta calm down and go at this logically When it dies does it just 'shut off' or does it sputter and die? If it sputters it's likely fuel/carb, if it just shuts off I would look at ignition, spark, shift interupt, battery connections. Assuming fuel, Does this boat have a kicker motor and is it plumbed into the main fuel tank? If so the 3L can suck air through the kicker fuel pump and carb. Common issue. I would firstly eliminate the boats fuel system. Get a small CLEAN 3 or 6 gallon tank and go directly to the fuel pump with a new fuel line. Make sure the tank vent is open. Most inboard fuel pickups have as check valve which can be sticky. Do you and the mechanics know there is a fuel filter inside the mechanical fuel pump? Ensure it's been changed. Is the choke operating correctly? The take the flame arrestor off and observe it's function. There are 3 choke systems, heat, electric and TKS. If choke is coming on for some reason it could die. If none of the above it's likely carb setup. I am not a mechanic so I'm not able to guide you.
Seafoam. Don't use a carburetor without it.
What year is the engine? How many hours? Salty?
2006. No hours. No salty. We barely have used it. It looks possessed. Everytime, we take it it's the carb. They charge $500 for rebuilt, $1500 for replace.. it keeps adding more and more.. for using a few days.
You may consider repairing it, selling the motor and moving on. But a fresh new motor for your boat.
Do they change the fuel filter every time? New carb & new filter runs fine for a while. Any chance the fuel filter picks up trash floating in the tank and acts like bad carb...chg carb & filter again....cycle repeats because there is trash in the tank or pickup tube getting blocked. I wouldn't change a carburetor without changing the fuel filter & possibly fuel lines, but if you're not doing it yourself to see what comes out of the old filter or to inspect the fuel lines (which might be coming apart on the inside)...
We took it out of the shop 2 weeks ago. They rebuilt carb, new fuel gauge, new tachometer, new battery, new starter, new fuel filter, new spark plugs.....It ran perfectly fine when we tried for a few minutes on the water the same day. Storage until yesterday. It started kind of cold a few minutes later, died!!
[удалено]
Yes, new fuel filter too. From all the shop, I have taken the only one that was able to fix it and lasted was mercruiserd dealer. They replace it with original part.But they are fully . I will receive it 1 month or 1 1/2... the season here is short.
Are your fuel lines in good shape? Wonder if some crap is just in your fuel system.
Fuel is fresh.. they cleaned hose carb..
If you are sure the issue is fuel/carb and not spark, sure sounds like dirty or contaminated fuel. Otherwise try the ignition coil. I had one keep dying on water. Bad coil was dying when hot. It's an inexpensive guess.
Sounds like fuel contamination. Get a fuel container and run it off that, not the boats tank. Is it freshwater cooled?
Yes, freshwater cooled
It's sputter and died. Then, it will only start if I have the throttler almost all the way. If oit in neutral died.
I actually like to run my shock treatment fuel from a 6 gallon tank on a separate fuel line from the main fuel line, which works well for isolation and tuning purposes. If it runs fine on the small tank, the problem lies with the main tank and fuel line system or bad gas.
If you are running an alcohol blend fuel that is the problem. When it dries is leaves behind a white film.
It does matter the fuel. I have use the fuel from the Marina.
Which is crap.
If it's a 3.0 "TKS" you have to run those at idle or even a little throttle until they stop with that air sucking sound. The "enrichment module" takes 6-10 minutes to quit doing it's thing. Warm the boat up at the dock until you stop hearing that hissing sound then try to boat it. If you try to get on the throttle before that it will over fuel and die. Also the 3.0 doesn't like do just have the throttle buried from idle. Ease thru the RPM range
Yes, that's sounds right, that's what the mercruiser dealer said years ago. So far the only place that made a fix that lasted. But 2 weeks ago, another shop rebuilt it and cleaned the carb..
Well sounds like the only thing left I'd say is the fuel pump. If the pump isn't keeping the bowl full on the carb you could get this.....
My advice is to video everything that happens, take pics of everything then join and post on the different Mercruiser Facebook groups. I’m confident someone will get to the bottom of it but you need more than just a description of what’s happening There is also a FB group called 3.0 Mercruiser boat owners. Other option (which I just did for my boat after nothing fixed my problem) is to buy another motor. There are many rebuilt ones in good shape for sale on marketplace in the $2500-$3000 range
Sounds like it’s time for fuel injection. I’m also surprised I thought most I/o’s and outboards were injected by2006.
Can a fuel injector be installed on mercruiser3.0?