The Mariah Owners Club
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The Mariah Owners Club (http://www.mariahownersclub.com/forum/)
-   Original Mariah Talk (http://www.mariahownersclub.com/forum/original-mariah-talk/)
-   -   boat speedometer (http://www.mariahownersclub.com/forum/original-mariah-talk/2936-boat-speedometer.html)

duketter 07-09-2009 04:37 PM
boat speedometer
 
1996 Mariah Jubilee - It seems like the speedometer in the boat is about 10-15mph off. It also doesn't seem to register until it says 20mph and then it seems off by about 10-15mph slow. So when it says 20mph you are actually going about 30-35mph. Ran a couple jet ski's beside the boat with digital speedometers on them to get these readings.

Are these adjustable or need to be cleaned somehow?

Z 202 07-09-2009 05:05 PM
Re: boat speedometer
 
Most likely just needs a cleaning. There is a very small pickup hole for the speedo on the leading edge of the outdrive. It often gets clogged with debris, providing inaccurate readings. Twist a suitable sized drill bit by hand to clean out the hole, or use a piece of wire.

duketter 07-09-2009 06:10 PM
Re: boat speedometer
 
Thanks for the information. However, where at on the leading edge of the outdrive? Is it on the "fin/edge" above the prop? One other thing I noticed is it appears to have a device mounted on the back of the boat down by the outdrive. It appears to be a speedo thing since it has that little black wheel that spins? Maybe that is for something else?

Z 202 07-09-2009 06:57 PM
Re: boat speedometer
 
The speedometer hole is on the leading edge of the lower unit just above the nose cone.

Here's a picture on a Bravo drive, it's in the same location as the Alpha:

http://www.mariahownersclub.com/foru...6&postcount=12

The paddle wheel is part of the trip odometer gizmo.

duketter 07-09-2009 07:39 PM
Re: boat speedometer
 
Perfect! Thanks! We have the Bravo III drive.

Thanks again for all your help on this. I will try it out this weekend and hopefully it fixes it.

duketter 07-16-2009 09:15 PM
Re: boat speedometer
 
It still seems off. I put about a 3" wire in the hole back there. I see it goes all the way up and through some tubing. Are you suppose to clean that out somehow? I put the wire in that small pickup hole but it only goes in so far. I am thinking that is where it curves to go up to the little rubber hose? How far should you be able to clean in the pick up hole?

For some reason it seems to pick up the slow speed a little bit now but won't really go past 20mph or so on the speedometer.

Z 202 07-16-2009 09:37 PM
Re: boat speedometer
 
On my Alpha, I've only ever had to just ream out the hole in the drive a bit.

If you look in the thread I linked to earlier, you will find pictures of the hose at the transom assembly. To test if it's clear, pull of the hose (to disconnect from the gauge) and you should be able put some air in at the bottom and blow it out. I'd be gentle though, I don't know how strong the hose connection inside the drive is.

If the tube passes air, it could be the gauge. Faria offers a lifetime replacement program. Check their website for details.

WetWilly 07-19-2009 07:03 AM
Re: boat speedometer
 
Hi duketter,

I prefer to work backwards when dealing with these types of clogs as sometimes you can jam the clog further in or allow it to travel further down the line, which sounds like what may have happened in your case. Try the wire again, but see if you can find a length of 20 gauge solid core wire and work your way from the connector junction on the out drive (as shown in the second picture of post #12 from Z 202's link) back to the pick-up hole. You can also use the compressed air from the connector junction (not on the rubber hose) on the out drive back to the pick-up hole. *Never use compressed air on the speedo line while the gauge is still connected to it or you may damage the gauge*

If you suspect the rubber line to the gauge may be clogged, I recomend the following proceedure:

#1) look behind your dash and disconnect the speedo line from the back of the gauge.
#2) with both ends or the tubing now open, use compressed air and blow from the gauge end to try and clear the line

If everything seems clear from the pick-up to the end of the tubing at the gauge, it's time to check the gauge. Since the gauge does not require any electricity to function and you just happen to have a friend with another boat, have him record the speedometer readings at various RPMs and then disconnect the tubing from his speedo and connect it to yours, then repeat the RPM and speedometer readings and see if yours is close or not.

If the readings are way off, it's time to send the gauge back to Faria for warranty work. Click here for Faria's Limited, Lifetime Warranty info.

Let us know what it turns out to be...

Good luck,
WetWilly

midwest mariah 07-21-2009 02:13 AM
Re: boat speedometer
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by WetWilly (Post 16811)
Hi duketter,

I prefer to work backwards when dealing with these types of clogs as sometimes you can jam the clog further in or allow it to travel further down the line, which sounds like what may have happened in your case. Try the wire again, but see if you can find a length of 20 gauge solid core wire and work your way from the connector junction on the out drive (as shown in the second picture of post #12 from Z 202's link) back to the pick-up hole. You can also use the compressed air from the connector junction (not on the rubber hose) on the out drive back to the pick-up hole. *Never use compressed air on the speedo line while the gauge is still connected to it or you may damage the gauge*

If you suspect the rubber line to the gauge may be clogged, I recomend the following proceedure:

#1) look behind your dash and disconnect the speedo line from the back of the gauge.
#2) with both ends or the tubing now open, use compressed air and blow from the gauge end to try and clear the line

If everything seems clear from the pick-up to the end of the tubing at the gauge, it's time to check the gauge. Since the gauge does not require any electricity to function and you just happen to have a friend with another boat, have him record the speedometer readings at various RPMs and then disconnect the tubing from his speedo and connect it to yours, then repeat the RPM and speedometer readings and see if yours is close or not.

If the readings are way off, it's time to send the gauge back to Faria for warranty work. Click here for Faria's Limited, Lifetime Warranty info.

Let us know what it turns out to be...


Good luck,
WetWilly
My speedometer did not work at all, so I tried working on it tonight. Not trying to hijack this post, but its a similar situation. I took 2 small drill bits and spent some time cleaning the pick up hole, which was totally clogged, bad. I was able to get the drill bits in about 3/4" and pulled out quite a bit of dirt. I did not want to dig too much to damage something though. Should I have been able to get deeper with the drill bit? how can I check and see if its working, possibly just spray some water at the pickup hole?:rolleyes:

ttownmatt 07-28-2009 09:45 PM
Re: boat speedometer
 
I've got the same problem on my Jubilee. I check everything they way WetWilly said and i think its the gauge problem. Time to get it fixed.


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