[rwasson89]

im looking at a 93 barchetta with a 4.3 merc and the starter is out of it, the owners took it two a marina and they told them they would have to pull the motor to change the starter. another mechanic told them u wouldn't have to pull it, does anyone know for sure how big or little of a job it is to change a starter thanks

[Brewfixer]

My mechanical intuition tells me that you need not pull a motor to change out a starter regardless. It may be a bear to replace or service but no pulling of motor should be required. I would definitely recommend that you see and hear the engine run before you start your negotiation otherwise you really don’t know if that engine runs at all.

Good Luck

[SEMIJim]

Originally Posted by Brewfixer

My mechanical intuition tells me that you need not pull a motor to change out a starter regardless.

I'd have to pull Shazaam!'s cover off to check (yeah, she's still covered--it's been a really lousy spring here), but my gut feel is there's room enough to get to the starter w/o pulling the engine.

Originally Posted by Brewfixer

I would definitely recommend that you see and hear the engine run before you start your negotiation otherwise you really don’t know if that engine runs at all.

Ohhh... Good catch, Brewfixer. I hadn't connected the dots on that one.

Originally Posted by rwasson89

im looking at a 93 barchetta with a 4.3 merc and the starter is out of it, the owners took it two a marina and they told them they would have to pull the motor to change the starter.

The owner that's selling the boat told you that, did they? Did they explain how they got the starter out in the first place?

DO NOT buy a boat without first taking her for a check run (a good 15 mins running around a lake at various speeds) and then checking the oil for any signs of water in it. Starting it up on muffs is a good way to check whether or not you even want to go on the check run, but it's not good enough. The guy who sold us our boat found that out the hard way, as did somebody who posted on a forum. In both cases the oil looked good after running for a while on muffs. It was only after really running the engine did the problem reveal itself.

Just before ending the check run: When you shut her down at the dock, wait a couple minutes or so and try to re-start her. (Don't forget the blower!) See how she re-starts hot.

Here's the thing about boat buying: It's easy, esp. after you've been looking for a while and doubly esp. after you've missed out on a couple promising boats, to see a boat you like and become emotionally invested in buying that boat despite the little alarm bells ringing right-and-left. Relax. Be sensible and be cautious. There'll always be another boat for sale, trust me.

The Admiral and I looked at a lot of boats before we found Shazaam! There were one or two we almost pulled the trigger on, but thought better of it. Good thing we did, because nothing we looked at before Shazaam! showed up was nearly as nice a boat, in nearly as nice condition, as she was (and is) .

Jim

[rwasson89]

ive rode in the boat a few years ago, the started isn't taken out of the boat yet it just quit working, they went to get it fixed and the marina said u had to pull motor to change it, i think they just wanted to scam them out of 1500 to change it, they winterized it and its been parked since and now they want to sell it, it has 450 hours on it and they want $1500 for the boat, im just trying to make sure i don't have to pull motor to change a starter if i do buy it. thanks guys

[SEMIJim]

Well, rwasson89, it's hard to advise, since you haven't said what kind of shape the boat's in, over-all, plus the trailer (come with a trailer, does she?). If you're not going to take her for a check ride and perform the other advised due diligence, you have to be prepared to either take the hit for fixing whatever else may turn out to be wrong or to scrap her and lose your investment if that turns out not to be what you want to do.

I've seen people on boating forums that regretted taking a free boat, once they had possession and found out what was really necessary to make her "seaworthy." A 1993 Barchetta for $1500 could either be a great deal or a disaster in the making.

FWIW: I don't think you have to pull the engine to replace the starter, but I don't know that. Hopefully, even though I'm not answering your question, perhaps my helping keep the thread alive will result in somebody who can doing so.

Good Luck,
Jim

[rwasson89]

thanks for your inputs, i screwed around 2 long went back last night to get boat and it was sold lol thanks again ryan