Will not idle
 

Hello all, I need help please!

I have a 97 Talari with a Mercruiser 5.7 V8 Thunderbolt ignition and can't get it to idle!

I had no problem with the boat last year and this is the first time I've taken it out this year. Did the regular maintenance stuff on it, oil change, cleaned it up, et. Then took it out on the lake, idled just fine at first but after a while it just shut-off. The boat would not idle at all, it started when I rev the throttle and would run just fine at the higher RPM's but when in neutral it died.

Brought it back home and changed the plugs on it, cleaned the distributor cap points, cleaned the carburetor, and tried it again; no luck! Would run just fine at the high rpm's again but not on neutral. I then noticed that the butterfly valve on the carb would not close when in neutral or move at all. It looked like it was frozen and I noticed it's not mechanical. There looks to be a modulator on the side of the carb that controls it but I can't get it to move. I'm not familiar with this setup, does anyone know how this works and what I can try to fix it.

Greatly appreciate your help, thanks.

Luis

Re: Will not idle
 

Does it idle when the engine is cold?
It sounds like your electric choke is hanging up.
Disconnect the linkage running from the circular disc to the butterfly plate , hold it open and see if it'll idle when it's warm. May need a new choke spring or if your lucky just adjusted.
Just a thought :)
Larry

Re: Will not idle
 

I will take a look at mine tomorrow and let you know the results

Re: Will not idle
 

Thank you!

Re: Will not idle
 

Larry, I did try to disconnect the wiring and hooked it back up; no luck. When I cover up the carburetor, the boat starts up. I'm starting to think it is the choke spring; any idea where I can purchase a new one?

Thanks,
Luis

Re: Will not idle
 

Do you have the Mercruiser 4bbl? It's actually a carter which was bought out by Edelbrock. Anyway if so , check out this thread.

http://www.mariahownersclub.com/foru...roblems-3.html

Them frickin springs are like looking for gold!!
Hope that helps ya :)

Larry

Re: Will not idle
 

I had a very similar incident with mine. I do have the 4.3LX though, but it is carburated. It ran fine and idled fine then one day it just quit idling all together. You had to pump the throttle to keep it running.
It was the idle jets in the motor, there was a small piece of trash in the jet and it didn't want to idle at all. We know a boat mechanic and he cleaned it out. It runs perfect now.

Re: Will not idle
 

Thanks Jeff, that makes sense. This problem didn't start happening to me until I used a carburetor cleaner to clean it out. I believe I may have dislodged some debris and clogged out one of the jest. I noticed that one of the jets wasn't flowing when it idled. I'll clean them out and let all of you know.

Luis