Mercury 9.9 2 stroke will not restart

[P30Dude]

3 gal fresh gas, 8 oz putboard motor oil, engine ran for three minutes then died...will not restart; btw engine is manual start..HELP


Vince
S/V Flatline
P-30 No. 280

[meridian28]

I have had this problem with same engine. Pull the fuel hose that goes into the carb and give the bulb a pump, fuel should come out. If good you probably have junk in the carb, easy to clean, no adjustable jets to worry about. 2 bolts to remove, disassemble and blow out with carb cleaner and compressed air, use an air can for PC cleaning. If no fuel, there is a small inline filter on the other side of the engine that you can clean.

[Fiveslide]

Tank vent or losing prime between the tank and carb would be my first suspicions.

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[P30Dude]

Thanks guys


Vince
S/V Flatline
P-30 No. 280

[Reefmagnet]

Running for three minutes and stopping cold is suspect. Just to add to the discussion, could be water in fuel or ignition failure. Both easy to check by inspecting plugs, testing for spark and draining the carb bowl. Might pay to add fuel pump inspection to the list, too, if all else fails.

[Xlantic]

See if it will start by spraying starting fluid or carburetor cleaner into the air intake of the carburetor as you pull the starting cord.

It it starts it is probably a fuel related problem.

If not it is probably electrical.

[P30Dude]

Fuel line has been reclamped, no leaks, so that's one possibility to cross off, still will not start.


Vince
S/V Flatline
P-30 No. 280

[sy_gilana]

Try manually pumping the squeeze-bulb while it is running, see if it keeps running longer.
IF Yes, then its the fuel pump, or air getting sucked in the fuel line between the bulb and the pump.

[P30Dude]

It will not start...


Vince
S/V Flatline
P-30 No. 280

[Neptune's Gear]

I have the 15HP - basically the same. 2 Things. Check for spark - take out a plug, leave it touching the block. Pull the starter while 2nd person watches the plug - should be a fat blue spark. If not, it's electrical, but that is not as likely as a fuel issue. If there is good spark, squirt a small amount of fuel into the cylinder, put the plug back in, try again. If it fires then, it's fuel. IME it almost always is....

[Stu Jackson]

also check the kill switch wiring.

They do make Troubleshooting guides for engines, too, right?

[Neptune's Gear]

Kill switch is the place to start if there is no spark... :-)

[Bill Seal]

It's a 2-stroke! That's all you need to know.
In my days of desert riding, we said you could always tell the ring-ding rider by the bandolier of sparkplugs.
You have
(1) a crankcase full of fuel, flooding it out
(2) an empty carburetor. there may be a drain screw on the float bowl.
(3) a fouled sparkplug
(4) no spark -hold the spark wire, pull the string, it'll let you know
(5) sacrifice a chicken.

[Reefmagnet]

Originally Posted by Neptune's Gear

I have the 15HP - basically the same. 2 Things. Check for spark - take out a plug, leave it touching the block. Pull the starter while 2nd person watches the plug - should be a fat blue spark. If not, it's electrical, but that is not as likely as a fuel issue. If there is good spark, squirt a small amount of fuel into the cylinder, put the plug back in, try again. If it fires then, it's fuel. IME it almost always is....

Wd40 makes an adequate starter fluid if squirted into the plug hole.

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[Xlantic]

Squirting gasoline with a syringe or similar into the carburettor air intake as you crank is another alternative to using starter fluid.

Starting fluid is the most important "tool" for servicing outboards, particularly 2-strokes.