Kicker idles fine for about a minute...

30pound-tasty-fish · 03-20-2009, 10:05 PM

So I picked up a Mercury 1990 8 HP kicker. Everything seemed fine until I let it run for a bit. When she runs she will idle on high and low no problem but eventually it will cut out and die. She will start back up again after some convincing but then will do the same thing.

Then I tested it in gear. In a slow troll situation she will run for about the same amount of time and then the rpms will drop and she dies, sometimes this will take 1 minute sometimes it will take 3. What does this mean? Is it a carb rebuild issue?

Smj · 03-21-2009, 06:57 AM

Turn the idle mixture screw in while counting the turns untill it seats GENTLY. Then turn the idle mixture screw out the same amount of turns, usually 1 1/4-2 turns. Now, while warmed up and running turn screw out untill engine starts to bog, then scerw in 'till it starts to die, find a spot in the middle where it runs good. Do the same with the engine in gear in the water to fine tune it. If this won't work, or you also have issues with mid and high speed operation then a carb rebuild/cleaning is in order.

The idle circuit passages are small in these small carbs. Many times the tiniest bits of flotsam will block things just enough to cause these issues. I always carry a small screw driver on the water to make the adjusment if needed too.

Smj

ondarvr · 03-21-2009, 07:11 AM

Look for leak in the fuel line (sucking air), this could be a conector, fitting, loose clamp. check the fuel pump and is the vent open on the tank.

Pump the bulb in the fuel line and see if it keeps running.

30pound-tasty-fish · 03-22-2009, 07:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smj

Turn the idle mixture screw in while counting the turns untill it seats GENTLY. Then turn the idle mixture screw out the same amount of turns, usually 1 1/4-2 turns. Now, while warmed up and running turn screw out untill engine starts to bog, then scerw in 'till it starts to die, find a spot in the middle where it runs good. Do the same with the engine in gear in the water to fine tune it. If this won't work, or you also have issues with mid and high speed operation then a carb rebuild/cleaning is in order.

The idle circuit passages are small in these small carbs. Many times the tiniest bits of flotsam will block things just enough to cause these issues. I always carry a small screw driver on the water to make the adjusment if needed too.

Smj

That was exactly it. Thanks SMJ!