Vibration...Then Limp In Mode

[ktdust]

Help! Was out today and the boat ran fine. 100 feet from the dock I noticed a vibration and the boat wouldn't respond to the throttle. Boat appeared to go into limp in mode and would just crawl forward and flashed 'X22. Engine shut down 50 feet from dock. I suspect that it may the the shaft alignment, but am looking for advice from the experts. Temp was 167, pressure was 40 no alarms.

Going to the cabin for a week this Friday and would love to have the boat running again.

Todd

[lilfoo2225]

gee who knows. could be several things. fuel,spark, a sensor. not much to go on here. will it rev up in neutral?

[ktdust]

I couldn't get it to rev up in neutral either. Couldn't get it running again on the water, but when I got it back home, I hooked up the fake-a-lake and she fired right up. Reved up in neutral, but I noticed a voltage drop when she reved. Now I'm thinking battery and/or alternator.

[lilfoo2225]

yeah thats strange. try putting a multimeter to battery when running and turn on a few things to put a load on the alternator. anything less than 13 volts is bad.

[ktdust]

I know the voltage dropped to 12.8 at one point when I was out.

Just had the alternator bench tested and it looks fine. Battery tested fine as well. However, it's a standard automotive battery and I'm wondering if the voltage dropped too much and caused the limp in mode.

Think I may try an Optima and see if that eliminates the problem. Can't find a blue top, but found a yellow top. Anyone had any experience with these?

If that doesn't work I think I'll need to look at upgrading the MMDC wiring.

Any advice would be apprecitated.

Thanks

[skibeau]

KT, I had a Red Top Optima in an 03 Chevy pickup that intermittenly had dead battery problems.  The Optima seemed to work the same as the Delco battery, which was average.  Unfortunately, I found out later that Optimas probably lose a lot of their recharging ability when something repeatedly drains them completely.  I've got an old, odd named battery in my Epic 22 that still seems to work OK, even when I found it had drained down almost dead over the winter.  I pulled it out & checked it as fine at an auto parts house.  You might consider cleaning the battery terminals and putting on some corrossion protectant if your battery is OK.

[wakejunky]

Ive had all three optima's at one time, in different vehicles and after four of them Ive just plain decided they suck. get over the hype!!!! go down to the boat or auto part store preferably a quality store not just your typical autozone. find the battery that truly fits the boat not just what will work for a day. if it fits the original battery tray and you don't have to add blocks or shims just to use the stock hold down hardware than that's a starting point. Next find the heaviest battery you can. Good batteries are heavy they have a lot of lead in them. they also cost money don't cheap out, its worth the money spent. Costco is a good place to look, but be careful what the "catalog" says fits. they will always try to put a smaller battery in your vehicle. get out the measuring tape  Ive never had a quality battery last less than 5 years and Ive had some last close to 8. living in a place that has triple digit temps three months of they year that's pretty damn good

[2000epic]

I've had nothing but trouble with optimas too, I'll never buy one again.  I hear the sears equivelent is very tough and reliable

[ktdust]

Battery tested fine, but still ran between 13.4 at idle and 12.8 at 4000 rpm. I'll replace the battery with the biggest one I can find.

After searching posts, I couldn't sleep last night thinking about the vibration and began wondering if it was the transmission or something major.

I found a post by Aviator66 called Oil Type and Weight where he mentioned making a tight turn and he experienced similar problems to mine. It appears the engine went into knock-protection mode due the oil shifting in the pan. Once the boat started up again and the oil leveled out it ran fine.

Arrowheadsaver also had a post called Transmission Problem where he replaced the plugs and topped up the tranny fluid and his problem went away.

My tranny fluid was full and plugs were good, but the oil was about half way between the full and add markers. Topped up the oil and the problem went away. Never would have guessed that was the problem.

Thanks epicmarine.com.

[lilfoo2225]

kewl! its always the lil things isnt it? or the most obvious. i guess thats why we shouldnt assume. happy boating!