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Author Topic:   Optimax 115 Won't Start
pumarjr posted 08-13-2009 10:12 PM ET (US)   Profile for pumarjr   Send Email to pumarjr  
Good day, I have a 2006 Mercury 115-HP OptiMax two-cycle direct injection engine. It has been sitting for about a year and a half and will not start. It sounds like it wants to, but no dice. I need help! I have checked my fuel: it's old and very dark. My plugs are also old and dark. Could my problem be a mix of bad gas and fouled plugs?
jimh posted 08-13-2009 10:46 PM ET (US)     Profile for jimh  Send Email to jimh     
Gasoline that is 1.5-years old and that was not prepared for storage with a stabilizer will very likely be deteriorated. It will not be a good fuel.

You do not mention the fuel tank size and how much fuel you have in it. You may need to discard most of the fuel. If you can get most of the fuel removed from the fuel tank, you can dilute the remaining old fuel into a much larger volume of fresh fuel. This should be acceptable. Also, check for any sign of water in the fuel tank. Sitting for 1.5-years may have allowed water to enter and separate from the gasoline.

For the purpose of getting the engine running after a long period of storage, try using a small tank--say a 6-gallon portable fuel tank--with fresh gasoline. Because your engine is fuel-injected, and there is some volume of fuel contained in the fuel rails, fuel-vapor separator, and in the electric fuel pump, you may have to crank the engine for a bit to get the fresh fuel to actually arrive at the combustion chamber.

The Mercury OptiMax motor needs a very strong battery for engine starting. If the battery voltage sags during cranking it can cause a no-start condition. Be certain your engine starting battery is at least a 1,000-MCA rated battery, that it is in good charge, and that its voltage is not sagging during cranking.

Modern engines use quite high voltage to fire the plugs, and they can often overcome fouled plugs. However, putting fresh plugs into the engine will be a good way to help it start. You might try getting it to run on the old plugs, burn off the crud that will probably be in the engine from all the old fuel and unburned gasoline that accumulated during cranking, and then put in new plugs once you get it to run. I suggest this so you don't immediately foul the new plugs trying to get it going. Of course, if it doesn't start, by all means try new plugs, too.

jimh posted 08-13-2009 10:52 PM ET (US)     Profile for jimh  Send Email to jimh     
ASIDE--Thanks for re-posting your article to REPAIRS/MODS. Also, we have some real experts on the Mercury OptiMax motor who contribute here, and I hope they will offer some more advice to you.
pumarjr posted 08-13-2009 10:52 PM ET (US)     Profile for pumarjr  Send Email to pumarjr     
My fuel tank size is 40 gal, and will try to start it again tomorrow when I drain most of the fuel and delute with new fresh gas. my battery is 1000MCA.
thank you for your prompt response.
pumarjr posted 08-14-2009 07:30 PM ET (US)     Profile for pumarjr  Send Email to pumarjr     
ok, I tried hard today and still no luck, i'm not pulling fuel into the fuel rail. when i pull out the plugs and inject some fresh fuel it starts and cuts off when the squirt of fuel is gone. how can I trouble shoot why the cylinders are not getting fuel?
pumarjr posted 08-14-2009 08:49 PM ET (US)     Profile for pumarjr  Send Email to pumarjr     
Could it be the boost pump not feeding the high pressure pump? I removed the line feeding the fuel rail and watched the output of the fuel vapor unit and nothing was coming out of the line that feeds the fuel rail, please help.
pumarjr posted 08-15-2009 12:15 AM ET (US)     Profile for pumarjr  Send Email to pumarjr     
what could be some possible causes for fuel not entering the fuel rail and cylinders?

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