Engine woes....

Hi

I'd be grateful for some tips on the right direction ......

i over-nighted at Horseshoe Bay, Moreton Bay last night. Motored in to set the anchor, all good (after a few attempts back and forth, back and forth). No issues with the engine at all.

Isolated (is that the right term ?) the starter battery over-night. This morning the gauge said the starter battery and the house batteries were all fully charged.

When I went to start the engine, it made that "beep" sound, but not very strongly, but didn't do much else - no start. I stared at it for a while but that didn't help much. Gave it another go, and another weak beep. Stared again, and turned everything off, and tried again, and this time it managed to tick over, but only just. I was away.

Motored back to Manly with no problems, but the rev meter seemed to waiver by a couple of hundred revs for the 1st hour or so. After that, it was solid.

Got back to Manly (phew) and tried to start the engine again - no go. This time no beep noise at all, but a few clicks. Gauge said the batteries were sill all fully charged.

The engine and the electrics were both professionally checked in the last 3 months. The engine is a kubota beta 13hp, less than 400 hours, new in 2012.

Any tips on what I should be looking (staring) at ?? (Feel free to talk to me like I don't know anything about engines or electrics ..... )

Cheers

Keelkicker

If the batteries are charged and all you get is a click it sounds like there is a bad connection somewhere. Check:

-battery leads are not corroded and are tight
-the lead to the starter is not corroded and is tight at both ends
-the connections on your switch/push button or whatever starts it are not corroded and are tight.

Call a sparkie.

In addition to checking all the wiring terminations and cleaning them:
There is a big difference between what voltage is indicated when putting a multimeter across a battery and what the capacity of the battery is.
As zilla says, 12v is 12v - but doesn't indicate how much "oommmphh" it has - capacity.
A small 12v motorcycle battery will indicate 12v, but won't start a large car engine.

Maybe the battery is cactus and didn't have enough capacity to heat your glow plugs (if you have them) or turn the engine over.

Motoring as you did back to base should've at least partially charged it up again, so the battery charging system may need checking to be sure it is ok before buying a new battery - if you need one that is.

Next time you get the motor running, stick a multimeter across the battery terminals. You should read 13.8v (charging) with minimal load on it. Turn engine off and you should read about 12.6v with no load on it.

heelkicker, here's my take on it.
Assuming you've got a multimeter (if you don't, you really should get one - $15 one will do). Stick the multimeter (set to measure Volts DC) probe points (doesn't matter which probe is connected to which terminal post) directly on the actual +Ve and -Ve terminal posts of the battery NOT on the connectors attached to the terminal posts, but the ACTUAL posts themselves.
You will probably need another person to do this,while you do the next bit.

Now note the battery reading on the multimeter - should be above, say, 12.5 Volts.
Now attempt to start the engine, noting the battery voltage during this.
It should not drop below, say, 11.5 Volts while you are attempting to start the engine.

If the battery volts drop below 11.5 Volts you have a flat battery for some reason.
If the battery volts stay above say, 12 Volts, you have a poor electrical connection between one of the terminal posts and the starter motor - this includes the connnectors attached to either of the terminal posts - or you have a problem with the starter motor.

See how you go & lets know what happens....
regards,
Allan

Have you resolved the problem or was it terminal ?

I had a fluctuating RPM meter and it was due to a bad negative connection. My engine wiring has a main Negative cable the connects between the battery and the engine block. It is important that you check this as well. It also has another earth in the control wire harness. This is where I found the bad connection. There was a multi-pin plug that was I need of some cleaning and love.

Also the fact that you got your engine going in the end just by turning the Isolator OFF and then ON, suggests that the ISOLATIOR may have bad internal connections. When I brought my boat I found some loose connections in the isolator. Good luck

Now make sure the starter motor terminals, particularly the large one is also clean. Undo the earth strap to the engine and ensure that is clean as well. The gauges might indicate full voltage but it's amps your short off when cranking that engine. The earth strap might look clean but still be rubbish. Check continuity.

Just follow all the cables and clean them as you go , just disconnect all the batteries first . As mentioned before it could be battery isolator. Mine had a loose connection , the radio and lights would work but when you hit the starter it would all stop . Clean one connection at a time and put it back before moving on , even if you find one that you think was the problem keep going till the end ,reconnect your batteries turn the isolator to the start battery , turn the key . your boat will thank you for it and more importantly your learning how it all goes together , for the next time . Do both the positive (red) and negative ( black ) cables . Let us know how you get on we are all waiting on the outcome

After you have cleaned your terminals smear them with Vaseline before reconnecting them.

Good news kk

I had a Toyota HI Ace van with a diesel engine. Now and again, trying to start it after a run the starter motor would just
click. I was told that the starter had got too hot and the solution was to pour cold water on it. I carried a bottle of water
in the van because it worked every time.