www.iFourWinns.com

2002 Four Winns Horizon 180, 4.3L VP with GXi outdrive.

Hey guys so my trim gauge usually works for about 2 minutes when i first run the boat. then goes fuckin' haywire for about an hour then usually comes to rest either full up or down... ive replaced the gauge, the rheostat and traced the wires... I cant find a damn thing. Its not like i really need to have it working, i know the boat enough but i hate having my shit not functioning as it should. Any suggetions?

Yeah mine acts about the same. I’ve got a sensor on the drive I’ve adjusted but does not seem to make much difference. Hope someone has a solution. Mine is hard to deal with since it’s always in the water. I get one try over the winter and if it isn’t fixed I have to suffer through the season.

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2008 Vista 278 Volvo Penta 8.1 Gi 375 hp
1999 Horizon 220 5.7 GSi

Really sounds like a loose wire when you are driving causing erratic behavior. If the gauge and sensor are new that would be the only thing left. Trace it further down, maybe its on your ground block or you have a chaffed wire grounding out somewhere.

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--2002 3880 Regal Flybridge | Twin Merc 8.1HO **Seven**
--2003 AB 13 VST Console Inflatable | Tohatsu 40hp TLDI **Phish'n ski**
--310 Mercury Inflatable | 1982 9.9 Johnson

Hey thanks for the reply...yah eh I could have missed something... i'll have another look when i'm off rotation. And so I'm not looking at the wrong thing here, where is this ground block you speak of? i've probably looked at it before...I just went and looked at the wiring diagrams I have and they don't tell me where its located, only that i have one haha.

Not sure exactly on your boat. On mine it was in the aft starboard side of the engine compartment. Pretty obvious. It might not be as obvious for you. I would think it wouldn't be too far from the engine where the source of the ground would be coming from. Four Winns was pretty cheap with wiring so the shortest run is where it will be. It could be near your fuse block or under the dash too.
If you could trace back the ground wire from your dash you should run into it. If someone was messing around with dash wiring they may have rerouted your ground and used some crimp connectors that corrode relatively quick if they didn't seal them.
2 other things you could try is use your multimeter(if you don't have one get one they are cheap and you will use it ALL the time) and check the voltage when the gauge is acting up. Or run a temporary ground wire to the gauge and see if that corrects the issue. I would also double check the connection to the trim sensor and make sure it's making good contact and not flooded with water.

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--2002 3880 Regal Flybridge | Twin Merc 8.1HO **Seven**
--2003 AB 13 VST Console Inflatable | Tohatsu 40hp TLDI **Phish'n ski**
--310 Mercury Inflatable | 1982 9.9 Johnson

Also look for any signs of corrosion. If the wire is actually missing strands due to corrosion, then heat could cause different resistances out of the wire.

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2014 Four Winns H180 RS
14' 70's Lund

access is really shit to the grounding stud... im pulling the boat out end of October and ill be able to pull the rear bench and deck to get in there. i'll post some pics and an update when the time comes.