www.iFourWinns.com

A starter ground is one of the most important grounds on any type of vehicle. Anytime a extra ground can be added do so. Electrical connections require maintenance just as ur boats oil does

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1988 freedom 160 3.0

seems like your problem as you describe it is that you are seeing very hot battery cables/terminals when you start (or try to start) the engine.

This means that you are drawing excessive current during start. Lets consider what might do this. Some first thoughts off the top of my head:

1) faulty starter motor (but you said you replaced???)
2) Faulty Starter solenoid (probably the culprit)
3) Faulty coil
4) perhaps a seized engine, very hard for starter to turn ( is the motor turning over when you are trying to start?) Excessive long time trying to start can cause overheating. dont crank for more than 5 sec and let cool down b4 doing again.


big diagnostic question: Is the motor turning over when you are trying to start?

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2006 348 Vista
"Cruisin Home"
Hampton NH

if it cranks really slow, even with a new starter and good batt, then try removing all the spark plugs and crank it (ground the ignition coil to prevent sparks). IF water shoots out of the plug holes, you have a hydrolock issue not a starter issue per se.

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

Good thought, but he said "... We cleaned terminals, replaced starter, and it started. Then we turned it off, and it would not restart again..."

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Tom
Cape Coral

'99 Four Winns 258 Vista
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bowcam
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/cape-coral-marine-radio VHF
http://67.207.143.181/vlf9.m3u VLF: Lightning, spherics

ground is an easy thing to take out of equation. If you dont have faith in the ground cable you can buy a new one and clean connection at battery and engine, end of story.

Poor connections mean higher resistance. Volts = Amps x Resistance. With a fixed voltage the current decreases when resistance increases. That said the resistive spot (spot of bad connection, too small wire, etc.) will have more power dissipated and can become a hotspot. In turn that spot will have a greater percent of the voltage dropped across it, leaving less voltage for the other parts of the circuit, In this case the solenoid et al. But your problem was not decribed to be like this.

On the other hand a defective part( start motor, solenoid, etc) can become close to a shorted (low resistance) and thus draw huge current. Huge currents from starter circuits usually draw close to 200Amps. At this current , even for short times you will produce heat in the wires and at connections. On the other hand a defective part can become close to a shorted (low resistance) and thus draw much higher current, thus really creating heat.

Make sure you are getting the full 12 volts to the solenoid thru your ignition switch. check that connection also.


Should be easy to rule out electrical, last step to look at causes for seizure of engine: Hydrolock is certainly one possiblity due to either water or even gas. Other possibilities also exist which are not nice.

Lets hope youy have any easy electrical problem.

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2006 348 Vista
"Cruisin Home"
Hampton NH

But LouC can be right. Over the time they went to get new starter the water or gas in cylinders could leak out thus allowing engine to start once. But maybe problem when starting again second time because after operation some mechanism is putting extra fluid in cylinder.

Had another thought: Hope you are using a starter battery capabale of prodcing lots of cranking amps. The AGM deep cylce are not intended for this usage.

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2006 348 Vista
"Cruisin Home"
Hampton NH

Hi Everyone, sorry for not getting back sooner. I had been waiting to hear the details form my mechanic. I still have not spoken to him, but others at my pier told me, he had the engine all over the dock, only to finally find the issue to be a grounding problem towards the back of the engine. All, i know is it starts better then it ever has, I mean that literally, I turn the key and it immediately starts, no struggle, no hesitation. So, whatever are in the details, it works!!!
As soon as I touch base with him and find out exactely where and what was issue I will post!
thanks again for everyones input!
Steve

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Thats good to know, as someone else stated check the ground and wiring. I have alway said, that FW underwires there boats, at lest mine. I find the heaver wire is needed in everthing that I have touched. Including the starting cables!!

Ultimately, what did the mechanic find? Why did your battery terminals get hot?

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Tom
Cape Coral

'99 Four Winns 258 Vista
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bowcam
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/cape-coral-marine-radio VHF
http://67.207.143.181/vlf9.m3u VLF: Lightning, spherics

There was a grounding Problem

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This is really very simple to fix, you want to get good cables, at least 2 gauge if not 1, the thicker the cable the better, and make sure the grounds are clean. Most Chevy small blocks be they V-6s or V-8s, have the batt grounds on the bellhousing bolts at the rear of the engine. They can be a little hard to get at depending on the configuration of the exhaust system. I put in a dual battery system about 7 years ago and I replaced the OE cables then (awful, junk, undersized auto quality cables). I had nice cables made up with marine quality wire made up and ran a separate ground from each battery to an engine bellhousing stud. As long as those grounds are clean and tight, and the starter terminals are clean and tight you should not have problems.

There are charts to tell you what gauge wire you should use depending on current flow and length of the cables. I had to use a really thick cable for port side battery because the run from the batt to the switch on the starboard side was 9 feet.

Another point to check is that the starter terminals on many Chevy small block engines are under the exhaust manifold, if the drain plug leaks it can leak right on those terminals an d corrode them fast. One last thing, many engines use an assist solenoid, this needs to be checked as well.

One of the best things you can do to an older boat is go through the starting system and replace all the substandard wiring, make sure to use good marine rated wire of the right gauge, and good terminals too....

Batteries and wiring are something that many boat companies seem to scrimp on, and to me this makes no sense, these are basic safety items that you depend on every time you use the boat. This is why I don't buy new boats and little by little I rebuild it the way I want it, using the best stuff. I wind up with a boat that might look old but runs like new!

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88 Four Winns 200 Horizon
4.3 OMC Cobra-4bbl
2002 Walker Bay 10/2012 Suzuki 2.5
2008 Walker Bay 8

1998 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4.0/Selectrac
2007 Jeep Grand Cherokee 5.7 Hemi/Quadradrive II

I remain puzzled by the symptom of hot battery terminals. Tarheels said earlier in the thread that the mechanic found a problem, apparently a cable issue, at the back of the engine. Assuming that the primary ground cable from the block to the batteries was an open circuit, the starter current somehow found it's way back to the batteries via other paths - I assume small paths, like several #16s or similar. I'd expect those wires to get warm - but why would the battery terminals get "scolding hot"?

_________________
Tom
Cape Coral

'99 Four Winns 258 Vista
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/bowcam
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/cape-coral-marine-radio VHF
http://67.207.143.181/vlf9.m3u VLF: Lightning, spherics