Honda BF 150A wont start

S

Schuster

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C Dory Year
2007
C Dory Model
25 Cruiser
Vessel Name
Sea Witch
I have a Honda BF150A (2006) that has been in storage for about 20 months. For the record up to now I have accomplished the following, Removed the old fuel and replaced with fresh non-ethanol fuel, changed the lower unit fluid, changed the oil and oil filter, changed all plugs (350 hours on motor) while the plugs were out I rotated the engine by hand (no problem).
I put on ear muffs to run the motor and attempted to start it. Everything appears to operate properly however the motor will not start. (new batteries)

I could use some advice on trouble shooting here. Thanks, Dave
 
-- Look to the voltages at the batteries, the battery switches, the start button/key, under the engine cowl, and before that, pull the positives off first, then take all the ground straps loose, clean them up and their contact points/bolts/nuts. Same for the positives, replace positives first then negatives.
-- Check to see if the house bank will run a good sized load like a 12 volt heater. Same for the start battery. I use jumper cables if needed to add a load.
-- If you have a charger/inverter, check for error lights and blown fuses/breakers.
--If it comes to the solenoid, get a shop manual and read up as well as do a good search on Google - here are some hits to start:
At http://www.marineengine.com/boat-forum/showthread.php?461212-Honda-150-4-stroke-starting-problems
Or at https://www.thehulltruth.com/boating-ho ... issue.html
Or at https://www.bdoutdoors.com/forums/threa ... on.754007/
-- Your motor should be an EFI not carb model but sometimes re-engines use older motors than the year of install. Check your motor serial number to be sure you buy the right engine manual and parts along the way.
-- Your motor should allow you or your mechanic to read fault/error codes.
Hope this helps,
Bob Jarrard
 
Thanks Bob,
The engine turns over strongly as you would expect with new batteries. The boat has lived on freshwater for the last 14 years. All the electrical connections on the entire boat are like new.
I had a car way back when that acted similarly. It turned out to be what we used to call the 'black box'. I replaced it and off we went. I don't know if this has that sort of thing or what it would be called on the electrical diagram.
 
Might be obvious, but is the kill switch key in place? I just helped fix an outboard two days ago with the same systems and it ended up being a defective kill switch. I jumped the switch wires and the engine started...
 
If your motor has a kill switch, that is a point to check. Since it is turning over, the ECU or black box (Engine Control Unit) can be damaged if you have a polarity issue with the new batteries or if you hook them up by accident in series and boost the voltage. If the motors are turning over at normal starting RPMS, likely this is not an issue. You may have a fuel stoppage as the motors turn over. Pull a plug and smell for gas in the cylinder, I use a hose if the plug is deep in the block. You did not mention if you changed the fuel filters or checked them for water. You perhaps have one on the hull side and another one or two on the motor. There is a fuel pump somewhere in the system, sometimes vacuum operated and other times they are mechanical. If the fuel is pulled up by vacuum, then a vacuum leak will starve the engine for fuel. I believe any choke or fuel management is automatic on your motor but all manual chokes are prone to failure. If you have someone help you, check for spark at one of the plugs by pulling it out and holding it next to a ground but beware the famous "ouch I got bit" thing and check for fuel vapors first. Bob Jarrard
 
I will check the kill switch and see if possible from always being connected it has become corroded and lost contact or just gone bad. I did drain the Parker/Racor water separator / filter. No water found, did not change filters yet but I think I will do that next. Unable to check the plugs for spark as the coils are mounted on top of the plugs and Im not sure how i could make that happen. but i will check for a fuel smell at the plug opening. All good suggestions, I'll let you know how I do. Thanks
 
Kill switch has got me a couple of times.
 
Shuster; Since your 2006 Honda is a carburetor motor, the problem is likely the "ethanol" fuel that has dried and clogged the mid and slow range orifices. I would do a quick check prior to handing the problem to a mechanic. You could either spray gasoline into the air intake duct (or) remove the spark plugs and squirt gas into the cylinders. If the engine responds even slightly, you are likely going to need all 4 carburetors disassembled and cleaned. And if it turns out to be as described, you might read my post from several years ago about how to "fully drain" the carburetor "bowels" before storage.
 
The 2006 Honda 150 is an EFI motor. Journey On's motor has set for 6 mos at a time and started up right away, and I use ethanol fuel. However, 20 mos is a long time.

One can check if it's getting spark by removing one spark plug, grounding it and cranking it over, looking for a spark. However, it'll probably take a visit to a repair shop to get it started. They can check the electronic unit and the EFI.

Boris
 
Too weird - could be so many things, but I suspect it's simple. Fuses? Maybe it has not only the main one but an additional one just for the electronics? You probably already check that out by now though.
 
This could be a simple fix. It's cranking but not starting. You checked the fuel/water separators but didn't replace them. It's possible there isn't enough gas in them to get to the motors. Squeeze the rubber pump several times and see if it gets hard. If it doesn't, you likely have no gas in the separator. I've done this before. :(
 
spray starter fluid into air intake and crank over. if she fires then dies you have a fuel delivery issue. If nothing happens then you know you have a spark issue.
 
if it cranks but does not start its spark or fuel. For fuel start at the bulb and remove the hose. squeeze the bulb . if you get fuel go to the next spot in the line you can take of and do it again. keep doing that until you get pass the fuel pump. turn the engine over when you get pass the fuel pump. If you got fuel the whole way its spark.

For spark pull the plugs and use a spark tester , $5, and test each cylinder . It unlikely you will lose all the ignitors at once as each cylinder has a separate one. As other said go check the safety lanyard. Some times the plastic gets soft. the clip will be there but not holding the switch open enough. Pull it off and pull it out by hand yourself to check it. Other then that I am off to the outboard shop or you tube.
 
First off, thanks everyone your help is appreciated immensely.
So here is where I'm at. I have now changed out the fuel filter with a new one on the motor and cleaned the motor water separator, drained the vapor separator. pumped FRESH fuel thru the filter and into the vapor separator until the bulb got hard, so I am confident I don't have a fuel issue. (Although I haven't messed with the high pressure end or pulled any injectors).
I did a continuity check on the emergency shut off switch and it appears to be working. Still wont fire off.
My next step will to follow C.Whisperer's advice and check all the fuses fore to aft and see if something has tripped.
 
If you can, check the voltage to the engine when the motor is cranking. It wasn't my Honda motor, but there was a problem with the engine on my Nissan truck where it wouldn't fire, but it would crank all day. Turned out that when the engine was cranking the voltage dropped below the voltage required by the ECU but still enough for the starter motor. As long as the ECU wasn't working, neither would the engine.

Turned out the battery was bad, even though the car parts store tested it on their tester and said the battery was ok. Replaced the truck battery and no problems since.

I'm not saying that this is your problem, but it is something I would check.
 
This hasn't been covered yet, and might be a long shot, and I am not a mechanic, but there are 2 things.

ONE, the position of the throttle/gear shifter, (Forward or Reverse). If it is not in the Neutral position it will not start. I think in some cases it will crank, but not fire.

TWO, the position sensor in the shifter handle may not be contacting properly.

I am betting that it is clogged carb jets due to prolonged storage of bad (ethanol containing) gas.

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

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Update.
So, i got some starter fluid and gave it a squirt and got it to fire off. Tried is a few times and same thing, wouldn't stay lit. So It would seem I have a fuel delivery issue. After the few tries I notices that the squeeze bulb was still hard so I don't believe any fuel move thru the system. Not sure where to go from here. Any suggestions out there?
 
Just trying to help here:
-- If you have carburetors, 99% that is the issue after 20 months of sitting. If you rebuild, use a DIY video, take each carb apart on cookie sheet to save all the parts, and use an OEM rebuild kit. You will have to sync the carbs when done.
-- If you are EFI/fuel injected, then it is a bit more complicated. The "black box" could be not working, the injector pump could be bad, the injectors could be fouled (not likely), the power to the fuel management system could be under voltage, and it is time to try and read the history and diagnostic codes.
-- Be sure that the oil level is correct as most Honda motors have a low oil sensor that on some of their engines will shut down the engine start/run system.
-- The engine temp monitor can not only set off codes and alarms, it may be able to shut down the engine or not allow it to start.
-- This may be a good time to change out the thermostat.
Hope this helps,
Bob Jarrard PS: feel free to call and visit with me at 714 686-2728
 
Update.
So, i got some starter fluid and gave it a squirt and got it to fire off. Tried is a few times and same thing, wouldn't stay lit. So It would seem I have a fuel delivery issue. After the few tries I notices that the squeeze bulb was still hard so I don't believe any fuel move thru the system. Not sure where to go from here. Any suggestions out there?
Click to expand...

If you feel it might be in the fuel delivery system, I think I would just hook up a fuel line from another source of fuel, and see if it then runs. If so, you know your problem is in the fuel tank or line. Could be something as simple as the primer bulb isn't priming. Or remove the current fuel line from the motor and see if you can get fuel through the line. If fuel is coming thru the line, then it's likely an issue with the outboards fuel system. (Or bad fuel.)
 
Schuster":1zc37h3e said:
Update.
So, i got some starter fluid and gave it a squirt and got it to fire off. Tried is a few times and same thing, wouldn't stay lit. So It would seem I have a fuel delivery issue. After the few tries I notices that the squeeze bulb was still hard so I don't believe any fuel move thru the system. Not sure where to go from here. Any suggestions out there?
Click to expand...

It might be time for a tech to look at it as this....But, if you want to chase it down.....since this is EFI it has a real fuel pump, and it has to come on. The pump will be controlled by the ECU and there will be a crank sensor that tells the ECU when to fire the injectors. Sometimes the crank sensor is associated with the ignition system and sometimes they are not. You'll have to dig into your Honda manual to find out for sure. That's important because since you got it to run on starting fluid, that means it has spark, and sometimes the crank sensor provides a reference for both ignition and injection. If that is the case with the EFI 150, then you know you have a good CPS. So, where does that leave you? When you turn the key you should have voltage at the pump - you will need to check that. If you do, great, check your fuel pressure. Low pressure or no pressure = new fuel pump or something wrong with fuel lines, filters, or primer bulb upstream of the pump. If you don't have voltage to the pump, then it comes back to what turns it on, which is the ECU and its sensors. Have you pulled any codes from it?
 
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