Suzuki engine query

H

hank clow

New member
We are on a 650 mile loop trip on the canals of the Northeast. Currently sitting out a rainstorm in Ste. Ours, Quebec. More details when we complete the trip.

Question: I have a 2003 Suzuki 90 hp engine. We have traveled 350 miles. Prior to our departure, the engine was serviced. The engine has a tendancy to stall if idling for 5-10 minutes. It has also stalled when first starting up and allowing a 5 minute warm-up.

I'm knew to large outboards and have little experience (65 years of sailing might have something to do with that)

I squeeze the gas bulb until hard and find it softens after running at higher RPMs for a few minutes,

It makes me a bit nervous coming into a lock with a 2-3 knot current, 20 knots of wind on the beam and a half million dollar boat tied up in front of me.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Hank Clow, Skipper
Meri Aura
 
The bulb should not soften. I would look for a clogged fuel filter upstream from the bulb. Also, check condition of fuel system components upstream of the bulb for deterioration that might allow air to be sucked into the system. This might be a cracked hose, loose connection or a bad packing around a valve stem, or the bulb itself.
 
I had similar issues when trolling for a while and also when I came off plane. I replaced the battery and the problem has gone away. I also make sure the primer bulb is tight with the engine off before I start and then don't worry about it. Mine goes soft as well. If you have fuel management don't pump the primer while your idling it ruins your readings. The battery was an Optima blue top and would no longer reach full voltage after being charged.
 
hank clow":4h2bm46u said:
We are on a 650 mile loop trip on the canals of the Northeast. Currently sitting out a rainstorm in Ste. Ours, Quebec. More details when we complete the trip.

Question: I have a 2003 Suzuki 90 hp engine. We have traveled 350 miles. Prior to our departure, the engine was serviced. The engine has a tendancy to stall if idling for 5-10 minutes. It has also stalled when first starting up and allowing a 5 minute warm-up.

I'm knew to large outboards and have little experience (65 years of sailing might have something to do with that)

I squeeze the gas bulb until hard and find it softens after running at higher RPMs for a few minutes,

It makes me a bit nervous coming into a lock with a 2-3 knot current, 20 knots of wind on the beam and a half million dollar boat tied up in front of me.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

Hank Clow, Skipper
Meri Aura
Click to expand...

Hank,
I can't solve your stalling problem but I will say that it's completely normal for the gas bulb to only be very firm immediately after you squeezed it a few times. That's just pressurizing the fuel system between the bulb and the engine and once the engine starts drawing fuel, the bulb will return to a lower pressure.

Does the engine stall only within the first 5-10 minutes of starting or does it have a tendency to stall anytime it's been idling for 5-10 minutes? If the former and engines are carbureted, then it's probably just the normal warm up of the carburetor. If the latter, then perhaps the engines are simply idling too slow to begin with. There is an idle adjustment screw (typically near the throttle control) that can be used to increase the idle speed a bit. The manufacturer will have some recommendation for idle speed RPM's. If you're currently idling at below that RPM, it's a very easy fix to up the idle speed.
 
Roger, it's probably a FI engine. 2001 was the first year they made them. I'd check your filters, racor if you have one and the LP one under the cowling. With a 4 stroke FI engine, it shouldn't be necessary to squeeze the bulb at all.

Charlie
 
I wasn't sure when Yamaha first went to fuel injection in their 90's. However, I'd assume that if the engine was recently serviced that the fuel filters (especially the one under the cowling) would have been replaced but maybe that's just because I have Carl at EQ do my work (where everything is done right the first time). :lol:
 
If FI, you may have two filters under the cowl. Low pressure and High pressure. They should be replaced periodically.

If carbs, then float level or low speed jet may be an issue.
 
If you are not already doing so, when you get into tight spots, start your kicker and leave it running in neutral. If your main fails and does not restart quickly, go to the kicker. Not a perfect solution, but it may take away a bit of the pucker factor until you get the 90 sorted out.

Robbi
 
Thare ARE two filters. Suzi says to replace the LP one at 200 hours and the HP one at 400 hours. I had 115's on my first TC and have 150s on the one I have now...
 
There is no idle adjustment on a Fuel Injected engine without hooing up to the computer. Do not adjust anything under the hood unless you know exactly what you are doing.

We had a local shop "adjust" the idle speed on a Suzuki 140- they actually screwed up the air mix and the component had to be replaced ($$$) because it is not setable in the field.
 
One of my twin 50 Suzies on Still C-razy was a hard starter, and needed some fast idle running before is smoothed out like the other twin. I found that the batter on the iffy motor side was bad, and though it would spin the motor just fine, unless the motor was kept at higher RPM, it would get rough or stall. I just installed new start and house batteries, and rough start and occasional stall on that engine, problem solved. I think the newer FI engine technology is less tolerant of lower battery voltages. Don't know that for a fact, but engines are doing fine with new batteries.
 
Do you have any check engine codes associated with the rough idleing? I had something similiar on a 2005 FI Zuki, it threw a 3-1 code. The idle airflow sensor needed cleaning and adjusting/calibrating. Not a big deal, but something I could not do. The shop took care of it in a few minutes.
Good Luck.
Regards,
Dave
 
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