7.4 No Start - Maxum Boat Owners Club

gbsillars · 09-13-2010, 06:02 AM

I have the 7.4 MPI/Bravo III combo. I have a fully charged 1150amp battery and suddenly I only get a loud click and no starter rotation at all. Probably needs a solenoid and maybe a starter too. It looks like I will need to pull the exhaust manifold to get in there. Sound normal? Any suggestions are welcome. I am fairly new to this type of boat but have a lot of experience with cars.

ss3964spd · 09-13-2010, 01:56 PM

GB,

Not to sound all dooms dayish but if this happened all of a sudden first make sure you can turn the engine over by hand with a long breaker bar.

No different from a car really, just follow all the usual troubleshooting steps. Test battery, ensure all your battery cable connections are clean and tight, etc-etc.

Dan

shrew · 09-13-2010, 02:37 PM

If you hear a loud 'click' the click IS the solenoid. You can theoretically bypass the solenoid. I would suspect the the starter here. Make sure you have a good positive connection and ground. You should be able to meter the solenoid as well as the starter to determine where the break in the circuit is. I had a similar problem a couple of years ago and it turned out to be a corroded postive connector on the starter. The problem was intermittant but getting worse with time. Once the postive cable to the start was completely replaced I never experienced the issue again.

ss3964spd · 09-13-2010, 04:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shrew

If you hear a loud 'click' the click IS the solenoid.

True dat, sorta. Solenoids do make a slight click but what you are more likely hearing is the starter gear being moved into and out of position. The standard GM starter is comprised of the starter motor + bendix (starter gear) and a solenoid. On a GM starter the solenoid does double duty; completes the electrical connections and also deploys the bendix (older Ford starters, for instance, used a separate, firewall or fender mounted, solenoid for the electrical connections and also a smaller solenoid on the starter t move the bendix).

seapuppy · 09-13-2010, 08:18 PM

I agree with the above...sounds like corroded connections....first check to make sure they are clean and corrosion free.....probably not the starter since a gm starter will spin if the bendix isn't kicking in....the click is the solenoid activating but the starter isn't spinning..thus low voltage.....

SP

gbsillars · 09-14-2010, 04:55 AM

On a car I never would have thought of a corroded connection on the starter. I will check that out next as the battery end of the cables I keep real clean. It looks like I may have to pull the Starboard exhaust manifold to get to the starter. Is there anything tricky about that? Probably needs special gaskets to reinstall? All advice is greatly appreciated. I am very happy with the boat so far, it gets right up on plane with eight people aboard and it is very fast.

tackleshep · 09-14-2010, 06:16 AM

What year of boat are you talking about. Just bought a manual for 7.4 bravo III for the years 1996-2002 I think. let me know and I can always copy and scan some pages from the manual if you need the help.

gbsillars · 09-14-2010, 06:34 AM

It is a 1999 Maxum 2300 SR (bowrider). Would appreciate any pages from the manual as it is exact one.

gbsillars · 09-22-2010, 11:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gbsillars

It is a 1999 Maxum 2300 SR (bowrider). Would appreciate any pages from the manual as it is exact one.

Let me know where I can purchase the full manual, I am gonna need it sooner or later.

tcongdon86 · 01-06-2011, 12:42 AM

I have the SELOC manual, covers all engines & outdrives 1996-2002 I believe...found it on Amazon.com for around $29. Lots of good pictures, and the projects are rated by relative difficulty. I have the same setup as you do, except it's a 1998.