ash80

thats interesting. I have not replaced the breather hoses, and they do look pretty bad. Maybe a kink, but also maybe delaminated inside causing a blockage? I'll swap them out (do I just use regular fuel hose?)

Yes, proper carb clean was next on the list. Though I was thinking I'd just buy 6 kits and rebuild them all while I'm at it (since I won't really know what needs replacing or not). Agree regarding the high idle, cranking up the idle speed doesn't seem the correct way to fix the issue. My only concern is if I do the rebuild, how do I get everything (idle speed and mixture) back to default levels? I guess the manual states the correct settings? I'm worried I'll have to do a link and sync which appears seemingly impossible to do properly without hanging off the back of the boat at WOT at nightime while holding a timing light !!!! Thanks for all the help so far, I'm certainly learning a lot!!

Thanks all, yes thats what I was afraid of in regards to how simple it is to service a newer motor vs. diagnosing an issue in an old one. I have had the boat for appx 9 months. Has always run rough, the biggest problem is it has a tendency to stall when putting into gear. Even after what seems like an incident free morning, when I tried to fire up the engine in the afternoon, motor sounded fuel starved and bulb needed to be pumped to get home. Previous mechanic wound the idle speed up, which did help a little, but I really want the problem eliminated. One thing that may help diagnosing is that on ear muffs it idles at 2000, in water drops to about 1000. This seems like a big drop, so not sure if that is diagnostic Work done so far: -new plugs, Champion as per spec -new separator -new hoses from tank to engine -new primer bulb -pumped existing fuel in tank and polished with inline filters -VRO has long been disconnected. New fuel only pump installed by me -decarb with Seafoam -all cylinders within 12% of each other I haven't fully tested after the decarb, but keen to hear any other thoughts... Cheers!

Hi all, Have been struggling to find a decent Sydney mechanic and think the age of the motor might be an issue. I have a 1996 E'rude 200hp which needs some work. First mechanic clearly wasn't interested in fixing it, did a half a$$ed job which did not fix the issue and charged me $1k. Second mechanic told me on the day of the booking that he was too busy, third mechanic told me when it was being booked it in that "if it looks like a heap of $h!t I'll turn you away". Haven't been there yet, but I don't have high hopes. What is going on??!! I know it's an old motor, but it's still usable, and I'm not trying to cheap out on price, I just want it fixed! Are there any good mechanics that still happily work on old outboards? Keen to find a good one in Sydney Thanks heaps!