Northwest Fishing Reports

I run this motor last spring and have not used since May 2013. I tried starting this weekend and the pull cord will not come out. When I last ran the motor I run in a barrel of water and let the motor run out of gas to store for winter. The motor was left on the boat and outside during freeziing conditions. I have not used since I winterized it. This motor is a 2012 Yamaha 8hp, manual start. HELP!

Just a quick easy thing is it in gear? The second thing is take the hood off and see if you can spin the motor by hand you will see a large black belt try moving it? Also can you spin the prop? Keep us updated. Where are you located?

The prop spins with motor in neutral and I have not tried to turn by hand. I live in S. Tacoma, WA near Austins Speed shop. I have talked with a couple dealer service reps. They won't tell me anything. They prefer I bring in for service.
Thanks for the respone.

Was the motor in neutral when the pull cord would not come out? I know when mine is in gear I cant pull the cord.

The only other thing you can do is pull the spark plugs and look inside, how does the oil on the dipstick look? As long as you left it upright for the water to drain out it should be fine, if there is water damage I would think you would have oil in the case under the hood? Dealerships only make money when you bring it in so information over then phone is not going to happen. There is a shop in Tacoma, Tacoma boats on canyon or somewhere close to there on the north side of 512 that works on Honda and they are a little shop but do great work.

If you're unfamiliar or uncomfortable working on small engines it's best to take it to a service center and have the professionals work on it.

However, if you're mechanically inclined, here are my thoughts:

Pull the cowling off and pull the spark plugs. Now try turning the flywheel by hand. Can you turn the flywheel by hand? If you can't then my first guess would be a stuck piston (most likely due to a little rust from sitting over the winter). If you can, then it's probably the pull start mechanism. Is it a two stroke or four stroke? If it's a stuck piston, then you may be able to free it by pulling the spark plugs and dripping a little two stroke oil or oil/gas mix into the chamber and letting it sit for a little bit.

Good luck.

Thanks everyone for the comments and responses. I can not figure how water could have gotten into the head or anywhere above the lower unit. Thank You

I ahve an idea what has happened. I used unleaded gas that sat in the can for maybe 4months. This was the same gas I used the last fishing venture in late fall 2012. I added new gas and STABIL to the old gas. I think that consation was in that old gas. I was told not use any gas older than threemonths, but I have been told by others I should good if I treat the older gas with a stabilizer.

wherearethefish, not sure how that would make your motor not turn over? But yes regular gas should be treated with a fuel stabilzer the same day you put it in the can or asap, NOT two months down the road it will not help old gas at all. I buy none ethanol gas here in Puyallup for all my boats and still ad stabilizer to it. Its 4.85 a gallon but worth the extra upfront. Also don't mix old gas with new ever.

Water in the head comes from when you run it on the hose it cools the motor. Most outboards will drain when left upright but if you laid it down over the winter and it froze and cracked the motor you will have water in the oil and it will be white and creamy. If your still stuck let me know and I can try and make a trip over to try and help you figure it out. Good luck.

Bent rod is correct... Squirt a bit of oil down the plug hole and let sit overnight..... Try turning flywheel by hand to loosen it up.... if it doesnt free up with the oil and breaking it loose by hand, then you may have a much bigger problem that a shop will need to fix.

It is in the shop at Tacoma Boat. The service rep suspected blown HG. I suspected the same, but do not know how it happened. The rep mentioned if I used the connection line located at the top left side for flushing the housing, that would have been the cause for the problem. I knew that, so not an issue for me. I hope the warranty covers the repair.

chaching...chaching..chaching

So, is that what's wrong with it and how much?

Never mix old and new gas? What's all that about? I thought there weree some products that will refresh old gas. Shop says blown head gasket I call BS on that too, I mean run it till it drives and throw it in the garage come back and won't turn over. We need some more details.

I dont see how a blown head gasket would keep the motor from turning over. If anything it would lower compression and make it easier.

I'm interested to see what they say it actually was. From what Ive heard, Yamaha is pretty good with warranty claims so hope it goes well for you.

Im also curious about the comments about the built in flushing attachment on the motor. Yamaha says it is fine to use that or the muffs on the lower unit for flushing, so why would the rep say other wise? Also, how could using the flushing attachment cause a blown head gasket?

My T8 had the flushing attachment so simple to flush the motor no need for muffs. Maybe still stuck in gear?

A few thing could have happened to make it seize after or during shut down. If the head gasket was bad it could have easily failed as the engine ran on for a few seconds at shut down and dumped water into the bores. Pretty typical of marine engines due to valve timing. After the water is in there, it's very easy to corrode the pistons to the bore and stopping the whole show. If the head gasket isn't bad the engine could have run on at shut down, pumping water up through the exhaust system into the bores through the exhaust valves, again water sitting in the bore, corrodes pistons to the bore. In both cases, the head gasket itself has not seized the motor but sitting over the winter leaves plenty of time to lock it up tight.

In any event, it's all speculation unless we are the ones taking the engine apart or are receiving the failed parts for inspection. If the motor is seized to the point it can't be turned over, it will require an entire overhaul, at a minimum honing the cylinders and replacing the pistons, rings and most likely the bottom end bearings. Water inside an engine does very bad things.

Bodofish wrote:A few thing could have happened to make it seize after or during shut down. If the head gasket was bad it could have easily failed as the engine ran on for a few seconds at shut down and dumped water into the bores. Pretty typical of marine engines due to valve timing. After the water is in there, it's very easy to corrode the pistons to the bore and stopping the whole show. If the head gasket isn't bad the engine could have run on at shut down, pumping water up through the exhaust system into the bores through the exhaust valves, again water sitting in the bore, corrodes pistons to the bore. In both cases, the head gasket itself has not seized the motor but sitting over the winter leaves plenty of time to lock it up tight.

In any event, it's all speculation unless we are the ones taking the engine apart or are receiving the failed parts for inspection. If the motor is seized to the point it can't be turned over, it will require an entire overhaul, at a minimum honing the cylinders and replacing the pistons, rings and most likely the bottom end bearings. Water inside an engine does very bad things.

Bingo.

SB - There is no product you can add to old, stale, fuel that has lost it's octane rating that will "restore" it. There are products you can add to fresh fuel that will maintain fuel quality for up to a year, but once it's degraded, best to empty the tank, use it in your lawn equipment or dispose of it. IMO, for the money we spend on motors, even small kickers, it isn't worth the risk for a tank of gas, whether it's 3 gallons, 50, or more. This is precisely why I never add fuel to my tank without treating it at the same time.

A quick reply responding to a couple above comments. The attached hose fitting on the new Yamaha 8hp is used only for flushing the block and housing with the motor not running. The ear muffs still have to be used to properly flush the lower unit. The motor is in the shop. I thought about tearing into the darn thing myself, but that might have voided the warranty. I will post a note regarding work performed when I get it back.

Gotta love a warranty, thanks hewes for the clarification on the fuel.