Introduction and bad first time boat experience

Hello everyone. I just bought my first boat. It's a 1986 19' Capri Bayliner with a weak 4 cyl Volvo inboard motor (it topped out at 35 mph, Lol). I bought the boat from a local marina here in the Rochester, NY area.

First they were supposed to have it ready for the fourth of July. Then they call me and tell me the boat wouldn't start and it needs a new distributor. Not good but since I had not taken delivery they have to fix it on thier dime. Finally on the 5th they say it's running and ready to go (even though the website said this boat was "ready for water" two weeks ago, Hmmm).

I pick up the boat and lifeguard kit and head for lake Ontario. I launch, run the blower for four minutes and then start her up for the first time (I was so excited). It started and died. This happened about 5 times before it finally held a 500 rpm idle. Gave it some throttle and it died. This happened a few more times before I decided that I should let the engine warm up a bit. I forget that the 80's technology wasn't that great and some older cars I used to have needed to be warmed up a bit. After 5 minutes I give some throttle, it sputters, almost dies but then kicks in and I'm doing 15 mph (WooHoo).

I head through bay and channel and eventually out in the lake. I cruise at 20 mph for about 5 minutes to make sure the engine is fully warmed up and then I go to full throttle to see what she can do (which I knew was going to be miniumal but I just want to be able to pull my older kids on tubes sometime). I climb to 35 and after about 2 minutes (if that) the engine dies. The boat wouldn't start after that. It cranked strong but acted like it was either not getting spark or not getting gas.

So I called the coast guard who come to give me a tow. They ask to see all my equipment and I show them I have everything. Then one of the officers asked me to beep the horn and it was dead. He said he normally has to give a ticket for this. But since I just bought a boat that didn't last ten minutes on the water he decided to give me a break.

So now the boat is back at the Marina I bought it from so they can look at the engine. I really hope I didn't buy a lemon.

Thanks for reading and I hope to learn a lot here.

 

So, the question is... How fast did you THINK it was going ot go?
What horsepower is the engine?

Steve

 

I was hoping 40-45 with just myself and one passenger. They told me it should hit 40 NP when I bought it and I think they said it was 115 HP but I'm not 100%. The boats back at the marina right now so I can't check.

I'm not going to water ski so big speed is not necassary but I would like to be able to pull a tube at a fun rate of speed with 4-5 passangers on board. But it is what it is. I just hope it gets fixed and stays running.

 

30 to 40 mph is a normal range for a boat of that type, vintage and power. Count yourself lucky if you ever get it over 35.

Engine, electrics and darn near everything else crapping out after five minutes is not normal. Surely your boatyard must have known the thing didn't work before they gave you the keys and cashed your cheque. Document everything- write down what happens every time and when, keep all your receipts, and make sure all communication with your boatyard is in writing. This way you can have a quick and easy win in small-claims court if the boatyard isn't co-operative. I'd have an independent mechanic (not your boatyard's guy) take a look at the motor, and give you a written opinion on what's wrong.

It sounds like other than the wonky motor you have a good boat for what you need. For tubing you usually run 20-25mph (most tubes say on the label what their towing speed is). While it's always a good idea to warm up the boat engine for a bit before gunning it, the 3.0 and 4.3 engines you see in just about all boats of this type both date back to the Seventies and can both run just fine after a minute of idle.

Sorry to hear about your not-so-great experience. Hopefully this will be resolved quickly.

 

Good luck with the boat. But don't worry! Boating is usually alot better than that.

 

Usually.....
Well, I haven't had THAT many motors crap out.... the 4.3 Cobra that threw a bearing last month (thankfully it seized the shaft and so stopped the motor, preventing a LOT more damage); the Suzuki 15 that blew a head gasket (and fired the chunks into the cooling lines, flooding one cylinder with water- amazingly, the thing managed to limp 3km back to the dock).....

But if you take care of your machinery, it will (usually) serve you well.

 

Those engines should idle at 650-725 RPM in gear. Also, they are notoriously hard to start cold. Give it three or four full throttle pumps before cranking.