Pumploading959

The rain took a break and I decided to go for it and take a spin. My 2001 Mercury 90 two-stroke is a miserable starting engine. She smokes, kicks like a mule and coughs. Once she is hot, she screams and has been a very good engine.

Sure enough the rain started up again, but I just did not care. I was dressed right (except for my bare feet) and had a smile on my face half a mile wide.

It's not a choke, it's a primer.

It doesn't work if the ignition is off.

One push makes the solenoid operate once so holding it doesn't do anything.

In my outboard experience, it is usually best to pump the fuel line primer bulb until it gets stiff, push the 'choke' once or twice, turn the motor over a few times, and then re-pump the primer bulb.

Your outboard really shouldn't run too roughly at idle, though many do. I would consider your outboard to be newer and a tune up might be in order. My 1995 Mariner 115 starts and idles nicely.

On my yamaha control, the chokes are controlled with a momentary toggle switch, but the procedure should be the same.

I start with a fair amount of throttle, make sure the primer bulb is pumped up hard, and generally keep the choke engaged while cranking until the engine fires. I won't crank more than about 5 seconds without pausing, and it almost never takes more than 2 tries.

A conventional 2 stroke is hard to start, very hard to start, if you don't use the choke properly.

David

When you push that button in you are priming the engine.

Good advice jimh, I looked in the owner's manual.

we have a 1996 ELPTO 90 two stroke she starts first time and as we don't have the throttle advance due to using a foot throttle has to Idle straight away. I think get it tuned and make sure your using surface discharge plugs and good oil.

Matthew describes exactly how to start this engine without any problems.

Last week I went fishing and a couple of friends joined me in their aluminium fishing boats. It was -8°C (17.5°F) outside and parts of the lake were frozen over. My Mercury engine was the only engine that started without any trouble what so ever. The two Honda 50's on the aluminium boats had quite a lot of problems getting started.

Erik

You can tell when it needs a bump when it ends up sounding like its gonna cut off. This also works on my friends' suzuki and I imagine any similar motor. You just have to get a feel for it.

This also avoid flooding it which so many people do.

My 1988 Yamaha 70 HP 2S is a bit fiesty when she feels neglected more than a week. I found the best way to be forgiven is to use the manual choke on the engine when I start her up. Generally the electric choke by the keyswitch works fine works fine when she has been sitting only 1 few days or so. Additionally, she requires no such prompting when she has been run within a 24 hour period.

I also tell her that we are in the driveway, and not dockside. She falls for that everytime. Hell to pay if I neglect to inform her of her whereabouts, or to use the manual choke for longer periods of neglect. Don't forget to prime the bulb. Runs like a terror after all is forgiven.

As mentioned above, there are various methods of providing a richer fuel:air mixture during starting. If the precise method is fully understood by the operator, perhaps it may lead to better starting. But even an operator who has no grasp of what happens when he pushes a button will be able to start the engine if he follows the directions on when to push the button.

Some engines also change the ignition timing during start and warm-up to enhance the performance.

I have found that engine manuals are not all that great. I find that for both my 4 stoke Yamaha and my 4 stroke Merc. the manuals give way too little information and are often pretty generic.

This is a great site to get these kind of questions answered, almost always quicker than the 45 minutes on hold when calling the dealer!