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I have a “puzzle” that I’m hoping someone can help me with. I have a 2017 Suzuki 150 motor on my 21’ Bay Boat. I have never had any issues with the motor and the boat is stored inside a garage when not in use. I was unable to use my boat the first half of this year. In late June I finally took it out for a fishing trip. The boat/motor ran great all day with no issues. The motor was started and stopped multiple times as I went to several locations looking for fish. I had put a total of 28 miles on the boat when I left my last stop and was heading back to the boat landing. The motor started fine and I pushed the throttle down to bring the boat up to cruising speed. The motor acted normally and the boat came up on plane. This lasted for about 10 seconds and then the motor abruptly stopped and cut off. There was no “sputtering” or “missing” sound. The motor just quit. On my Simrad display I got an error message that said “low fuel” or something to that effect. I could not restart the motor and ultimately had to make my very first call to Towboat US and get towed back to the ramp.
I suspected a problem with the fuel filter or the fuel/water separator or the fuel pump. I was confident there was plenty of gas in the boat. I have a 61 gallon tank. I am particular about tracking fuel usage and entering any fuel added into the Suzuki Model C10 display. My Simrad fuel “calculation” said I had 47 gallons. The level on my C10 display which is from the fuel tank sending unit showed 78%, so both of these were in agreement. After I got home, I removed the fuel filter and examined it. It was half full of fuel. The fuel was clean/clear and the filter itself was brown in color but did not show any excess contamination. I decided to take the boat to a Suzuki dealer to troubleshoot the problem. They were backed up with work, so I’ve just recently got the boat back. A new fuel filter and a new fuel/water separator were both installed. But other than that, they didn’t repair anything else. The mechanic told me they just added 10 gallons of gas, primed the fuel to the motor, and it started up. They took it down to the river and ran it for a few minutes and it worked fine. The mechanic believes the fuel tank was empty. He said the “computer calculation” of fuel usage was probably off and that over time the fuel level was getting lower and lower. I took the boat home and started the motor up and let it run for about 10 minutes with no issues.
My dilemma is I don’t know what caused my original problem. I don’t believe the fuel tank was empty. Both independent fuel level values said I had plenty of fuel. And to affirm this belief, I took the boat to a gas station and filled it up and could only add 9 gallons to the tank. In addition, I accessed the fuel tank level sending unit and removed it to inspect the inside of the tank. The fuel was clear, the tank was clean, and the level was within 1 inch of the rim. So either the old fuel filter or fuel/water separator caused the original problem or something else did which makes me nervous about taking my next trip too far from the boat ramp.
I know this is a long post, but I wanted to provide as much detail as possible. Has anyone else ever had something similar to occur? Does anyone have any thoughts about what caused my problem? I would be grateful for any guidance. Thank you.
I suspected a problem with the fuel filter or the fuel/water separator or the fuel pump. I was confident there was plenty of gas in the boat. I have a 61 gallon tank. I am particular about tracking fuel usage and entering any fuel added into the Suzuki Model C10 display. My Simrad fuel “calculation” said I had 47 gallons. The level on my C10 display which is from the fuel tank sending unit showed 78%, so both of these were in agreement. After I got home, I removed the fuel filter and examined it. It was half full of fuel. The fuel was clean/clear and the filter itself was brown in color but did not show any excess contamination. I decided to take the boat to a Suzuki dealer to troubleshoot the problem. They were backed up with work, so I’ve just recently got the boat back. A new fuel filter and a new fuel/water separator were both installed. But other than that, they didn’t repair anything else. The mechanic told me they just added 10 gallons of gas, primed the fuel to the motor, and it started up. They took it down to the river and ran it for a few minutes and it worked fine. The mechanic believes the fuel tank was empty. He said the “computer calculation” of fuel usage was probably off and that over time the fuel level was getting lower and lower. I took the boat home and started the motor up and let it run for about 10 minutes with no issues.
My dilemma is I don’t know what caused my original problem. I don’t believe the fuel tank was empty. Both independent fuel level values said I had plenty of fuel. And to affirm this belief, I took the boat to a gas station and filled it up and could only add 9 gallons to the tank. In addition, I accessed the fuel tank level sending unit and removed it to inspect the inside of the tank. The fuel was clear, the tank was clean, and the level was within 1 inch of the rim. So either the old fuel filter or fuel/water separator caused the original problem or something else did which makes me nervous about taking my next trip too far from the boat ramp.
I know this is a long post, but I wanted to provide as much detail as possible. Has anyone else ever had something similar to occur? Does anyone have any thoughts about what caused my problem? I would be grateful for any guidance. Thank you.
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