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2012 GCW won't respond

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Luv2BeCruisin

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Commerce, MI
It has been hot in Michigan these past few weeks. Most of our time has been spend on short cruises and anchoring to swim. So the batteries (we have 2 of them) have not been charged well. So this past Friday night, we were out with friends and when we were ready to head in (in the dark of course) the boat wouldn't start. Luckily the boat started on battery 2 alone after a few minutes. We went to go run the engine today but it wouldn't crank, click, or anything. The trim control on our Yamaha F150 four stroke motor works but not from the throttle. The accessory power is working okay, but the gauges do not come on. I took the 2nd battery out to test it and found it was dead. So, it charged all day today. When I put it back on the boat, in series with battery 1, it still wouldn't respond. The first battery is on the charger now but my tester says that its not dead. I checked the fuses under the helm and on the motor and the kill switch. Nothing out of the ordinary there. I keep thinking that I am missing something stupid. I was hoping you fine folks could help me. Otherwise its the dealer tomorrow. Thanks for reading about my issue.
 
Two quick comments...

A 12 volt battery is pretty much dead at 12v... A full battery is 12.6 volts. If you are using an analog meter, its too hard to read the difference. Plus the meter could be off

Also, if you charged one, and paralleled it with the dead battery, the dead battery would drain the good one.

Fully charge both, then put both back in the boat and try it again.

That would be my advice.

Good luck!
 
Ok, this might sound stupid, and I've done it before (only once, I've learned from it), ia the boat in neutral? I've moved the throttle when putting the cover on and bumped it with my elbow before so it can happen. It doesn't have to move much for the neutral sefety switch to disconnect. I've done it and I'll bet there aren't many people who can say they haven't B)
 
Good thought. I've done that too. Result was about three seconds of panic, followed by reaching down and wiggling the throttle! Started right up. Big relief because we were out in the middle of nowhere with a boatload of people.

For others reading this that have not done this, tuck cwag's thought in the back of your mind, because it will happen to you sooner or later.
 
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cwag911 said:
Ok, this might sound stupid, and I've done it before (only once, I've learned from it), ia the boat in neutral? I've moved the throttle when putting the cover on and bumped it with my elbow before so it can happen. It doesn't have to move much for the neutral sefety switch to disconnect. I've done it and I'll bet there aren't many people who can say they haven't B)
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I do not mean to hijack the thread............but I've done what CWAG911 and Kaydano did and I've also accidently knocked the lanyard off of the Safety kill switch and for a few seconds couldn't figure out why I couldn't start the boat..................

I agree w/Kaydano..........take both batteries out and give them a good solid charging. That should do it. They're brand new 2012 batteries.................
 
So, I put the other fully charged battery back in the boat. Using an electronic tester both batteries are reading 12.6v. Power trim on the motor is still working but there is still nothing from the throttle trim control or the key start. We played with the throttle as well thinking that somehow it might not be thinking its in neutral but to no avail. This is just too weird for me. The radio, my lights, and fish finder are working. The gauge lights are not coming on and motor doesn't even click like when the kill switch is not working right. Any other ideas? Thanks for the suggestions.
 
Take the cover off of the motor and check the fuses (should be under a plastic cover),and not just by sight, use a voltmeter or a GOOD test light. I've been fooled before in the car business.When I say GOOD, I mean one that protects electronics. There should also be a main fuse at the battery or maybe under the helm. What position is the battery switch set to?
 
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I am a car guy so I have that going for me. I checked every fuse I could find under the helm, back by the battery, and under the motor cover. I didn't think to check them all with a voltmeter. The fuses are all good size so I figured I could see if one of them was bad. The ones in place looked like the spares so I thought they must be okay. I am going with the dealer option in the morning. I will let you know what I find out. I love learning all the fun things about how my boat works. I am so glad that the boat is sitting at the dock at my house. Much better than being out on the water. :)
 
What cars do you work on? I worked for Porsche and Mercedes for 20+ years. The reason I mentioned the voltmeter or test light for the fuses is because I got "burned" (not literally) by a bad fuse in a 930 turbo that "looked good". Spent a whole day on a car that wouldn"t start because I thought the fuse was good. I learned my lesson. B)
 
During my college internships I worked on mostly GM, Ford, Mazda, Toyota and Honda. I did work on VWs, BMW, and Mercedes for a semester but that was it.
 
Just hoping it was a typo, but you said you hooked them up in series. I assume you meant parallel, as series would be 24 volts....
 
mtudb24 said:
Just hoping it was a typo, but you said you hooked them up in series. I assume you meant parallel, as series would be 24 volts....
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You would be correct. My batteries are factory installed in parallel with a switch.
 
I've learned the wiring schematics like the back of my hand. You have a short somewhere between your battery And helm. There should be one positive wire, one ground, and one cluster of several small wires bound together. This is the cluster that runs to your helm. Something has come loose or blown somewhere. If you have trim on your motor but not from your throttle, it is clear power is not getting to the throttle trim or ignition.
 
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Looks like a dealer trip is required. They will be out tomorrow I hope.
 
Do all the things not working go through the key switch? Maybe that is the problem.
 
I think his throttle power wire has come loose. It would keep the motor from starting just as leaving it in gear would (I've done this too). That power would also cause the gauge cluster for RPMs and speedo to quit.
 
Well, the dealer didn't send anyone out to my house. They couldn't squeeze me in. However, I figured it out for them. A rodent (likely a muskrat) chewed up my throttle to motor connection cable. Lucky for me only one wire out of the bundle was severed. The dealer estimates the repair at $1100. Of course, this is excluded from my insurance coverage. So, I fixed it myself for now. Maybe I will have it fixed at the end of the season. Thanks for all your help in troubleshooting my issue.

Now I need a rodent solution. The muskrat cage that the dealer has is $300 and permanently attached. I would prefer a removable solution. Any help there would be appreciated.
 
Luv2BeCruisin said:
Well, the dealer didn't send anyone out to my house. They couldn't squeeze me in. However, I figured it out for them. A rodent (likely a muskrat) chewed up my throttle to motor connection cable. Lucky for me only one wire out of the bundle was severed. The dealer estimates the repair at $1100. Of course, this is excluded from my insurance coverage. So, I fixed it myself for now. Maybe I will have it fixed at the end of the season. Thanks for all your help in troubleshooting my issue.

Now I need a rodent solution. The muskrat cage that the dealer has is $300 and permanently attached. I would prefer a removable solution. Any help there would be appreciated.
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Glad to hear that you diagnosed and fixed the problem.......... for now. $1100 seems excessive but you never know w/these dealers..........

When we were looking to buy our boat I noticed the cable leading to my depth finder was chewed up and seperated. It turns out that 14 boats in wet slips at the same time and marina also had their cables chewed. They found that it was muskrats who were the culprits. They do alot of damage...............
 
Does the center toon on the new ones have an oval hole at the bottom in the motor area. Our 2007 has one and that's where the muskrats got in and had a party before we got our lift. $2400.00 worth of wiring (engine harness)and fuel lines. It was however covered by our ins co. When we first got the boat, the salesman told me to put a rock by the hole as it would let water in and out but no critters. Well I didn't do it and the rest is history. While my dealer had the boat for repairs I brought him an aluminum plate that I drilled 1/2" holes in and they welded it over the hole. Problem solved and you can't see it when it's in the water. Might be an idea for you.
 
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