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This has been an ongoing saga for some time and I'm about over it. I'm looking for the easy way out that doesn't break the bank, but I'm guess there isn't one. Back in early 2019 I changed all of the manifolds, risers and elbows on my 2003 280 Sundancer as a preventative method. No other real...

Hello all, So I started the generator yesterday and it was not sucking water and there was no water coming out of the exhaust. I had replaced the impeller two years ago after it disintegrated and it basically has less than 1 hour of runtime on it since then. So I took off the impeller cover and...

Late last fall I pulled the sterndrive unit and replaced the water pump as preventative maintenance. So I had to remove the 6 bolts that join the drive shaft (upper) housing to the gear (lower) housing. Easy enough job...I've last did it a few years ago, no issues. Put it all back together and...

I'm to the point of installing the distributor in my brand-new 4.3 MPI engine. I have the engine at TDC on the #1 cylinder, ready for it to be installed. According to the manual (specifically for 4.3MPI), shown below, I aligned the tang of the rotor between the two marks. Between these two marks...

Hello all, I'm having an issue where my starboard trim won't go down at switch but will go down at solenoid when jumped to test according to the Mercruiser manual. So unfortunately the solenoid is good, which means it's either a wiring issue, or more likely an issue with the button on the dual...

Hey all, back in late 2018 one of the 4.3MPI engines on my boat suffered hydro-lock. After removing the spark plugs, there was water in the #2 and #4 cylinders. I got it running again and it ran just fine. A couple of weeks later it happened again. And then again. When I finally brought the boat...

A few weeks ago my 280DA starboard engine wouldn't turn over. Thankfully the port engine fired right up and I wasn't far from home. I knew the Optima marine battery that is connected to the starboard engine (and generator) was getting old (2012!). So I assumed that was the problem. Purchased a...

My engine hatch on my 2003 280 Sundancer has two gas cylinders/struts; one on each side. The starboard side strut has started to pop off its connection, at the forward location on the boat floor. The other end on the hatch has been fine. These struts are the original Ameritool brand that came on...

I noticed a small oil slick behind my boat last weekend when I put it in the water, from up on the lift. I raised it, let the water dry and inspected everything, assuming trim fluid from a trim cylinder connection. All dry. Then I noticed gear oil leaking off the lower skeg. Looking inside the...

So I am needing to replace some of the canvas tops on my boat and have always liked the look of black. So this would be an opportunity to switch over all of my canvas, beginning with the three tops, and then later the rear camper pieces (rarely used). This is the original canvas, so they've...

So I'm asking for advice to see if I may have done something incorrectly or overlooked something...though I know where to begin. Always helpful to bounce ideas off of all of you! At the end of last season, my starboard engine was having a hard time starting. So before I ran it this season, I...

I have three Optima D31M batteries on my '03 280DA. They are now 4 years old. I noticed some issues with one and tested all of the batteries with a tester I have. It indicated that both of my house batteries were bad. They tested as having barely 100CCA. After doing a lot of reading on the...

A long time ago, fellow forum member Stray Cat wrote a post about this little gem, the Parker electric fuel valve that exists on many Sea Ray boats (http://clubsearay.com/showthread.php/23308-Parker-Skinner-Fuel-Solenoid-Manual-Overide, picture below). The 3 that are in my 280DA, while they...

So I am finally going to install fuel boost pumps on my twin 4.3MPI engines to hopefully once and for all fix my vapor lock problems I've had over the years. My simple question is...for those that have them installed on their 280DA (or similar twin engine Sea Ray), where is the boost pump and...

I have been troubleshooting my trim tab issues and have now figured out a problem...but have no idea how to fix it. Any thoughts or help would be appreciated! I completely disconnected the Bennett trim tab motor/pump. In the ER behind the port engine, I have 5 wires...black (ground) and four to...

On my 280DA, I've been having this issue lately where when I press the starboard side control panel bilge light button, the horn will blow, and the bilge light will turn on. Pressing again will blow the horn again and the light will go off. Similarly, pressing the horn button will make the...

So I'm an issue keeping my engine from running. The engine shut down on me a couple weeks ago while at idle, docking the boat. Couldn't restart. Dug out the fuel pressure gauge and determined I had no pressure, and then realized I couldn't hear the fuel pump prime when the engine switch was...

I'm having an odd issue with my multi-button helm control pads lately on the boat. I'm not sure if there is a short in it or not. (what is the official term for these pads?) On the starboard pad, now when I press the horn button, all that happens is my bilge lights go on! The little green light...

Over the past two seasons my Lofrans Marlin low profile windlass has been giving me trouble. I always receive +12V to the windlass motor terminals using the helm switches or the foot switches. And all I usually get back is a very audible "click". After speaking with Imtra via email, we believe...

And so, the saga continues... Over the last couple of years I've been battling vapor lock in my twin 4.3MPI's. I've gotten better about dealing with it and preventing it but in some circumstances it's hard to avoid a scenario that will make it happen (re-fueling at a fuel dock, fishing). Over...