2002 8.1 beeping under way

frosh coach

Member
Apr 20, 2011
237
Long Island Sound, New Haven CT
Boat Info
1997 300 DA,
1994 300 DA (SOLD)
1989 230 (SOLD)
Engines
Twin Mercruiser 350 FWC, 300 HP MPI V-drives
My father has a 02 34 Amberjack with 8.1's. Last week he noticed he gets a beeping once in a while underway on plane. All gauges are reading ok. Any idea what this might be?

Thanks,
Chris
 
My father has a 02 34 Amberjack with 8.1's. Last week he noticed he gets a beeping once in a while underway on plane. All gauges are reading ok. Any idea what this might be?

Thanks,
Chris
You didn't say what drives you have, but... my bravo 3 does that when the drive fluid is low. Mo messages on the smart craft, just the beep. My drive fluid goes low after a service, as trapped air bubbles work their way out. The overflow bottle and sensor is on top front of the engine. You might check all flood levels just to be sure.
 
You didn't say what drives you have, but... my bravo 3 does that when the drive fluid is low. Mo messages on the smart craft, just the beep. My drive fluid goes low after a service, as trapped air bubbles work their way out. The overflow bottle and sensor is on top front of the engine. You might check all flood levels just to be sure.

These are straight inboards.
 
what kind of alarm do you have going on? solid or beeping...?

Constant tone alarms are for:
1.) engine coolant temp overheat,
2.) low engine oil pressure,
3.) engine overspeed,
4.) exhaust manifold cooling temp overheat
5.) sea pump PSI low (FYI This is kind of common, And is said to not show up in the history. The only way to know is to watch this sensor live as it happens. Make sure all you grounds are tight on and around the engine. And if this sensor has any paint on it it could be losing it's ground and sounding the alarm. Or you could have picked up some air bubbles for a short time till you slowed down, Or the impeller, or impeller housing is starting to fail. This is Just a thought of what could be happening is all. Good luck with it.)

Constant beep alarms are for:
1.) low outdrive lube level.

Two Alarm beeps every 60 seconds are for:
1.) Faulty cam,
2.) IAC,
3.) MAP,
4.) MAT,
5.) knock sensors.
6.) open/short in the engine cooling temp circuit
7.) open/short in fuel injector wiring circuit,
8.) open/short in oil PSI circuit,
9.) open/short in exhaust manifold cooling temp circuit,
10.) open/short in sea pump circuit,
11.) open/short in throttle position circuit


you can check some of the sensors google how to Om them out and things.
 
Thanks for the info, I'll pass it along to him.
I had a similar situation. If there is a small amount of water in my bilge it won't trip the pump on but when the boat goes up on plane the water goes to the rear and the pump and alarm comes on for a second or two. Took me a while to figure this out
 
Update, now the engine won't stay running at an idle. Nudge it up to 1100 rpm and she runs like a champ. Time to call the mechanic.
 
Update, now the engine won't stay running at an idle. Nudge it up to 1100 rpm and she runs like a champ. Time to call the mechanic.
The IAC might be the culprit, especially if you're having that problem, and it's a 2 beep per minute code. I had that on my port 8.1 and it was a bad Idle Air Control.
 
you can use a autoparts store version for a car and they are alot cheaper... some keep one as a spare on board. 49 bucks i think. and 2-3 bolts (small 10mm) and a electrical connector and you back in business. if worried can swap to new marin part once back at dock. or run the cheap one till it dies.
 
I got my iac from Autozone a couple of years ago. It's the same part for an 8.1 chevy truck as the 8.1 Merc with the only visible difference is it being unpainted metal vs Merc Black. Like always, the Merc price was much higher than the Autozone price.
 
I got my iac from Autozone a couple of years ago. It's the same part for an 8.1 chevy truck as the 8.1 Merc with the only visible difference is it being unpainted metal vs Merc Black. Like always, the Merc price was much higher than the Autozone price.
Thanks Jimmy. He has the same boat as you except it's an 2002
 

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