Leaking VRO on 1998 60 hp Johnson S/N: G 04400322

[eliteangler]

Model number: J60TLECM. Serial Number: G 04400322

My buddy has a boat that was given to him by his uncle. He has a service manual, parts manual, and owner's manual. I was over there tonight to test run the motor for the first time since he brought the boat home. We installed a brand new fuel tank, new fuel line (with primer) and new battery. As he pumped the primer bulb for the first time, I watched for leaks around the fuel line connection and all the way to the VRO. I noticed a small amount of fuel come out of the screw hole that is closest to the port side of the engine. We used a torx bit and found that the screw was fairly loose. We tightened it up snug and now when he pumps the bulb, fuel is coming out of the seem between the two VRO casing halves. I asked him if he knew what had been done to the motor recently and he said his uncle had taken it into a shop (don't know which one or who) and had a tune up done. Ever since the tune up, his uncle would have to pump the bulb a considerable amount before he could get the engine to run. We believe that the leak was the issue, and a dangerous one on top of it. So... for the experts... have you seen the VRO form a leak in this area, or do you think that the o-ring that seals the two casing halves could have been installed incorrectly or maybe even torn during installation? I am just curious if we can get by with purchasing a rebuild kit for the VRO. Thanks in advance for any help or advice.

[eliteangler]

Well... My buddy decided to go a different route. He bought a OMC fuel pump that will work off of the pulse and we are deleting the VRO. He will be pre-mixing the fuel at 50:1. Has anybody ever done this to one? I'd like to hear if there are any drawbacks. Thanks.

[ChampioNman]

No issues doing that. Works quite well actually.

[eliteangler]

No issues doing that. Works quite well actually.

Thanks for the reply. After looking it up on various forums and watching a couple of YouTube videos, it does seem as though this will work quite well. The only hard part of this will be fabricating a new mounting bracket for the new pump. And even that won't be that big of an issue. I will update the thread after we start and run the engine.

[ChampioNman]

You shouldn't have to fabricate anything, if you look just ahead of the starter, you'll see two unused screw holes on either side of either a large screw or Allen head set screw. You remove the large screw and attach the fuel pump there it mounts to the block and uses the vacuum from the crank case you will have to use a pipe plug to seal off the pulse limiter on the bottom of the block. Or he can get a three pipe pump that uses the existing pulse limiter and still attach the pump to the block and then no need to remove the large screw from the block.

[bluecrab]

I replaced mine with the max rules one and it even came with its own bracket that uses the same holes as the VRO, have to trim it a bit but works very good

[eliteangler]

The fuel pump he bought is 438559. It has fuel in, fuel out, and pulse in from crankcase. We are planning to just hook it up exactly like the VRO was hooked up, except for the oil side. I will have him look for those mounting holes. You say ahead of the starter, do you mean towards the boat or towards the back of the engine? Thanks again.

[ChampioNman]

Between the starter and the carbs. Should be between #1 and #2 cylinder.

[ChampioNman]

I replaced mine with the max rules one and it even came with its own bracket that uses the same holes as the VRO, have to trim it a bit but works very good

You have a different block.

[eangler]

Hi guys, I'm the owner of the boat. My buddy started the thread mostly cause I'm a little new to this and I don't post much. So I couldn't find the mounting spot specified earlier. In my service manual it shows a picture of the new pump mounted where my solenoid is mounted so I opted to do a little fabrication. Not much really, just a piece of sheet metal screwed to the original VRO mounting plate. It worked out well. Everything lined up fine and the mount is solid. We took it to the lake this evening and it fired right up. We noticed it vibrated quite a bit a low idle but when given throttle it smoothed right out and purred like a kitten and was surprisingly quiet. We ran it around the lake a couple of times at full throttle without a hiccup. All in all I call it a success. Before today I never even heard it run. I'm still concerned about the low idle vibration. Maybe a clogged idle jet? Maybe the prop is out of balance? I don't want to run it again till I get a clue out of fear of starving a cylinder at idle. Please tell me what I'm not thinking of. I'd be glad to hear it.

Hey Eliteangler, feel free to chime in on any observations I'm forgetting.

[eliteangler]

Hi guys, I'm the owner of the boat. My buddy started the thread mostly cause I'm a little new to this and I don't post much. So I couldn't find the mounting spot specified earlier. In my service manual it shows a picture of the new pump mounted where my solenoid is mounted so I opted to do a little fabrication. Not much really, just a piece of sheet metal screwed to the original VRO mounting plate. It worked out well. Everything lined up fine and the mount is solid. We took it to the lake this evening and it fired right up. We noticed it vibrated quite a bit a low idle but when given throttle it smoothed right out and purred like a kitten and was surprisingly quiet. We ran it around the lake a couple of times at full throttle without a hiccup. All in all I call it a success. Before today I never even heard it run. I'm still concerned about the low idle vibration. Maybe a clogged idle jet? Maybe the prop is out of balance? I don't want to run it again till I get a clue out of fear of starving a cylinder at idle. Please tell me what I'm not thinking of. I'd be glad to hear it.

Hey Eliteangler, feel free to chime in on any observations I'm forgetting.

Ethan,

I think you covered everything. I agree that we need to figure out why it idles rough. It also misses and shakes at idle when not in gear, so I really don't believe it's a prop issue. I could be wrong though.

[ChampioNman]

I would consult the service manual and perform a sync n link along with cleaning the carbs.

[eliteangler]

I would consult the service manual and perform a sync n link along with cleaning the carbs.

We haven't had a chance to work on it yet, but if things pan out, I will be over there tomorrow evening to help him work on it. He is doing some wiring on accessories tonight. Thanks for the advice and we will keep the thread updated.

[eliteangler]

Update: We found the hose that supplies the pulse from the crankcase to be loose at the input to the fuel pump. We repaired that and unfortunately could only test the engine on the muffs. It appeared to idle smoother than before, but without being in the water it is hard to tell (no back pressure and no load). We will take it to the lake when time and weather allow. However, we did see a few places where water was coming out and wanted to make sure this is normal operation as neither of us have ever owned a Johnson outboard. The pics below show where the water was coming out. Two of them are what looks to be holes that were designed to be there. The other is where the covers go over the zinc plates on the lower unit. Is this normal to have water coming out of these three locations? Thanks in advance.Johnson1.jpgJohnson2.jpgJohnson3.jpg

[ChampioNman]

Normal.

[eliteangler]

Normal.

Awesome. Thanks! We will run it on the lake as soon as we can and update the thread.

[eangler]

Champion,
We really appreciate all of your help on this motor. I'm starting to build confidence that it won't leave me stranded on the water.