2005 Mercury Optimax--Smartcraft Alarm..

[jseasor]

just bought the new boat, everything runs great. it has 91 hours on with engine warranty left til march 2011. ive never had a smartcraft gauge, but i was ideling up into a long no wake cove and after about 10 minutes of ideling i get an alarm. i look at my gauge and it shows what i believe is a check engine picture, i think in the bottom right hand of the gauge. i shut off the engine and it works fine the rest of the way. did the same thing on the way out. water PSI is great, temp. is fine, everything checks out on the gauge. what could this be?

[Bosco122]

It sounds like a thermostat problem to me. You said your temp was fine but the alarm will go off if you have a stat which is stuck open. What is your engine temp?If the engine will not warm to proper temp and after a few minutes the alarm will sound. If it is a stat, it is an easy fix. Good luck

[EuropeanAM]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Bosco122 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">It sounds like a thermostat problem to me. You said your temp was fine but the alarm will go off if you have a stat which is stuck open. What is your engine temp?If the engine will not warm to proper temp and after a few minutes the alarm will sound. If it is a stat, it is an easy fix. Good luck</TD></TR></TABLE>

+1

There are also DOZENS of other possible faults. Anything short of a Computer Diagnostic (to read the Freeze Frame (FAULT) History) is "guesswork".

One of the more common causes of your complaint is "low battery voltage". These engines require a BARE MINIMUM of 800 CCA or 1000 MCA at ANY GIVEN TIME. So if you only have the "minimum capacity battery".... and you run graphs/pumps for an hour while fishing.... you'll be left with "low voltage and/or battery capacity" problems.

Also note: battery connections should be made with Stainless Steel Locknuts (we DON'T use wingnuts on the battery connected to these engines).

[jseasor]

i can run all day up on plane and this never happens, only on extremely long idle's. thats what i dont understand..

[EuropeanAM]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jseasor &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i can run all day up on plane and this never happens, only on extremely long idle's. thats what i dont understand..</TD></TR></TABLE>

That could indeed be a sticking (or debris laden) thermostat. At low RPM's, the PCM on the engine looks for the engine to come "up to temp" (and if it does NOT, on EITHER SIDE, it sets a "Thermostat Fault").

I still feel a Computer Diagnostic is your best starting point..... if you have this done, try to obtain a printout of the fault history (would be more than happy to take a look at it for you).

[taeheel2az]

I have the Smartcraft gauge on my 06 Opti 225 and watch the temp routinely. Even after good warm up with the temp rising to the thermostat temp and then falling back to 120 + or -, like you if I idle for a while (like watching side scan sonar along a bank), the temp starts to rise. Momentarily goosing the RPMs up a few hundred causes the temp to drop immediately.

I'm gonna check my thermostats, but if I understand what a poppet valve does (and I may have it all wrong), it may be sticking at idle speed. At idle speed water pressure is a touch over 5 pounds according to the gauge.

I have no other temp issues at any speed or duration of run.

[EuropeanAM]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by taeheel2az &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I have the Smartcraft gauge on my 06 Opti 225 and watch the temp routinely. Even after good warm up with the temp rising to the thermostat temp and then falling back to 120 + or -, like you if I idle for a while (like watching side scan sonar along a bank), the temp starts to rise. Momentarily goosing the RPMs up a few hundred causes the temp to drop immediately.

I'm gonna check my thermostats, but if I understand what a poppet valve does (and I may have it all wrong), it may be sticking at idle speed. At idle speed water pressure is a touch over 5 pounds according to the gauge.

I have no other temp issues at any speed or duration of run.</TD></TR></TABLE>

Poppet valve controls water pressure and flow at higher RPM's (essentially, it begins to open at approximately 7 psi water pressure).

At idle speed, it should remain CLOSED, allowing the thermostats to control water flow.

[taeheel2az]

Will I need a new thermostat gasket?

[Bosco122]

Depends. You can use the old gaskets if they dont tear removing the t stats. When mine clogged I used new gaskets for piece of mind. The gaskets cost very little.

[EuropeanAM]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Bosco122 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The gaskets cost very little. </TD></TR></TABLE>

Part# 27-8503181 ($2.60 retail price)

[jseasor]

finally got around to taking it to the shop today (weather permitting finally) i had 19 seconds of over rev, which im assuming happened on plane with the jackplate. (ive only put 3 hours on it out of 91 total). anyways, i had a thermostat alarm. mechanic said that there could be some debris in the thermostat and since its never been done that i should go ahead and replace the water pump. he also mentioned something about cleaning out the lower unit housing because there are port holes in the front of it that allow debris to set up and form?? he said he would clean it out, check the thermostat and replace water pump for around $150 bucks depending on time. is this a good price? BTW: European..you were right..
oh..when i came home i went ahead and hooked a water hose up to the back of the engine and ran some stabil through it. after 8 minutes of running it, the same alarm went off again.

[EuropeanAM]

$150 is a very fair price for those items!

BTW.... I would also recommend removing BOTH thermostats (for cleaning/inspection), AND removal of the poppet valve (could even run the engine for 20-30 seconds on the hose with the poppet valve removed to help flush out any remaining debris).

[nightrider23]

I have a 2005 standard 225 opti max and I had that same situation. If I was putting in gear for a longer than 5 minutes or so the smart craft monitor would beep once and show the engine symbol flashing. My temp would be about 125 degrees, but my water pressure was 1.5 lbs, so after recreating the same situation a few times I concluded on my own that if I'm running under 3 lbs of water pressure at my slow putting speed longer than 5 minutes the smartcraft monitor would kick on the check engine symbol. I have had the water pump changed and the thermostats check and it hasn't fixed the low water pressure at that slow speed so Im going to look for debri in the poppit valve next.

[jseasor]

Yep he said he was gonna remove/inspect
the thermostat, it was included in price. I'll mention the poppet valves needing to be
inspected. Would this cost much more?<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by EuropeanAM &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">$150 is a very fair price for those items!

BTW.... I would also recommend removing BOTH thermostats (for cleaning/inspection), AND removal of the poppet valve (could even run the engine for 20-30 seconds on the hose with the poppet valve removed to help flush out any remaining debris). </TD></TR></TABLE>

[EuropeanAM]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by jseasor &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I'll mention the poppet valves needing to be
inspected. Would this cost much more?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Poppet valve should be a VERY minimal expense (about 1/2 hour labor or less, plus parts, which shouldn't exceed $30)

[bryce600rr]

i have mine in the shop right now for the same alarm/situations as the OP. hopefully they will call today and let me know what the alarm was.. i would say it is the same thing as everyone else, thermostat and poppet valve.. my engine is still under warranty, will this be covered ??

[EuropeanAM]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bryce600rr &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">my engine is still under warranty, will this be covered ??</TD></TR></TABLE>

If it's a "Defect in Materials or Workmanship": Yes.

If it's due to debris, lack of required maintenance (including water pump), etc... then: No....

[bryce600rr]

Don you have a IM.. let me know what ya think

[bryce600rr]

well i just got off the phone with the "Certified Merc tech".. they told me it was the water pump impelle. so i told them that was weird because i had just replaced the impeller about 3 months ago.. he sat there quietly for a second and then said something about the pick up screen being dirty.. btw they went ahead and replaced the impeller and then decided to call and tell me what was wrong and that it was fixed and ready to go... i work at a chevy dealership and we dont fix anything without a customer approval first.. wtf?
i also dont think this is going to fix my problem.. what do you guys think?

[EuropeanAM]

Unless the impeller had been run "dry" (or starved for water), or the water pump was improperly assembled, I highly doubt that it was the "problem".

"Pickup Screen" (if he's referring to the compressor screen), is a possibility..... time will tell.

Be sure to report back and let us know how it does!