STARTER DOES NOTHING  WHAT DO I DO?

  Many times you are in your boat and hit the key and NOTHING HAPPENS.

Do you panic or what?  This is a checklist of what to try.

1)  On the solenoid drive ( the large cylinder on top) of your starter there are four terminals. The larger is of course is the wire for 12 v + input for the starter.  The opposite side is a flat ribbon wire that enters the starter body, this is the feed for the motor itself.  the S terminal usually 1/4 turn clockwise from the input is the excite terminal. and the forth is the backfeed ignition terminal.

2) The main test for a starter is the motor test.  If you put a screwdriver or other metal object between the input terminal and the motor terminal. One of several things will happen.  With the stern light on jump the two terminals and see what happens. If the starter makes a mild spark and the stern light goes off, this indicated a bad connection or bad battery.  If the starter tries to turn but strains and the light dims, this is bad because the motor is bad and there re no simple cures.  If you are in the middle of a body of water you might try removing the starter and quick repair it, or grab the paddle. If nothing moves or sparks when you jump between these terminals you should try jumping from the input to the starter case. This should produce a violent spark and the lack of this spark means either your pos wire is dead or the engine is not grounded. If the starter revs up but does not engage this is the best result, it means your motor is probably good and you can check the rest of the system.

3) The next test is simple, jump from the input + terminal to the "S" terminal and the result is the same as turning the key.  The starter should crank the engine.  If it tries and stops dead pull the spark plugs and check for water in the cylinders.  If this works but it turns slow the starter may be week or the engine is sticking.  Try turning the engine with a wrench and see if it feels normal, if so the starter may need lubrication or cleaning.

4) If the #3 test works but the key still does not work the next step is to check the slave solenoid.  Jump across the two large terminals and you should get the same result as in test #3 then jump from the large input terminal to the small "S" terminal usually left of the small terminals.  This should get the same result.  If the large terminals jump the starter in but the little does not, replace the solenoid

5)  The next step is to go into the harness just outside the plug and find the yellow wire with the red stripe.  Putting 12V+ from the battery onto this wire should once again jump in the starter, if not the harness or plug is faulty.

6)  The next test is to take a long wire from the 12V+ and jump it to the output S terminal on the ignition switch.  If this gets no result but the jump by the plug did, the neutral safety switch is open, check for shift position.

7) Jump the same wire to the input side of the ignition switch and try the key, if the wire is necessary to get a result then the fuse feeding the switch is bad and you should probably have no motion from the gauges either.

8) As you move along this check chain the first time you loose the starter you just passed the bad part.  If you are out in the water and the failure happens you should jump it in and return to a safe place to work, do not depend on the test jump to use the boat the whole day and come home.