Hurricane 187 io 2015 troubles

mothership

I've had nothing but engine trouble with my 187 io.  It's a mercury 4.3 and I've put 35 hours on the boat and the last 18 hours were issue free.  Prior to that its been back to the dealer 3 times and every time they "clear the error codes" and run it for an extended time with no issues.  After my 20 hour service it ran great then 18 hours then the same issue resurfaced.  Here's the issue, idles just fine but any excelleration causes a long beep and then 2 long beeps and the engine sounds like it is stalling out and the rpm drops.  I'm taking it back to the dealer again tomorrow but I was wondering if anyone is seeing this issue?  My hunch is there's an electronic issue with the guardian system. The dealer never finds anything and it feels like I got a Lemmon.  I'm going to push the dealer to swap out the guardian system durning my 4th visit in 4 moths.  

cjjjdeck

Welcome to the Owners Forum, mothership!

What drive do you have with the 4.3?

mothership

Mercury stern drive. I'd need to dig up my spec sheet to get the exact model.

cjjjdeck

I have a Mercruiser Bravo 3 drive.  When I got my boat, after about 20 hours I also got an alarm condition and the engine cut down on it's RPM and went into protection mode.  In the Mercruiser manual I found a section that told me that it is a normal condition that the engine drive fluid may go down one quart or more as the fluid circulated and filled in voids in the drive case during the break-in period.  Sure enough, I checked and my drive fluid reservoir was way down.  I topped it off and have never had the condition again. Just make sure you check your drive fluid level.

mothership

Great advice and thank you.  I believe it is the Bravo 3 as well.  I did check the fluid and it is in the operating range so I believe it is good.  The troubling part is this issue has been re-surfacing over and over.  Since day 1 the engine would go into alarm.  At first the guardian system would not kick in and it would still run just fine but I still took it back to dealer as I did not want to damage the engine if there is really something wrong. They would "clear the errors" run it for a period of time with no issues.  Like I mentioned earlier the longest it has run without beeping has been 15 hours after I had my 20 hour service.  Perhaps I'm missing something simple but I check all the fluids every time I take the boat out.  I have not heard from the dealer yet but I will post an update after I hear from them.

cjjjdeck

Very frustrating situation, one I'm sorry to hear as I've had great performance of my Mercruiser, going on 4th season.  Is the dealer telling you what codes and their definitions that they are clearing?  Since you have a 2015, can I assume you have MPI (fuel injection) and ECT (Catalytic converters)?

I found some info on the horn warning commands for Mercruiser engines and drives that might help.

mothership

Thanks for the codes!  This is the first boat that I've owned on my own and I'm hopeful this is the last trip to the dealer for a while.  Been around boats for a long time. 

The only code they found in the system was a stall fault or something like that and that was only found in 1 of the 4 visits.  The dealer has a great reputation and I think they are stumped as well.

Forgot to mention that the check engine light came on at about 18 hours.  There was nothing to indicate why the check engine light came on according the dealer. 

One thing I did do was give these videos to the dealer so they did not think I was crazy.  You can hear the beeping and the guardian system kicking in.  They are MOV files from my phone so the sound might not work on some video players. 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/w1x0pqjzvjmymsw/AAA5lTumnwqn5pNCXe1vC_lCa?dl=0

cjjjdeck

Smartphones do come in handy sometimes!  See, not all customers are crazy!

All gauges read systems OK, very frustrating condition, nothing obvious.  I can understand the dealer scratching his head as well, especially with no useful codes to track down.

Just curious, I noticed the engine temp was still at rest on the videos.  Did you ever have the condition with the engine up to temp?

By the way, being from Northern NJ (specifically Northwest NJ, and yes, there is a dramatic difference being from Northwest NJ verses Southern NJ and anywhere else in the state for that matter), I very much appreciate your Avatar, especially coming from someone in NC!

mothership

It really is a strange issue.  I had just gone out so the temp had not had a chance to climb.  That might be why it is sitting so low. I have not seen the temp rise much.  I was born in Northern NJ and lived in upstate NY and southern NJ.  There's a big difference!  Yankees need to stick together!

mothership

Just got off the phone with the dealer and it is a bad water pump sensor.  All these electronics can make things complicated.  Hopefully this fixes the issue for good! 

cjjjdeck

Watchin' the game right now as I'm typing this, LOL!

That's great news if they found the problem!  Please keep us updated.

mothership

Well,  back on the water today and the same issue returned after a half hour of running.  Beeping and the gardian system killing the RPMs.  I knew it was too good to be true.  The dealer did replace the thermostat and pressure sensor at my last visit.  This is super frustrating and I'm about ready to throw in the towel! This will be the 5th time in 4 months I've brought this brand new 2015 hurricane back to the deal.  

omar174

Have you checked on a motor specific forum? You may have better luck there. I've solved a couple of issues by reading a Honda specific forum. I know there is a mercruiser forum.

mothership

Water pump (and sensor) has been replaced the dealer is taking the boat out for an extended time today to double check proper operation.  They said no guardian system activation after replacing the water pump! Hurricane folks have been great and they have been helping me work through this issue with Mercury.  Looks like the mystery has been solved! (hopefully...) 

cjjjdeck

mothership, I just sent you a Personal Message I need you to respond to.  

Look for a red number "1" next to the globe and envelope icons next to your Avatar in the upper left corner of the screen.  Click on the envelope, then click on my message to read it.

Thanks!