Electical Problem - Please read - Help

[teamone]

I am a new owner - 1995 Ski Nautique Sig Edt. - Boat runs great, however while running, if I push any of the accessory buttons - lights, blower, etc....engine dies immediately and won't even turn over unless I turn off all switches. Then sometime, it won't start unless I have a certain accessory button pushed in - anchor light. Anyone have any ideas? Just a short somewhere?

[NautiqueJeff]

I have a similar problem that pops up from time to time. I believe mine to be related to the ignition push-button. Mine did it to me last night, as a matter of fact. I think I need to remove my switch panel and rewire or replace that switch. If I wiggle the ignition push-button around, my power comes back, and I can restart. This problem can be especially annoying (and very dangerous) at night.

I would suspect the problem with your boat is related to the ignition push-button too. None of the others should cause the engine to die. Next time the problem occurs, look at your switches and see if any of the red lights are still on. If they are not, your problem is in your ignition switch, or possibly a short causing the ignition switch (which is actually a circuit breaker) to pop and to require a reset. If some of the red lights are still on, look elsewhere.

[teamone]

Also, I noticed on the breaker box in the engine compartment that out of the three, the top one seemed to be out, but I could not push it in - is this normal?

[NautiqueJeff]

I pulled the panel in the picture above from my dash today, and I found something interesting. On several of the switches (one of which was the ignition push-button), the ends of the wires were very close to falling off of the switches. I pushed them back on all the way.

I also noticed that one of the three wires going to the key switch was extremely loose. I could turn the screw holding the wire on with my fingers. I tightened that back up.

After doing these things, I went out and tried to cause the problem in my boat. I could not get the problem to happen! I also noticed that my voltmeter in the dash was reading slightly above 13, which is noticably higher than it was reading in the past, and that was with all of my accessories on. I feel like I have fixed the problem in my boat. I'll update this thread if my problem resurfaces.

Try pulling that panel and checking things out in there. That just might solve your problem too.

[teamone]

I also fixed my problem - apparently. All I did was pull the panel, look at it and put in back. Problem fixed! Must of been something loose or touching. Then my solenoid wouldn't work - a little tap with the hammer - back in business!