Dead in the Water

[MrShelley]

Had some trouble today at the lake. We were riding in our new (to us) 2005 210 and several times the boat would just die. It was almost like a switch had been flipped. Going fine and then "poof"...nothing. Each time the engine restarted fine and we would be able to ride for another 30 minutes or so. A couple of times it would die after a double up, or hitting another boats wake, so I thought "Hey, let's check and make sure the battery cables haven't been vibrated loose". Sure enough, the terminals were loose, so I tightened them down. But still, a little later, we'd be going in smooth water and the boat would die.

Finally, we had been just floating around for a while, just chillin', and my friend straps on his board and gets ready to ride. I punch in the code, hit the start button and nothing. Dead in the water. I flipped the switch down to bilge only and the bilge pump starts working. OK, we have power. Flip it back up, try to start the boat, every light on the panel is lit (?) and it won't start. The horn won't even blow. Luckily we were close to the ramp so we loaded the boat up and called it a day. Before we left, I tried one more time. The darn thing starts.

Anyone have any idea where I should start troubleshooting? Loose connection? Bad keypad? I don't even know where to begin. :/

[NautiqueJeff]

It is likely the toggle switch itself, or the connections to it. Pull it out and either (1) replace it or (2) bypass it.

This is a fairly common issue in boats of that vintage.

You might also check the safety lanyard, although that wouldn't cause the boat not to crank.

[MrShelley]

Thanks for the info Jeff, I just checked the switch. It's working now, and the connections are tight. If it happens again I'll try bypassing it. Sporadic electrical problems are such a pain, that's why I appreciate any "hints" anyone can give.

[mastercard]

Had a similar problem myself with the toggle and kill switch. At least they are easy to get to!

[lucky7t]

Had same issue yesterday on our brand new 210. Had to swim it in and then load it on our trailer manually. A real pain in the butt.
Phil from Buxton drove 4 hours last night with a tech. The tech discovered a loose wire in the fuse panel located on top of the engine and repaired it. I started and killed it now 50 times and pray it doesn't happen again. I got towed by a centurion !

Love the boat and totally understand bugs but not a good day. Buxton went above the call of duty though.

[migs]

^^^^ that SUCKS!!! But that kind of service from your dealer is UNBLIEVABLE and what I expect from a nautique dealer. God I wish I had your dealer!

[MrShelley]

UPDATE:

While checking the toggle again this morning, I noticed the screw-on connections were tight, but one of the terminals riveted to the body of the switch itself was actually a little loose. I started to remove the switch and it broke off! I went ahead and just bypassed the switch by connecting the ring terminals with a small nut and bolt. We spent the entire day at the lake and didn't have a single issue! I'm ready to say "problem solved". Thanks for pointing me in the right direction guys!

Justin (mastercard), you shoulda come out. We had a great day. The lake was butter until the tubers showed up.

[AirTool]

UPDATE:

While checking the toggle again this morning, I noticed the screw-on connections were tight, but one of the terminals riveted to the body of the switch itself was actually a little loose. I started to remove the switch and it broke off! I went ahead and just bypassed the switch by connecting the ring terminals with a small nut and bolt. We spent the entire day at the lake and didn't have a single issue! I'm ready to say "problem solved". Thanks for pointing me in the right direction guys!

Another East Texan? - Joined in April and only 9 posts.

I have a few long threads on these toggle switches. One or two threads have suggested replacement parts including a thread on boot to keep the water out. Mine too had a loose tang.

Did you tape up your bypass? that connector is "energized" all the time.

I have a theory on this failure. My switch was tie wrapped to the kill switch to keep it from unscrewing. I believe that load/stiffness caused the tang to break inside the switch....from the boat bouncing while hitting waves.

Did you happen to notice/have the tie wrap?

AirTool (South Texan)

[MrShelley]

Airtool - Yes, I taped up the connection for the day. I'm planning on replacing the switch as soon as I find a decent replacement. There wasn't a tie wrap on mine, but one of the ring terminals looked like it came from Radio Shack. I'm thinking the tie wrap may have been removed when the switch was "repaired" before.

[AirTool]

I'm planning on replacing the switch as soon as I find a decent replacement.

http://www.planetnautique.com/vb3/sh...-toggle-switch

[MrShelley]

You da man!

[mastercard]

[QUOTE=
Justin (mastercard), you shoulda come out. We had a great day. The lake was butter until the tubers showed up.[/QUOTE]

Glad you got your electrical isues fixed! I knew I missed a good 'un, I didn't feel a breeze all day!

[bchesley]

MrShelley,

what lake are you riding on?

Brad

[MrShelley]

Brad-

We ride almost exclusively at Brandy Branch Reservoir, aka Pirkey Power Plant. The cool water side isn't hot yet and there is very little recreational boat traffic. We can crank the radio without disturbing anyone, throw doubleups all day, and not get hassled by "the man". We'll probably start hitting the other area lakes once it gets too hot at Pirkey, but for now I'm enjoying having our own private lake (almost).

http://goo.gl/maps/m8W7

[bchesley]

I have friends that hit perky when its cold. I am mostly on Lake Tyler because we have a place, but I also hit up Caddo several times a year. Have you ever been to Caddo?