Problem with PCM 6ltr

[NAWTEAK]

OK, had the boat for a few weeks and put approx 40 hrs on it. have almost been stranded two days in a row.

after a few hours of constant use the engine will begin to cough, then it will run so rough that you can't maintain speed. at idle a white cloud will come from the exhaust before it eventually dies completely. then it will not start.

after letting it rest for a while (over 30mins) it will eventually start. second time this happened the boat ran ok for another few hours.

i don't think that the fuel is the problem cos first time it happened i re-fueled with premium and added a octane booster/injector cleaner only for the same thing to happen.

maybe too much condensation in the fuel tank? the boat did sit in a shipping container for two months.

thought that i would ask here first, cos the dealer here has zero experience with PCM engines. and it is the peak of summer so i don't want them to have it too long.

thanks in advance.

[skinautique]

RE: Problem with PCM 6ltr

is the engine drawing water? It is closed cooling but it still draws in a little bit of water. Are there any flashings in the gauges?

[surroundsound64]

Interesting... I've never heard of a problem quite like that before... hum.
What year model is it?

[mattoz]

Is the engine sucking excessive amounts of air in through the dip stick? I had a problem with our 2006 ZR6 when it arrived this year, the vacuum hose connections were fitted incorrectly at the factory. The engine would still run, but the noise coming from the engine was unusual. See pic below for a correct hose connection check.

I suggest that you contact PCM by email, they will be able to provide you troubleshooting steps that won't require a diagnostics plug in check...If the engine detects a fundamental fault, such as over temp or engine knocking a message will appear on the dash gauge. It does not sound like this is happening. Moisture in the tank from the long trip to oz shouldn't be your problem.

[NAWTEAK]

Re: RE: Problem with PCM 6ltr

is the engine drawing water? It is closed cooling but it still draws in a little bit of water. Are there any flashings in the gauges?

it is drawing water, the resivoir was empty. didn't notice anything on the gauges tho.

thanks for the pic mattoz, but the hoses look OK. however the engine was missing the fuel injection cover when delivered...

[skinautique]

how is your coolant level? I don't have a ton of experience with this engine so I am shooting random thoughts to you

[NAWTEAK]

skinautique,

water level must be really low, cos there isn't any!

any ideas as to why it would draw so much water?

[skinautique]

you mean the antifreeze? Is there a crack in your container?

[AbunDiga909]

you mean the antifreeze? Is there a crack in your container?

You may also want to check your hosing. Our first problem right after delivery was that our anti-freeze was leaking, and it wasn't in the container, but in a hose somewhere. The dealer had to check everywhere the antifreeze travelled, if I'm correct, and of course, they found and fixed it...

[Laptom]

Why was the boat missing the fuel injection cover?

Start to check all the water hosing connections. They must be real tight, because you don't wanna suck air instead of anti-freeze. If this all looks good, fill the engine with anti-freeze and look where it leaks.

[NAWTEAK]

thanks people.

boat is in shop gettin serviced now. i passed on the info posted here.

personally i think heat has something to do with it, cos the coolant level was so low, the drawn water was turning to steam and the air temp was 40+ (degrees C) every time.

[bkhallpass]

I think the boat was getting overheated, and going into limp home mode. BKH