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I'm looking for recommendations for a good PCM mechanic, ideally within an hour's drive of Fairfield County, CT. I have a 2007 Super Air Nautique with ~380 hours on it and the guys working on it seem incapable of doing anything other than ordering expensive parts and trying one fix every 10 days. They have also displayed some acting talent in feigning surprise that I've finally gotten pissed after having my boat not work right all summer, despite telling me, after multiple different fixes costing over $3k that my boat has never run better (all supposedly followed by water tests for which I'm paying), only for the same problem to crop up as soon as I take the boat out.
I am having problems with my engine cutting fuel to the motor while out driving the boat, sounding wrong and smoking. The engine starts every time and spins up to 4500 rpm with no issue when sitting at the dock--even after it has demonstrated problems out on the lake. However, when out in the water, the engine will be running fine for a while and then suddenly RPM plummet back to almost idle. Problems develop in a few minutes if I rev the engine very high, but take longer to display themselves if I keep it under 2500 RPM. If I throttle back to neutral, it then allows me to accelerate again for a minute or so and then starts bogging down again. Once it starts to develop these fuel issues, they continue with increasing frequency and are accompanied by smoking and backfiring.
This happened the first time I took it out this year. They said it sounds like you have a fuel problem (which is always possible, but I run Marine Sta-Bil or the equivalent in every single tank). To solve the problem, 1) they prescribed a tune-up (which I found out later consists only of plugs and cap and rotor repair) and claim to have water tested it and said it ran great. Next time I took it out, same problem immediately presented itself, so they decided to drive the boat with a shop tank bypassing the fuel tank (and apparently the low pressure fuel pump, which I didn't existed). Supposedly it ran perfectly. So they prescribed a fuel tank flush. It had no effect. A week later, they decided to test the fuel pressure and announced the low pressure pump was causing the problem, which they replaced. After doing that, they finally decided to clean the fuel filter, which they were surprised to report it was really dirty and the serpentine belt was fraying so they sanded the pulleys and replaced it. After another water test, during which the boat was again running perfectly, suddenly they said the ECM went bad, but if I replaced that, it would be perfect. Thus, I ordered an ECM from a Nautique dealer which is so simple to replace that even I was able to do it. Needless to say, after a few hours with the new ECM, I'm back to smoking (an almost white smoke visible from the swim platform but I don't see it in the engine compartment), having throttle issues and running rough and some back firing. At this point, I've spoken to a couple of mechanics in the Midwest and, who think the order of things done by my mechanic makes no sense (how do you not clean the fuel filter or check fuel pressure when you have a fuel issue before deciding to flush the tank and order a tuneup?), and the ECM is about the most expensive part you can buy, so you better be reasonably sure that is the problem before you tell someone to buy one. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
I am having problems with my engine cutting fuel to the motor while out driving the boat, sounding wrong and smoking. The engine starts every time and spins up to 4500 rpm with no issue when sitting at the dock--even after it has demonstrated problems out on the lake. However, when out in the water, the engine will be running fine for a while and then suddenly RPM plummet back to almost idle. Problems develop in a few minutes if I rev the engine very high, but take longer to display themselves if I keep it under 2500 RPM. If I throttle back to neutral, it then allows me to accelerate again for a minute or so and then starts bogging down again. Once it starts to develop these fuel issues, they continue with increasing frequency and are accompanied by smoking and backfiring.
This happened the first time I took it out this year. They said it sounds like you have a fuel problem (which is always possible, but I run Marine Sta-Bil or the equivalent in every single tank). To solve the problem, 1) they prescribed a tune-up (which I found out later consists only of plugs and cap and rotor repair) and claim to have water tested it and said it ran great. Next time I took it out, same problem immediately presented itself, so they decided to drive the boat with a shop tank bypassing the fuel tank (and apparently the low pressure fuel pump, which I didn't existed). Supposedly it ran perfectly. So they prescribed a fuel tank flush. It had no effect. A week later, they decided to test the fuel pressure and announced the low pressure pump was causing the problem, which they replaced. After doing that, they finally decided to clean the fuel filter, which they were surprised to report it was really dirty and the serpentine belt was fraying so they sanded the pulleys and replaced it. After another water test, during which the boat was again running perfectly, suddenly they said the ECM went bad, but if I replaced that, it would be perfect. Thus, I ordered an ECM from a Nautique dealer which is so simple to replace that even I was able to do it. Needless to say, after a few hours with the new ECM, I'm back to smoking (an almost white smoke visible from the swim platform but I don't see it in the engine compartment), having throttle issues and running rough and some back firing. At this point, I've spoken to a couple of mechanics in the Midwest and, who think the order of things done by my mechanic makes no sense (how do you not clean the fuel filter or check fuel pressure when you have a fuel issue before deciding to flush the tank and order a tuneup?), and the ECM is about the most expensive part you can buy, so you better be reasonably sure that is the problem before you tell someone to buy one. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
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