Hey guys. I am a boat owner (maxi 999) and we have recently changed our starter engine, relay, and dynamo on our old penta 2002 engine. We had to disconnect and reconnect most of the wiring. We are quite inexperienced with engines and have only had this boat for about a year, so we are not very familiar with this particular wiring system, which has probably been reworked numerous times by many of the previous owners (seems pretty chaotic). We reconnected everything to the best of our ability, and as soon as we turn the power on, the alarm from the ignition panel starts to sound, and the "low oil pressure" lamp is showing continuously. It seems we cannot get the ignition to work while the alarm is going. We have to turn off the power supply to make the alarm stop.

Our best guess so far is that there is something wrong with the wiring, and that it is maybe related to the oil pressure sensor (maybe the panel cant get a proper reading or something). But we are quite clueless.

Any suggestions appreciated! Let me know, and I will provide more info if necessary.

 

Get hold of a wiring diagram for the engine and a DVM and go through the ignition circuit.

Common for boat engines to sound a low oil pressure alarm with cranking to start. So it may not be connected to an in ignition problem.

Proper marine wiring is tinned wire and marine grade connectors. And adhesive lined connectors if the connection may be submerged in the bilge. No wire nuts or duct tape

 

Thank you very much for your suggestions.

The alarm sounds loudly immidiately after turning on the electricity, and goes continuously (does not stop after a while). Is that normal? This did not happen before working on the engine.

 

The alarm is a low oil pressure alarm. Most engines will alarm when the ignition switch is turned to ON and keep on alarming until engine starts and oil pressure comes up.

 

Ok, I just think it's strange the alarm never sounded before then.

Update on the work: We started troubleshooting by taking out the dynamo. Now the alarm did not sound anymore. But still, on ignition, the starter engine does not react at all. So we are pretty sure it's either a defect starter, or that it's simply not getting power for some reason. We tried using a new battery, but nothing changed. Today we are going to try to check the starter by hotwiring it directry to the power source to see whether or not it is reacting. I will post updates on further work. Still, if anyone has any comments or suggestions, they are welcome!

 

I never think guessing at what part might be bad is a good way to troubleshoot. Get a wiring diagram and a DVM. If you do not know how to read a wiring diagram or use a DVM find someone who does to help. This is not a difficult problem to resolve.