I HAVE A 1998 JOHNSON 150 HP OCEAN RUNNER THAT IS SMOKING TO MUCH. I CHANGED THE SPARK PLUGS BUT THAT DOESN'T SEEM TO HAVE TO MUCH AFFECT. I CAN'T TELL IF IT IS BURNING MORE OIL THAN USUAL. DOES ANYBODY HAVE ANY ADVICE?

Try this forum, there are a lot of pros to help: http://www.iboats.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=forum;f=28

I'm sure you thought of this but here goes anyway.

I don't know anything about boat motors even though I own a boat. However I know from riding dirt bikes that if your smoking more than normal your oil to fuel mixture is too rich. Saying that maybe whatever sets the the oil to gas mixture needs to be adjusted.

[This message has been edited by Brent Pasley (edited 10-02-2003).]

have you added any QuickLean lately?

Don't know about the 98 model but the old
vro oil injection would overoil in the oil
pump setup got worn or bad

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Hooked on Hybrids

Dennis------Slabshad

Like Slabshad said-- I dont know it this
applies to your model, but some people I
know that still run johnsons don't trust
the oil injection system. They have gone
back to mixing oil and gas.
MO

If it's a 98 model it doesn't have a VRO. It will be an OMS. Basically to the same except they don't vary the ratio any longer. Also it's a very reliable oiler. If you have a hole in the oil pump diaphram, you could be over oiling as it would leak oil into the gas pump section.

I'd say fill your oil & gas tanks and mark the level on the oil tank with a felt tip marker. Then make a trip or two to the lake. You should use ~ 1 gallon of oil per 50 gallons of gas. 1/2 gal per 25, a quart per 12-13 or a pint per 6. See how much it takes to fill both up and it will be easy to see if you're over oiling.

You can get a remanufactured OMS from DFI Technologies at a lot less cost of a new one if you are a do it yourselfer. Two bolts hold the bracket to the crankcase, 3 screws hold the pump to the bracket. I'd also change hoses and ratchet clamps and make sure you have the blue pulse limiter screwed into the crankcase. It will have the other end of the pulse hose from the pump attached to it.

Good Luck!

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Thanks for the input guys. I've never heard of QuickLean. Can you tell me what it does?

I think you guys are right on the oil/gas being to rich. Will i need a car job?

Quickleen is Mercury's version of a gas treatment to help prevent carbon buildup and keep the gunk cleaned out of your carbs or injectors. OMC/Bombardier makes a similar product called Carbon Guard and Yamahas's is Ring Free. My opinion is that one should use a carbon fighting additive in their fuel. I know some here will argue that. I use Quickleen or Carbon Guard in every tank. I have also changed from a 100% synthetic oil to Bombardier Ram Ficht Oil which is a synthetic blend. I contains Carb X which also helps prevent carbon buildup.

I've also tried Sea Foam after reading a bunch of testimonials on the BSHP. I think a can does 8-25 gallons. I mixed a can to about 1/2 tank (~15 gal) in my boat and ran it out. Along with a smoother idle and better throttle response, I noticed heavier carbon stains on my prop which told me it was cleaning the inside of my engine.

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Tx Champ,

You seem to know what your talking about. if you work on motors for a living in the Houston area, post your contact info and I'll bring it to you.

I went on DFI's web page. Was the OMS your talking about the oiler part # 439109 for $300?

Thanks for the help!

Well, after my '87 Johnson 175 burnt itself up (no fault of my own I'm sure!), I learned a valuable lesson. VRO = Very Risky Option.... The lesson...take the little time it takes to mix your own oil into the gas so you always know that it's mixing right. Had my oil reservoir disconnected on the new motor. Just a thought. Then again, I've also been told by a wise old man "better smoke than broke..." Who knows, take your pick.

Whitey, sorry I ain't a OB tech. Just ran a Johnson for many years and had an ongoing battle with my mechanic about the VRO. He always wanted to disconnect it. Finally one year he did against my wishes. After mixing gas for 9 months, I asked the experts at boatsetup.com about hooking it back up. They recommended I change it due to the age of it (11 years) and the fact it had been run plugged off. They sent me to DFI as well. One of the Experts is Bill Grannis. Aside from having a full time job as a marine tech, he also writes articles for Bass & Walleye boats. He wrote an article in the Jan 2000 issue about VROs. So, I dug out my old B&WB mags and found the article. Decided to do it myself and never looked back. Since then, I've been a proponent of the VRO/OMS. It is a reliable system. It is also mechanical therefore subject to failure. But it appears that any of the failure sceneros will probably not result in a blown powerhead.

DFI�s oiler is $149.95 and a core is required. Scroll down to "More" on the page and click there. You'll see that your symptom is issue #1.

Did live in the Houston area for about 9 months back in 2000/2001, but got a chance to return to Abilene. So I took it! The wife didn't like the big city even though we lived in Friendswood where I was working and her job was in Seabrook. We really didn't have to deal with traffic issues except for about 3 miles in the mornings. The rest of the way, she was running against the traffic. We really didn't have to deal with the "Big City".

Good Luck with you OMS. I'll be glad to share any other information that I learned in my experience. Just drop me an e-mail.

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Thanks TX Champ!

Well spring is almost here so I need to get my boat worked on. Can anybody reccomend a really good OMC mechanic in the Spring/Woodlands area?

Thanks!