Throttle lag

[nyuk-x-3]

Any suggestions/ideas on the following would be appreciated (been around boats for years.....1st time owner - now I know what people meant when they said the best kind of boat to have is someone else's).

Throttle lag is the best way to describe it.

btw....'02 Outback w/ the the 5.7L TBI Indmar. Just under 400 hours.

After fueling and a brief failed attempt at starting, the engine idled high, hunted for a bit and then settled (the day before this I encountered the same problem as others with the engine dying and then being hard to start after running for a while and then towing at low speeds - although after it started it ran, restarted, etc. fine like nothing happened)

Once we cleared the no wake zone at the Marina I went to around 1/4 throttle but the boat didn't respond - it accelerated but only a little. I backed-off and went back to about 1/4 and left it.....after about 5 seconds or so the r's and speed kicked up to where they should be. No problems for the rest of the day (this also explains - may explain - why my wife was having problems pulling me skiing claiming it wasn't her/her fault).

I'm assuming this is cable related. Could I be wrong? Is there something I should be looking for, doing?

[maxpower220]

If the boat operates fine for "the rest of the day", then it is probably not the cable. First, was/is the engine up to operating temp (@ 160 degrees) when this happens? If not, you may just be dealing with a 'cold natured' engine. In other words, the electric choke on the carb is still operating and engine response can be touchy. This is just a thought.

[nyuk-x-3]

Thanks for the replies so far.

I haven't hit anything or bottomed the boat (at least not yet.....fingers crossed). After getting back that day I cranked it up on the lift, looked and gave the mount a tug (checking if it was tight).....I'm assuming a minor bend would be hard to detect visually and if it were major, well, I guess the problem would be obvious, even to a newbie - lol.

The engine was at temp....we had been out for a couple of hours before this pulling a tube and were down for 10 mins at the most while fueling at the marina. Even before the problems I've been watching the gauges and they've been consistent.

This could all be a fluke. It's just that I have one more weekend at the lake before a 5 day weekend for the 4th - I want to do what I can to make sure I spend that time on the water and not my wife's **** list.

[JesseC]

When is the last time you changed the fuel filter. The initial fuel surge to the engine may be restricted causing the boat to starve for fuel on a "sharp" throttle position change. This is a cheap thing to try and should be done regularly anyway.

[nyuk-x-3]

Thanks Jesse.

I've seen other posts with starting problems which I also had so the fuel filter is on my list...always good to have confirmation. I'm not sure if it has been done recently (I bought it in the Fall and picked-up in Spring - dealer had tuned it two years prior, changed oil this Spring & I missed asking about the fuel filter) I found it at skidim and am just waiting on whether or not I'm going to switch-out the fuel sending unit (I've seen all of the inaccurate gauge posts and am debating if it's worth it) before I place the order.

The wires look good, the motor is clean and up until this/these recent hiccups it's been fine...started easy, ran smooth.

I'm back at the lake next weekend and plan on replacing the filter, re-checking wires, distributor.

A friend suggested using a fuel drier additive.....worth it, or just a waste? I'm probably going to go through a lot of the regular maintenance/PM things next weekend - any suggestions on what else I should or could do would be appreciated.