RAN TANK DRY, WILL NOT START WITH FULL TANK

[FPOUNDER]

I made the mistake of running my tank dry on my 2001 40HP four stroke. I filled the tank back up and primed the ball several times and proceeded to pull start the engine. It fired off and ran for about 20 seconds then died again. I unhooked the fuel line from the engine to see if gas was being pumped in and it was. My next step was to replace the fuel filter (in case trash was blocking it) but my marine mechanic said that it could not been clogged. Does anyone have any idea what the problem could be? The engine ran strong until this occurred.

[Ken]

Pounder,
Sounds like fuel is not gettng to the carbs.
Try unhooking the fuel line to the carbs from the fuel pump and then squeezing the primer bulb to see if fuel is getting to the carbs - be sure and catch the fuel with a bowl or rag.
The fuel should flow fairly easily when you squeeze the primer bulb.
Good luck [img]smile.gif[/img] ,
Ken K

[jb123]

yes or open carb bowl drains to ensure fuel is getting there.

[Wally]

You might want to drain your water separator. Maybe it got a load of water when you ran the tank dry.

[FPOUNDER]

Well, I checked and the carbs and they were getting fuel. I broke down and took it to a Yamaha mechanic.I will post the outcome.

[FPOUNDER]

It was a simple problem, the primer bulb was bad, even though it was pumping gas. One of the two valves inside the bulb had gone bad and it would not get hard after squeezing it several times.

[Ken]

Thanks,POUNDER, your luck is with you - go fishing [img]smile.gif[/img] !
Ken K