Questionmodel-386777 type 0036-e1 code-05090811
I have this 3 year old motor with 150 hrs on it on a 60 inch deck Ferris mower. The engine was running good at end of last season. Mowere sat outside for 2 months this winter. Started OK this spring, but as I accelerated for the first time it cut out some and had reduced power while trying to travel at higher speeds (no blades on yet) I installed new air filter (both primary and secondary), new gas filter, and new plugs. Continued to run the same. Drained fuel tank and carb, catching samples from carb with no visual signs of water. Put in fresh fuel and restarted, ran the same. At idle under no load I pulled one plug wire off at a time and one side had no effect. Replaced ignition magneto on that side. Seemed to have improved performance while I mowed under power for 1/2 an hour, but was definitely not full power. Restarted half a day later and again ran at drastically reduced power that coould not be used. Pulled same side plug wire off again which had no effect at idle. Old plug on that side when removed looked OK. Can see good spark at plug and wire connection. There does seem to be possible increase of compression (seems difficult for starter to turn over) Battery is fully charged. Have not checked out starter. Can turn motor over by hand from top of flywheel however. Possible other avenues to explore. 1. possible valve adjustment? Ran OK at end of last year 2. Any thing in the Kill wire circuitery. The double coils are linked together with one harness. Someone mentioned diode problems. I am not clear on this subject. Thanks for your input.
AnswerTHANK YOU FOR THE DETAILED INFORMATION YOU HAVE SUPPLIED!
It sounds like you may have a broken connecting rod,popped valve seat, blown head gasket, Take a compression test on both cylinders and let me know...How it would break by sitting outside is a mystery unless perhaps mice build a nest and when you started it for the first time it overheated and caused the problem you are describing.
The symptoms of one broken rod on a twin cylinder are exactly what you describe..It will start and run, but when you put it under load...it dies out, sputters, etc..
Another quick test you can do to see if you have a broken rod/bad cylinder is:
With Engine OFF, remove one of the spark plug wires and try to start the engine, Does the engine start? If yes that cylinder is fine. Turn off engine and repeat this test on the other cylinder.
The diodes may be a problem, but at this juncture of your troubleshooting lets make sure we are firing on both cylinders first.
I await your followup!
