Seller said the 75HP Mariner "did not run". He was right, it didn't. The boat was in excellent condition and the outboard did 'turnover'. It also checked all the other boxes. A garaged 2-owner boat. The outboard itself looked clean inside and outside the hood. No major cosmetic issues. All the gauges and lights appear to work (even the horn worked). The trailer and tires were in excellent condition.
So, I rolled the dice that the seller and the previous owner cared for the boat, so the outboard would likely require a simple fix. I purchased at a very 'discounted' rate (because .. it didn't run, lol). I hauled it home and gave it a simple tune-up.
New plugs
New fuel line assembly
Fresh gas (fuel in the tank was 2 years old)
Lower unit oil change
$52 in parts and BOOM! .. Runs perfect. The culprit turned out to be the fuel line. The inner lining of the hose had collapsed, therefore restricting gas to the motor. Unfortunately, very few shops work on outboards this old, and if they do .. they will charge you a pretty penny for simple repairs. (It could also take several weeks to get your rig back).
Thanks to youtube and message boards, it's not hard to find solutions to what could be a simple issue. I love bringing old boats back to life. I've had some good ones and some bad ones. This little Skeeter SS90 was a diamond in the rough. :)
