Bayliner 3488 - No power through starboard ignition switch.-gctid804307

[zipszer]

Good Morning,

I have been trying to work my way through an electrical problem affecting the starboard ignition circuit at the flybridge station only. The lower station has full power going through both port and starboard ignition circuits. Here is a quick explanation of my problem:

The starboard ignition circuit on the flybridge suddenly stopped working. When turning the key I have no power to the gauges, warning buzzers, bow thruster and apparently the engine electrical circuit as the engine will not start. I do however have power to the starter as I can hear it turning. everything on the lower station works fine and I can start both engines.

I have checked all the fuses at both the lower station and the upper station and they were good. At the suggestion of a friend, I sprayed some WD-40 into the key hole to free up any stuck tumblers but this did not solve the problem.

Has anybody else experienced something similar? Electrical problems are a weak point for me and any suggestions on my next move is greatly appreciated - Thanks, Paul

[Bay39]

Hi Paul. I had similar issue on a different boat but might help. Look at your wiring harness and you will see some plastic plug/play relays much like a car. Pull each one and check and you can discern the bottom station from the fly bridge. I found the relay not working and went to NAPA and they were able to cross reference and took it back to the boat and was FIXED - YAY. Hope this is the same problem for you Paul. -Marc

[Ruffryder]

What MY is your 3488? Which engine?

I would start by metering the bridge STBD side ignition switch/circuit first...

[Norton_Rider]

The first thing you should do is determine if the problem is the switch or lack of power to the switch. Get a voltmeter or test light and probe the power wire going to the switch. You can do the good one first to understand which wire are you looking for. If the wire has power, you have a bad switch. If the wire has no power, you need to trace back the wire to see what the issue is.

If you are unsure, you may even want to swap switches from port to starboard. If you get power, the issue is the switch.

[zipszer]

Thank you Mark,

A couple of quick questions. I assume there is a relay for each ignition switch to each motor? So If my thinking is correct we should have a total of 4 relays?.. One relay for the starboard engine and one for the port on the flybridge and the same set up at the lower station? Also, when looking at the relay, would there be any visible signs that it is bad?

Thanks - Paul

[zipszer]

Hi Ruffryder,

It is a 1997 and the starboard engine.

[Bay39]

I can't recall if it was a burnt contact or how it was discerned bad; however there were not many in the harness. It will become apparent which one is bad. My relays were to a yanmar panel on flybridge. The reason I knew something was bad was I turned on the key upstairs and none of my gauges were running even though the engine was started below.

[Ruffryder]

OK 97 3488, so twin Mercruiser carbed gas engine? then no relays

You need fill out your signature. ..

[zipszer]

Just an update - This was an easy fix but puzzling! One ignition switch wire was off and plugged into an entirely different circuit. I plugged it back into the correct pin at the back of the ignition switch and everything is working fine again. The puzzling thing is how did it get unplugged from the ignition switch and then replugged into an entirely different circuit?

A friend mentioned possibly the Marina Mechanic did this to generate business but I am not going to jump to that conclusion

[Bay39]

Great news Paul. My guess is the mechanic may have pulled the wire by mistake by shirt sleeve or watch and didn't know where it went and assumed same. This is a great example on how to troubleshoot wiring using the identical component on twin engine. In this case it appears like you compared the two ignition switches and found something different.

[zipszer]

Bay39, your assessment of how the wire became unplugged seems very likely to me. I really don't believe he would be the kind of guy who would intentionally unplug it. And, yes I did notice the wire when comparing the two switches. I will use that comparison technique in the future for both electrical and mechanical troubleshooting...

Thanks again