u/Gahouf

Bought a 2010 Honda bf2.3 a couple of months back to use on my sailboat to get me in and out of harbour when I don’t feel like/can’t sail in. It’s started and gone on the first or second pull every time since I bought it (used ~10 times). But then on a particularly sporty sail it got dunked in salt water waves a couple of times, and when we got to our destination it started, ran for a second or two, then stopped and simply wouldn’t start again.

Since then I’ve had the same issue every time. If I’ve waited about a day since my last try, I can get it to start and run for a second or two before it dies, then won’t start again except for the odd random fire.

I’ve disassembled and cleaned the carburettor (which was in better condition than it looked from the outside), completely drained and rinsed the fuel tank and replaced all old fuel with new ethanol free gas, checked that cylinder compresses. The only thing bugging me is the spark.

When the engine is cold (so in the mornings, before I’ve got it running for those annoying 1-2 seconds) I see clear sparks from the plug, but after it’s died the spark seems weak, inconsistent or completely missing.

I’ve tried bypassing the kill switch, and I’ve checked the ignition coil’s spacing from the flywheel to be according to specs. Am I looking at a faulty ignition coil? Just looking for an opinion before I order a €115 + shipping part…