Re: Ground Problem?

[Don]

Well, those big engines are pretty tough to flood with those little primer hoses. I have also found that those newer style key switches (modular wiring-system check) can be tricky to turn and hold in for priming, sometimes they like to shut off when released.
And yes, leave the throttle at idle, pump up the fuel bulb, crank the engine with key in (prime valve on). Like I say, it is pretty tough to flood one of these big engines with the primer.
Advancing the throttle while cranking cold defeats the quikstart feature, but it is OK to start it the older conventional way. You will usually have to tap the key in a few times while the engine is warming up. I suppose one of the reasons OMC came up with this quikstart "razimataz" is to help ensure that people didn’t over rev the engines in neutral. Unfortunately, very few owners understand how the primer/quikstart works, and still have trouble starting cold engines….
I always loved watching people pumping the throttle control lever in neutral before starting the engine, as if there was an accelerator pump in there!