Quote Originally Posted by Flymitch View Post
Well I replaced all four 8's. When charge is maintained by the Battery Charger, the right cranks right up, the left crank is sluggish but fires up easily. If I run the boat without the charger or gen, the right cranks easily but the left is hesitant to start unless I use the parallel switch, then cranks and starts. Just wondering if anyone has had this issue? Is it typical due to the length of the cables due to right side of Starbord Engine battery bank location?Was confident enough to take the boat on an overnight this past weekend. No inverter so just tried to run with the gen off for a few hours, then start after boat sat for a bit once at destination. That is where I was able to start Right but require parallel switch for left. Once starting the gen, after it runs for a few minutes Left will start then Right without parallel switch. Any suggestions on how to fix this? Could it be new cables will help? Is this happening due to length of cables and voltage drop to left engine? Alternators are putting out per ohmmeter and gauges. Thanks for thoughts in advance.
I agree with others here. Check your cables on the sluggish engine. I had a similar issue with a
pair of dedicated 8D's starting my port 6-71. When I checked the battery connections one of the
cables was noticeably warm and had a bulge in it. I cut the insulation off in the bulged area and
could see the obvious cable corrosion. Replaced the entire length of cable and installed new crimped
ends. Been fine for 8+ years now.