Simple Preventive Maintenance Helps Keep Your Engine Running Smooth for the Long Haul

No matter the brand you own, Quicksilver® products are perfect for maximizing the life and performance of your marine engine.

Quicksilver parts, lubricants and accessories are designed to meet the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) specifications and vital preventive maintenance needs of all leading marine engine brands. For instance, Quicksilver offers top-quality fuel filters for Mercury®, Yamaha®, Honda®, Suzuki®, Johnson®, Evinrude®, OMC, Volvo®, Chrysler® and many other popular marine engine brands. What’s more, Quicksilver Quickare® Fuel Treatment and Corrosion Guard Engine Protect can be used with virtually any gasoline engine, on or off the road, whether two- or four-stroke.

In this Quicksilver video, our friends at Wired2Fish show you just how easy it is to use these Quicksilver products, using a 115hp Yamaha four-stroke outboard as an example. All you’ll need for this easy bit of preventive maintenance is:

• A new Quicksilver fuel filter (consult your engine owner’s manual to identify the correct filter model)
• Quickare Fuel Treatment
• Corrosion Guard Engine Protect
• Paper towels or a rag to catch drips

Replace the Fuel Filter

Replacing the fuel filter requires only a few steps. Be careful to keep your engine and boat clean, and to avoid spilling fuel.

1. Remove the engine cowl and locate the clear plastic fuel filter housing in the aft port corner (back left) of the outboard powerhead.
2. Place your rag or paper towels under the housing and unscrew the lower fuel filter housing/canister.
3. Remove the old fuel filter cartridge and replace it with the new one. For this engine model, the new filter should be carefully but firmly inserted into the filter head (the upper portion of the filter assembly) before sliding the lower housing up and over the new cartridge.
4. Taking extra care to ensure you don’t cross-thread the lower housing, firmly tighten it until snug. Don’t overtighten as the filter head and filter housing are both plastic. Too much torque can damage the threads.
5. Finally, wipe up any stray fuel drips and then properly dispose of the rag and spent filter.

Note: Although the filter location and design will vary with other makes and models, the same basic procedure can be followed to replace the filter on practically any outboard that has the fuel filter mounted to the powerhead.

Protect Against Corrosion

While the cowl is off, use a rag to wipe away any dirt, salt and debris from all unpainted/uncoated metal parts, then give each of those parts a light spray of Corrosion Guard Engine Protect. Don’t forget to treat the cowl latches and springs as well. Corrosion Guard Engine Protect is specially formulated for under-cowl areas, but don’t spray it directly into the air intake or put a heavy blast into the electrical connections. Use it as often as you like, or whenever you have the cowl off. It seals out air, salt and moisture to prevent corrosion, and it won’t gum up your linkages.

Treat the Fuel

Finally, add Quickare Fuel Treatment to your fuel tank. Use 1 ounce for every 10 gallons of fuel in the tank to clean existing residues and varnish from your fuel tank, fuel lines, carburetor, injectors, intake valves and spark plugs. It’s also good for mitigating the harmful effects of ethanol and low-quality fuel. One bottle will treat 120 gallons of fuel.

Preventive Maintenance Pays Off

There you have it: In just a fraction of an hour you can ensure an ample flow of clean, filtered fuel, ward off corrosion under the cowl, and protect your entire fuel system from harmful residue buildup. It’s the kind of preventive maintenance that pays dividends immediately in the form of optimal performance and sets your engine up for a long, productive life.

TRADEMARK ATTRIBUTION STATEMENT:

YAMAHA is a registered trademark of Yamaha Corporation. HONDA is a registered trademark of Honda Motor Co., Ltd. SUZUKI is a registered trademark of Suzuki Motor Corporation. JOHNSON and EVINRUDE are registered trademarks of Bombardier Recreational Products, Inc. VOLVO is a registered trademark of Volvo Trademark Holding AB. CHRYSLER is a registered trademark of Chrysler Group LLC. All other trademarks belong to Brunswick Corporation.