bodowlab Posted August 11, 2017 Hi, I recently bought a 2004 280 SSi. It has twin VP 5.7 Gi-E engines. My problem is that when I bought it both engine hour meters were working, but now neither is. This is my first boat so I'm wondering if there is some switch that needs to be on for these to work? There has been a lot of work in the engine compartment and I don't know if something was knocked loose or do I just not have them turned on (displaying). Any suggestions? Thanks! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
osteodoc08 Posted August 11, 2017 Should be a LCD readout on the tach. If the screen isn't working, it's a bad LCD screen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bodowlab Posted August 11, 2017 I have two separate Hobbs readouts that are located on either side of the switch dash panel and both stopped working at the same time. Not sure if there is a fuse for these or what the issue is. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cyclops2 Posted August 11, 2017 What part is replaced the most in a boat selling place ? Hour meter. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bodowlab Posted August 11, 2017 D'oh! Well dang I was looking for the magic "make these work" switch. Guess I'm ripping out the meters to test\replace them. Thanks for all of the info! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
osteodoc08 Posted August 11, 2017 Figured it was in the gauge package but they should power on automatically regardless. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Lestat Posted August 11, 2017 If they were working before engine work and not after, I would look for loose wire in engine bay. I have had a few items suddenly not work after engine work and they have always been a disconnected wire caused by the mechanic. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bodowlab Posted August 11, 2017 I'll update with what I find out. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bodowlab Posted February 27 Sorry for the long delay in responding. Ok, so it was the meters that were bad. They have been replaced, but they both only show.01 hours and they increment when the ignition is on. The boat is out of the water for the season so I haven't actually started the engines. Should this be the case or should they have updated with the current true engine hours? Do the engine have to be running for the meters to show true engine time and if so why would they still increment when the ignition is on, but the engine is not running? Kind of at a loss here and looking for any suggestions. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wingnut Posted February 28 19 hours ago, bodowlab said: Sorry for the long delay in responding. Ok, so it was the meters that were bad. They have been replaced, but they both only show.01 hours and they increment when the ignition is on. The boat is out of the water for the season so I haven't actually started the engines. Should this be the case or should they have updated with the current true engine hours? Do the engine have to be running for the meters to show true engine time and if so why would they still increment when the ignition is on, but the engine is not running? Kind of at a loss here and looking for any suggestions. The hour meters are simple Hobbs digital timers that accumulate hours when power is applied (key on) and stop when power is lost. They do no communicate with engine data or the ECM's. They also do not care if the engine is running or not, and my question is why would you have the key on, without the engine running? If you are interested in how many actual hours are on your engine, a dealer can utilize a scan tool to access the ECM histogram which will indicate total run hours, and depending on sophistication of the ECM you may also be able to see what percentage of the total time the engines were run at WOT, and past alarm conditions. W Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
