A beautiful, georgious day on Georgian Bay...Out at Beckwith Island, and the starter went! Got a tow-boat to come over and give us some extra juice to start it up, thankfully no 3hr tow home...

A couple of questions: how long do starters usually last for? Boat is a 22' Mariah with 280hrs. This may sound a bit dumb, but do any of you carry extra ones on board, or is there an easy alternative way to get the engine fired up?

any info greatly appreciated! (in the meantime I'll be drinking some cold ones at the dry dock )

point it downsteam and pop the clutch

If thats your worst day boating maybe more of us should look into buying a Mariah

If extra juice got it going, it may be the relay mounted on the front of the motor that's gone bad, will make a clicking sound.

You can always jump from the battery positive on the starter up to the starter solenoid terminal and get most starters to function when you are in a bind.

Starter life varies with the amount of moisture and use. No predicting how long they will work. My mini reduction starter has been on for 5 years, however I am on my second remote starter relay.

I heard that!

low voltage will cause starters to go out quicker alway make sure the battery is fully charged

Check ALL your terminals and connections.