I have a 27 hp kohler command pro on a go devil long tail. The engine only starts when I squeeze the throttle and give it a little gas. When I run it in the water it'll slow down and die after about 5 minutes. If I keep pumping the primer bulb while ridding it runs fine as long as i keep a hand on the bulb and keep pumping. But if I slow down or try to idle it dies again.

I changed the oil, replaced the air filter and spark plugs, replaced the fuel lines, and rebuilt the carburetor, and none of it fixed the problem.

I'm thinking maybe the fuel pump might be bad. Has anyone had similar problems? I've got a duck hunt trip planned this weekend and need to get her fixed ASAP. Any help would be much appreciated, thanks.

The symptoms you describe definitely point toward fuel pump. Very early the pump on this eng. was electric, but much more common is a mechanical pump on the valve cover that works off the rocker arm. I suspect that pump is not putting out. It could be caused by a valve failure in the pump or the plunger to the rocker arm. Since it runs when you squeeze the bulb the quickest fix to get you hunting this weekend is a 2-4 psi electric pump in the fuel line ahead of the mechanical pump. good luck.

Replace the fuel pump I got one for my command pro 27 Prodrive for 16 bucks. If that doesn't work check for a bad headgasket


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Well I figured out the problem and the motor ran fine all weekend. The choke flap in the carburetor had a crack in it, and was causing it to stick when running at low speed (so the gas/air mixture wasn't getting the right mixture). I removed the choke valve and it ran perfect all weekend.