Yamaha 4 stroke fuel problem

Question
I have a 2003 150hp Yamaha 4 stroke with 150 hours running time. Up until recently, the motor has run perfectly at all ranges. Just recently, I was running at about full throttle and the engine died completely. Attempts to restart were futile. After about 10 minutes, I was able to restart and it ran perfectly again. Since that first time, the same thing has happended about three more times. Each time with the same results. I have a 50 gallon tank on my boat with a fuel filter inline to the engine. I suspect that is where the problem is. Can you help?  

Answer
Hi Ralph

Thanks for selecting me to respond to your question.

I'm not a mechanic, but since you suggested the fuel filter might be a suspected cause, and likely checked it out thoroughtly, I'm surprised you encountered a similar experience thereafter.

Overheating is caused by a restriction or lack of fresh water flowing through the journals in the power head. Therefore, have you chekced for blockage at the source of the water pickup? Remove the screen and visually check for foreign matter that might be blocking the intake. Secondly, the impeller could be deteriorated and periodically malfunctions. With 150 hrs. on the engine, the impeller might require replacement.

What I have difficulty with is the fact you say the engine heats up on one side only, and I presume you mean it is always the same side that does heat up. It almost sounds like one side of the block might be fractured, and needs to be magnafluxed to verify whether a fracture exists or not. If you've exhausted all troubleshooting hints from the owner's manual, I recommend you take the engine to a qualified Yamaha dealer or service/repair facility.

Safe Boating
Ron