Hi Huey,
No wing nuts on my batteries. All nylocs....and yes, they are on tight and free of acid build up!
The diagnosis was confirmed by two seperate Mercury service centers here in Sydney even before I mentioned the issue re the lanyard. Apparently the specific symptom I received of the smartcraft fault code #22 (warning horn not functioning), and the fact that the warning horn was continously sounding (contradictory in nature) was what lead to the mechanics suggesting that I had cranked without the lanyard.
Note in addition that the entire ECU was not blown, only the circuit that controlled the warning horn. The engine fired up and seemed to operating normally, except for the continual warning horn once the lanyard was replaced.
My faith in the Optimax product is dimishing. Myself and 3 other fishing club members had 200HP Opti's fitted to our boats in March 2008. Since then, all have gone in for warranty claims for blown coils, replacement computers ect. I would have hated to be paying the bill for these repairs.
Thank you for your input anyway.
Ray Buttigieg