Boat won't go into gear
I recently bought a used boat. When I took it out on the lake, I had
trouble getting it to go into gear. I had to try numerous times. The engine would rev up, but it would not go into forward or reverse. About one out of every 30 tries of pushing the throttle all the way forward would make it jerk into gear. Once I finally got into into gear, it would go fast with no problem, but when I put it back into neutral, I had the same problem again. What could the issue be and how expensive is it to have fixed? |
Boat won't go into gear
Forgot to mention it's a Johnson 115 HP outboard motor.
|
Boat won't go into gear
Inboard ? Outboard? I/O ? Each has a different solution.
Don Dando "Travis" wrote in message oups.com... I recently bought a used boat. When I took it out on the lake, I had trouble getting it to go into gear. I had to try numerous times. The engine would rev up, but it would not go into forward or reverse. About one out of every 30 tries of pushing the throttle all the way forward would make it jerk into gear. Once I finally got into into gear, it would go fast with no problem, but when I put it back into neutral, I had the same problem again. What could the issue be and how expensive is it to have fixed? |
Boat won't go into gear
Johnson Outboard Sea Horse 115 HP. What does i/o mean?
|
Boat won't go into gear
I would be looking at the control cable and the control box. Pull the
cowling off the engine and determine which cable is throttle and which is the shift. The disconnect the shift cable at the engine. Try to shift it manually at the engine with it running. Obviously you need to hook up water to the engine or back it into the water. Also keep any body parts out of the prop. Start it up and with the engine idling try to put it in either gear. If that works then try the other direction. If that works then the problem is the cable or the control box . With the cable still disconnected try to pull on it. If it pulls out all the way then the cable is broken and you need a new one. If it doesn't pull out then I would move the remote control (lever by the helm) into forward and then reverse while watching the cable end by the engine. The cable should only move as you move the control lever into gear. If it doesn't move or moves after you are into the throttle area of the control lever then I would suspect the control. Put a new control and new cables and you should be set. If shifting the engine manually does not work then the problem is in the lower unit. Good luck, Justin "Travis" wrote in message oups.com... I recently bought a used boat. When I took it out on the lake, I had trouble getting it to go into gear. I had to try numerous times. The engine would rev up, but it would not go into forward or reverse. About one out of every 30 tries of pushing the throttle all the way forward would make it jerk into gear. Once I finally got into into gear, it would go fast with no problem, but when I put it back into neutral, I had the same problem again. What could the issue be and how expensive is it to have fixed? |
Boat won't go into gear
Thank you so much. That is great info. How do I shift the engine
manually? |
Boat won't go into gear
Thanks for the great info. How do I shift then engine manually? Can I
do this with the hose hooked up to my boat or must I put it in the water? |
Boat won't go into gear
Travis writes:
What could the issue be and how expensive is it to have fixed? Get an aftermarket repair manual such as are sold at West Marine or Boaters World for $30. Will help you diagnose this and other problems you have, and make you either a knowledgeable do-it-yourselfer or shrewd service customer. |
Boat won't go into gear
The shift cable pushes and pulls a lever on the engine. When you take the
cable of the engine you can manually shift it by pushing or pulling that lever. You can check it with a hose hooked up to the engine. Justin "Travis" wrote in message ups.com... Thanks for the great info. How do I shift then engine manually? Can I do this with the hose hooked up to my boat or must I put it in the water? |
Boat won't go into gear
Well we did some troubleshooting and when we shifted it manually it
still didn't go into gear. I can tell it is trying to, a spit of water here and there and half a spin from the prop every so often. The gear oil is creamy. Any ideas on what the cause is and how expensive it is to fix? |
Boat won't go into gear
Ok with the johnsons you have the linkage goes under the motor to
the lower unit. Now follow the linkage from the throddle to the back of the motor with the cover off. You SHOULD see the levers (on the left side) moving back and forth. One should be for the engine to rev and the other lever would to engage the drive. As for the oil being creamy in the lower unit, that can be a problem. If it looks like coffee moca, there can be water in the oil. Thats a problem. (bad seal) I would at the very least change the lower unit fluid and adjust the linkage. Its not exactly uncommon for older boats to have linkage that was stretched out beyond its useful life. If you want to play with the linkage while the motor is running (out of the water) I would first and foremost, remove the prop. (dont need to be standing too close and get caught up by it) Put the muffs on and fire up the water. You should be able to disconnect the linkage from the motor and shift it forwards and reverse. If that doesnt work, you might have a issue with the lower unit. The other think that can be a problem, is that the last guy who did the lower unit may have tightened or loosened the linkage line from the lower unit. Do that a bit much and it can have issues like you mentioned too. If there is no real history on the motor, since you are the new owner I would also look into changing the fuel filter, thermostats, and water pump impeller. Those are maintence its which may have been neglected by the previous owner. Tom |
Boat won't go into gear
"Travis" wrote in message ups.com... Thanks for the great info. How do I shift then engine manually? Can I do this with the hose hooked up to my boat or must I put it in the water? I had an older Johnson and I found that the shift mechanism for the engine ran thru a lever/rocker arm and the pivot point/bolt had eggshelled out the lever arm. This resulted in too much play and the gear in the foot wasn't being engaged because there was too little throw on the shift rod to the foot. This lever arm is under the carb in the front of the engine. One side of this lever connects to a rod going to the foot and the other side connects an arm to the shift lever the shift cable attaches to. I removed the arm and welded a washer to each side of the shift arm/lever. Problem fixed! |
Don - I am having the same problem with my i/o, 7.4L Mercruiser bravo 3. She goes into reverse fine, but takes 20 or so tries going from neutral to forward. Appreciate any advice.
Quote:
|
All times are GMT +1. The time now is 04:12 PM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004 - 2014 BoatBanter.com