Grinding noise when put in forward or reverse

[LAKEAHOLIC]

Hello, just bought a 1997 procraft 20' bass ski combo with a mercury 200hp EFI motor. I am hearing a grinding noise when I shift into forward or reverse. Once it is in gear it is fine, it just makes a bad grinding noise getting into gear. Looking for any sugestions to what this problem could be.<br /><br />Thank you.

 

[ob]

Re: Grinding noise when put in forward or reverse

First off, we need to know if you are shifting briskly into gear from neutral.If shifted slowly ,all outboards will grind.A mild clunk is normal.Also insure idle speed is set correctly.

 

[scotiany]

Re: Grinding noise when put in forward or reverse

In addition, you might want to change the lower unit gear lube. I just took a Chrysler apart and the lube was gnarly looking

 

[LAKEAHOLIC]

Re: Grinding noise when put in forward or reverse

Hello, I have changed the lower gear lube the day I bought the boat and it looked good. I have tried shifting both slow and fast. There is less grinding when I shift at a faster speed, but it still seems a little to much. I have owned a couple of other outboards and they shifted a lot better than this boat. I will try adjusting the idle speed and see what that does. One other question I had about the Mercury 200hp EFI motor is that the water does not pump out the back of the boat for about a minute, is that normal. I had the impeller changed the day I bought the boat .<br /><br />Thank you for the quick response.